The position in Bolton
There are 4,249 unique commercial properties in Bolton with a certificate on the Energy Performance of Buildings Register. Of those, 3,465 – 81.5% – are rated below EPC B, which is 5.4 percentage points worse than the England and Wales average of 76.1%.
The largest category locally is retail & financial services, and the postal towns and districts most represented are Bolton, Manchester, Horwich, Farnworth, Westhoughton. Average floor area is 752 m² and the average asset rating is 79.
845 certificates in the district have expired (19.9% of the total), of which 137 were rated F or G when issued – the least comfortable position on the register, and the one owners are least likely to know about.
Key figures
Band distribution
| Band | Properties | Share | Share, shown as a bar | vs England & Wales |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A+ | 7 | 0.2% | -0.1 | |
| A | 141 | 3.3% | -0.8 | |
| B | 636 | 15.0% | -4.5 | |
| C | 1,421 | 33.4% | +0.2 | |
| D | 1,140 | 26.8% | +1.1 | |
| E | 680 | 16.0% | +3.1 | |
| F | 101 | 2.4% | +0.5 | |
| G | 123 | 2.9% | +0.4 |
Commercial stock by sector
| Sector | Properties | Share | Share, shown as a bar |
|---|---|---|---|
| Retail & financial services | 1,718 | 40.4% | |
| Offices & workshops | 925 | 21.8% | |
| Restaurants, cafes & pubs | 528 | 12.4% | |
| Storage & distribution | 366 | 8.6% | |
| General & special industrial | 245 | 5.8% | |
| Community & day centres | 94 | 2.2% | |
| Education | 92 | 2.2% | |
| Assembly & leisure | 71 | 1.7% |
Floor area – who the 2031 standard catches
The 2031 EPC B standard is expected to apply only to buildings over 1,000 m². In Bolton that line falls here:
| Floor area | Properties | Share | Share, shown as a bar |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 250 m² | 2,459 | 57.9% | |
| 250–500 m² | 701 | 16.5% | |
| 500–1,000 m² | 472 | 11.1% | |
| 1,000–2,500 m² | 371 | 8.7% | |
| 2,500–10,000 m² | 209 | 4.9% | |
| Over 10,000 m² | 37 | 0.9% |
Find your building in Bolton
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For editors and journalists
Quote – attributable to evenEco
Please attribute to evenEco and link to evenhub.uk/commercial/areas/bolton/. Figures derived from the GOV.UK Energy Performance of Buildings Register, deduplicated to the most recent certificate per property. Media enquiries: contact us.
Shareable summary – Bolton
| Measure | Figure |
|---|---|
| Commercial properties analysed | 4,249 |
| Below EPC B | 3,465 (81.5%) |
| Below EPC E – unlettable without exemption | 224 (5.3%) |
| Over 1,000 m² and below EPC B | 419 |
| Expired certificates | 845 (19.9%) |
| Average floor area | 752 m² |
| National rank (share below EPC B) | 42 of 319 |
Common questions
How many commercial properties in Bolton are below EPC B?
3,465 of 4,249 – 81.5% of the commercial stock on the register. That is 5.4 percentage points worse than the England and Wales average of 76.1%.
How many buildings in Bolton are caught by the 2031 EPC B standard?
419 commercial buildings in Bolton are over 1,000 m² and currently rated below EPC B, which is the cohort the 2031 standard is aimed at.
How many commercial buildings in Bolton are already unlettable?
224 are rated F or G. Letting those without a registered exemption has been unlawful since 1 April 2023. A further 137 have an expired certificate that was rated F or G.
Where does Bolton rank nationally?
42 of 319 local authorities, ranked by the share of commercial stock below EPC B, with rank 1 being the highest share.
Local authorities with a similar profile
Sefton
81.6% below EPC B · 4,211 properties
See the data →North Norfolk
81.5% below EPC B · 1,922 properties
See the data →Cumberland
81.5% below EPC B · 4,611 properties
See the data →Norwich
81.4% below EPC B · 3,525 properties
See the data →Merthyr Tydfil
81.4% below EPC B · 824 properties
See the data →Leicester
81.3% below EPC B · 6,253 properties
See the data →