Warm Homes Saves Lives Programmes: tackling the growing fuel poverty crisis
West Midlands Initiative to tackle growing fuel poverty crisis
Before the Coronavirus Pandemic it was estimated that Fuel Poverty afflicts at least 2.4 million households nationally, over a tenth of all homes, with 80% concentrated in the most energy inefficient homes.
For 2018, regionally, an estimated 11.4% of all households are considered to be fuel poor, the second worst in England, with the actual average fuel poverty gap in the West Midlands calculated as £433 per home, the largest in England.
Fuel poverty is commonly considered to be a result of three factors: household income, unaffordable energy prices and energy inefficient homes. We also recognise that the lack of ability to cope is also fundamentally important.
Tackling fuel poverty is not simply a money issue, although it is a root cause, but for people and households under pressure from a whole host of sources, it is providing means by which to cope and ultimately prosper. The new tool to help us manage our conversations with individuals (CRM – customer relationship management tool) will help identify those under pressure more rapidly and help deliver responses more urgently -Rachel Jones, Act on Energy.
Ramping up the crisis response to poor homes and broken heating systems within a plan for the energy efficiency of the whole house as quickly and effectively as possible is essential. This will deliver benefits not just to those under energy price pressures, but also through small scale retrofit operations providing much needed employment and business opportunities, at an aggregate regional level delivering a much-needed stimulus to growth. The CRM is intended to enable speedy identification of dwelling energy failings, then provide the physical retrofit plan and works to accelerate high quality, appropriate solutions whilst prioritising the immediate needs of those in fuel poverty - Rosemary Coyne, SHAP
to read the full press release:
West_Midlands_Fuel_Poverty_Innovation_Press_Release_06August20.pdf