Going backwards? A temporal perspective of what constitutes improvement in domestic heating transitions

To meet UK government targets and support the transition to net zero, the energy system will need to decarbonize. In particular, buildings, as one of the largest sources of UK emissions, will need to transition to clean heat. This will involve changes to the material infrastructure of homes, which may have implications for people's everyday lives and relationships, with public acceptability critical to processes of energy-system transformation. Alongside decarbonization, UK energy-system transformation has been positioned as potentially able to deliver significant benefits to households. In this article, we present qualitative data from deliberative workshops with members of the public concerning perceptions of heat decarbonization. We explore how low-carbon heating is not necessarily seen as an improvement where changes to heating systems may result in perceived compromises to comfort and convenience. We contend that a temporally sensitive approach, which explores past energy-system transitions and experiences of current heating systems as well as anticipated future technologies, can offer important insights into the transition to low-carbon heating.