Energy project achievements highlighted by Energy Redress Trust
8th Jul 2023
Energy Redress Trust have highlighted our Energy Advice Rural Northumberland (EARN) project as a case study, sharing our achievements of hitting all our targets in helping people.
We were awarded funding from the Energy Redress scheme to support energy consumers in hard-to-reach rural Northumberland who are disadvantaged through remote locations with no connection to the gas grid and, in the case of 356 households, the electricity grid.
We knew residents frequently struggle to access existing services and need additional support from trusted community-based sources. The incidence of fuel poverty is huge with low incomes, poor dwelling construction and cost of heating oil. The project was designed to build on our existing, trusted network of community-centred Warm Hubs as the focus for support and advice for the long term.
To date, we have exceeded all targets, having supported just over 3,000 households with a mixture of light-touch advice at events, home visits, face-to-face appointments at community venues and telephone support. We have also provided over 4,000 small energy-saving measures to over 700 households.