National Energy Action (NEA) and Energy Action Scotland (EAS) are national charities working to end fuel poverty across the United Kingdom. The UK Fuel Poverty Monitor is our annual investigative report on fuel poverty levels in the UK and within each of the four nations. The Monitor also investigates the key policies and practices that are in place to tackle cold homes and makes country-specific and national recommendations. This year, we are reviewing progress in delivering fuel poverty strategies and meeting statutory targets in each of the UK nations.

As a valued stakeholder, we would welcome your contribution.

January 2018 | Luke Garrett (NEA)

This report presents the results of the pilot phase evaluation of the Warms Zones Reactive Repair Service (WZRRS) which currently operates in parts of the West Midlands region, and began operation in September 2016. NEA evaluated the scheme ahead of a planned wider roll out in 2017/18 and into 2018/19.

January 2018 | Juliette Burroughs (NEA)

This research investigated the relationship between fuel poverty and carbon monoxide (CO) risk in households on low incomes and in vulnerable situations. Over the course of two heating seasons (October to April) in 2015/16 and 2016/17 NEA collected data from 349 households, targeting those on low incomes and with a range of vulnerabilities. The main conclusion to draw from this research is that the factors which cause or expose households to the risk of fuel poverty – low income, poor quality housing and the age and health of occupants – can impact on the heating and servicing behaviours of households to elevate CO risk in homes

September 2017 | Bryony Holroyd, Michael Hamer (NEA)

The project is to evaluate the effectiveness of the complimentary Chop-cloc product fitted to gas fired central heating systems, in terms of assessing the size of any energy and cost savings made – particularly whether these meet the manufacturer’s claims – and any other customer experience issues or benefits associated with this product.

September 2017 | Bryony Holroyd, Michael Hamer (NEA)

The project is to evaluate the effectiveness of the complimentary “tadpole” product fitted to gas fired central heating systems, in terms of assessing the size of any energy and cost savings made – particularly whether these meet the manufacturer’s claims – and any other customer experience issues or benefits associated with this product.

September 2017 | Newcastle University and NEA

Overview of the interdisciplinary multi-storey research communities project

This report presents the results of a second phase of evaluation of the npower Fuel Bank™ scheme.  While the pilot evaluation (phase one) examined the experience and impact of the scheme from the perspective of service users and service providers (food bank staff and volunteers), this report focuses solely on service users. Fieldwork took place between December 2016 and February 2017 and involved 172 service users.

The npower Fuel Bank™, launched as a pilot scheme in four areas 2015, was expanded into 10 new locations in spring 2016. Fuel banks are now available across Great Britain in 14 areas (12 in England and one in both Wales and Scotland).

April 2017 | Wouter Pourtinga, Shiyu Jang, Charlotte Grey & Chris Tweed, Welsh School of Architecture, Cardiff University

Improving the energy efficiency of the housing stock may bring multiple positive health gains through improved indoor temperatures and reduced fuel consumption. This study used a multilevel interrupted time-series approach to evaluate a policy-led energy-performance investment programme. Long-term monitoring data were collected for intervention and control households at baseline (n = 99) and follow-up (n = 88), creating a dataset with 15,771 data points for a series of daily-averaged hydro-thermal outcome variables. The study found that the intervention raised indoor air temperature by on average 0.84 K as compared with control households, thereby bringing the majority of indoor temperature measurements within the ‘healthy’ comfort zone of 18–24°C, while average daily gas usage dropped by 37%. The study concludes that the multilevel interrupted time-series approach offers a useful model for evaluating housing improvement programmes.

April 2017 | Charlotte N. B. Grey, Tina Schmieder-Gaite, Shiyu Jiang, Wouter Poortinga from Welsh School of Architecture, Cardiff University and Christina Nascimento, School of Social Sciences, Cardiff University

Cold homes have been identified as factors in health and social inequalities. Research on fuel poverty and the health impacts of affordable warmth initiatives have to date primarily been conducted using quantitative and statistical methods. This study took a longitudinal focus group approach that allowed exploration of lived experiences of fuel poverty before and after an energy efficiency intervention. Focus group discussions were held with residents from three low-income communities before (n = 28) and after (n = 22) they received energy efficiency measures. The results show that improving the energy efficiency of homes at risk of fuel poverty has a profound impact on wellbeing and quality of life among other areas. There is a need for better community engagement and communication to improve the benefits delivered by fuel poverty programmes, as well as further qualitative exploration to better understand the wider impacts of fuel poverty and policy-led intervention schemes.