Council receives £60,000 grant to help residents reduce their energy bills
County Hall in Morpeth, headquarters of Northumberland County Council
NORTHUMBERLAND County Council has been awarded nearly £60,000 of Government funding to support its work in helping people to get a better deal on their energy bills through a programme called ‘cheaper energy together’.
This will allow the council to expand the work it is already doing in this area – which will see an auction for the first energy collective scheme at the end of January.
It has been awarded a share of £46m from the Government to help reduce fuel poverty, boost energy efficiency, and encourage collective switching and purchasing in regions across Great Britain.
This funding will be used to help keep people’s energy bills down and ensure homes are warm this winter.
Organisations were invited to bid for money under three competitions by the Department of Energy and Climate Change and Northumberland received a share of £5m allocated to set up collective switching schemes.
Northumberland is already promoting the first phase of the scheme – with the deadline for registrations now January 28. Over 17,000 people have already signed up to the scheme, which is being run in partnership with 11 other councils – making it the biggest local authority led collective switching scheme in the UK.
Coun Andrew Tebbutt, executive member responsible for corporate resources, said: “This extra funding is great news for our work in helping people to reduce their energy bills. We want as many people as possible in Northumberland to find the cheapest price for their energy because we are aware that so many people struggle with their current fuel bills
“Northumberland has achieved more sign-ups than any of the other local authority areas in the consortium to date – with nearly 6,000 residents expressing an interest. I would encourage anyone who hasn’t done so yet to sign-up.”
The deadline to register has been extended to provide the opportunity to get the best possible deal for residents and maximise potential savings on their energy bills.
The auction for energy companies is planned for January 29 and households will receive their offers in early February. There is no obligation to accept any offer at the conclusion of the ready to switch scheme, and you can opt out at any time.
To register visit www.readytoswitch.co.uk and provide your contact details, the name of your supplier and details of your current energy usage and tariff. Or call 0845 600 6400.
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Saturday 18 May 2013
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