Three decades of Grant UK: from oil-fired roots to low-carbon heat

Family-run heating specialist Grant UK is celebrating 30 years at the heart of the oil-fired and renewable heating market. Founded in 1996 by managing director Paul Wakefield after an early collaboration with Grant Engineering’s Irish owners, Stephen Grant and John Fay, the business has grown from a small family operation into one of the UK’s best-known names in renewable heating technologies. 

Those early years were powered by long hours and a close-knit team, with Paul’s wife Christine running sales and distribution and daughter Anna, now Head of Internal Sales and Marketing, helping with weekend customer mailshots. Since then, Grant UK has built a reputation for investing in new technologies and supporting installers through training and technical expertise and early investment in new technologies, ranging from the Grant Vortex condensing oil-fired boiler to the more recent Aerona air source heat pump range. 

Grant UK is known for its high-quality products but Paul emphasises the heart of the company has always been its people, including long-serving team members who have helped build Grant UK’s training academy, OEM product sourcing and external sales operation.  

“Reaching 30 years is something we’re incredibly proud of,” says Paul Wakefield, managing director, Grant UK. “We’ve grown steadily by listening to the market, supporting installers and investing in products that genuinely make a difference. The business is in a strong position and with the technology we now have and the people behind it, there are some very exciting years ahead for Grant UK.”