The government scheme that is meant to guard consumers against fuel poverty has upped the level of money now available.

Grants of up to £2,700 have been available to households who opt for energy efficient initiatives such as the fitting of a new boiler, loft and wall insulation, and double glazing. That figure has now increased to £3,500 and for those households that are not on the national grid and have to rely on oil, or LPG, they can now apply for a grant up to £6,000. Also, grants for new carbon friendly technologies, such as air source heat pumps and thermal heating, will now be available.

But critics point out that the grants are not usually 100% and top-up fees are often payable by the householder. Furthermore, many people on the receiving end of work carried out say that much of it is below standard and over priced. Some 22,000 people who originally applied for a grant over the last three years have either pulled out of the scheme, or put their applications on hold, fearing that they would not be able to afford the top-up contributions.

The government has ear-marked a total of £959 million for the Warm Front scheme until April 2011, although there are many who see this as promised and not secure funding.

Guest Article by Neil Camp

Britain’s most eco-friendly neighbours live in Green Lane, Cookridge, Leeds, just in case you were wondering.

In an experiment masterminded by British Gas, the Leeds residents won a competition which saw eight families on eight different streets throughout the U.K. try to cut their energy consumption by 25%. And the prize, some £30,000 for the street to spend on energy saving light bulbs, solar panels, loft insulation and energy conscious kettles.

The project highlighted some families which achieved a whopping energy saving of over 50%, and many coming in with a still impressive 30%.

One family in Green Lane achieved a dramatic 45% reduction, saving what they believe was £700 off their annual energy bill. They were helped in their quest with a smart meter that allowed them to monitor real-time their consumption. They told reporters how shocked they were whenever they boiled a kettle, or used an iron. The amount of electricity they used was incredible they said and encouraged them to only boil the amount of water they needed, and to use the iron less. They also gave up on their electric mower and used a manual one.

By running the competition, British Gas were keen to highlight the fact that households account for a quarter of the total U.K. emissions. Furthermore, that for every £3 spent on heating a U.K. house, on average £1 is lost due to poor insulation.

The Institute of Public Policy Research (IPPR), an independent think tank, monitored the experiment and will make a report to the Government. It’s been pointed out that if all British households took the same measures as the families in the competition, the country could easily beat the target to cut U.K. emissions of carbon dioxide. In fact, it would save 35 million tons of emissions, which is equivalent to what three coal-fired power stations produce every year.

Guest Article by Neil Camp

The Government’s much trumpeted Warm Front initiative is “unfit for purpose” says The National Audit Office (“NAO”).

The Warm Front scheme was created to help poorer households get subsidised help with roof and wall insulation, double glazing and high-efficiency boilers. It is also a scheme on which a number of energy companies build their customer help programmes.

But the NAO discovered that some 57% of vulnerable households – those in fuel poverty – could not be helped by the scheme because they did not claim key benefits. Fuel poverty is officially defined as those that spend over ten per cent of their household budget on energy costs. Ironically though, the NAO also found that 75% of those who are entitled, were not necessarily in fuel poverty.

So, whilst there are some two million households in fuel poverty, only around 600,000 have been helped between June 2005 and March 2008.

And, in another twist, the NAO discovered of the nearly £900 million spent on grants, around £35 million of it was spent on homes that were already regarded as fuel efficient.

Various charity groups claim to have received thousands of complaints about Warm Front, mainly over the fact that the measures are only subsided and many households literally cannot afford to make up the difference in the cost from their own pockets.

The net result, say the various bodies, is that the government’s scheme cannot be said to cope with the nation’s energy cost crisis.

The government has responded via Energy and Climate Change Minister Joann Ruddock who highlighted the fact that nearly two million households had received tangible help, but she did admit that some improvements were necessary. She said the scheme was being reviewed, more money was being made available and that an independent consultant was being brought in to make recommendations as to its viability.

Whether that will be enough to please the various pressure groups, remains to be seen.

Guest Article by Neil Camp

The Conservative Party recently revealed plans for a UK Energy Makeover should they get into power. This nationwide makeover would involve the installation of loft and wall insulation and new energy efficient boilers into every property and although this sounds like a great idea you may be asking how is it going to be paid for? Apparently, the Government are going to lend the gas and electricity companies enough money to complete the upgrades – which are estimated to cost between £1700 and £6000 per home – and the household will be required to pay back the cost in small chunks over the next 25 years! According to the figures released by the Government, the average house would require around £1700 worth of energy efficient improvements and the householders would be expected to pay for this at a rate of around £70 per year. Saying this, the estimations show that the improvements would reduce the average family fuel bill by around £230 per year which will leave the householder £160 in profit. If these figures can be substantiated then the proposed Energy Makeover would benefit everyone however it must be remembered that they are based on the average household and there are plenty of households in the UK that aren’t average. Additional Benefits of the Energy Makeover As well as saving every household money on their fuel bills, the Conservatives list a number of other benefits to their plans, including the creation of thousands of jobs, more competitiveness in the energy supply market and the reduction of the UK’s CO2 emissions by a large percentage. They also mention the fact that the UK will need to train thousands of skilled engineers to cope with the upgrades and this will provide an ongoing stream of skilled tradesmen for years to come – a problem that the country is beginning to struggle with even now. The Conservatives also want the UK to become more reliant on renewable energy sources as opposed to oil and gas imports from countries such as Russia. As an incentive there would be large Government grants available to homes who choose to invest in renewable energy sources such as wind turbines and solar panels and there would be a network of free recharging stations for all new electric and hybrid cars. The Future with the Conservatives According to David Cameron the Conservative plans aim to make the UK a low-carbon economy and the proposed makeover will be the start to a carbon-free existence. Environmental experts say that the plans are workable however they will require the co-operation of the entire nation and the major gas and electricity suppliers – many of which aren’t actually UK companies. As I see it, the average household will be happy to pay for the improvements as they will be saving around £160 on their fuel bills each year but what about the elderly or those that live alone and have small fuel bills to start with – will they actually save the £70 per year that they will be required to pay for the improvements? There are a lot of loose ends with the Energy Makeover Plans but hopefully they will be sorted before the Conservatives gain control. Guest Article by Clare Lynock

In the current economical climate everyone is looking for ways to heat their homes more efficiently and save money but most people neglect to think about keeping the heat in their homes once they’ve produced it. Cavity wall insulation has been available for years and I can remember my parents having it installed when I was a kid, but is it still a viable money saving option in today’s world of highly efficient boilers and top quality central heating systems. Not surprisingly the experts say yes and it is estimated that 35% of your home’s heat escapes through the walls, so is it worth the installation price?

The Pros
There are plenty of reasons why you should have cavity wall insulation, one of which is that you could get it fitted for free. The government have grants available for most homes which either allows you to have the insulation installed by professionals free of charge or for the greatly reduced price of around £100. The over 70s get it for free, tenants can get it for free, people on certain benefits can get it for free so why not spend ten minutes filling in the application form. Even if you have to pay the £100, it’s still cheaper than fitting cavity wall insulation using the DIY method.

Another great point is that it can often save you money on your heating bills. A detached house with all four walls open to the elements will lose hundreds of pounds worth of heat each year, and this can easily be reduced to virtually nothing with cavity wall and also loft insulation. In fact, you can often recoup any installation costs within the first year just by cutting your heating bills. As well as the economical factor, this type of insulation is also safe to install, it often comes with a 25 year guarantee, it reduces CO2 emissions from your home and it adds value to your property should you decide to sell it.

The Cons
After researching a number of cavity wall insulation websites and forums it would seem that there are very few, if any, drawbacks to this type of insulation providing it is installed properly. Occasionally there have been reports of mould forming around the ceilings close to the exterior walls however these often seem to be due to a problem with the installation contractor and not the actual insulation material. If gaps are left in the wall then moisture can accumulate and mould can form but as long as a sufficient amount of insulating material is injected then there is very rarely a problem.

With this information in mind, it seems that cavity wall insulation is a must for saving money. It can be fitted in a day with no fuss and no mess and if you do apply for a grant, you can often get the entire house done for a very modest price, if not absolutely free.

Guest Article by Clare Lynock