Published at 19:29, Thursday, 18 December 2008

PEOPLE across the area are feeling the pinch as the winter cold and rising fuel prices bite, but help could be on its way for many people before next Christmas as housing associations lead the way to find some answers to the problem.

Figures released by the Workington branch of the Citizens Advice Bureau show that from July to September, 47.6 per cent of enquiries received by the branch were about debt, with 5.9 per cent of those on the subject of fuel debt.

This was up from 41.2 per cent enquiries regarding debt, of which 3.8 per cent were fuel related, in the same period last year.

Although unable to release details of how many fuel poverty enquiries were made to the branch, Debbie Redmond, of Workington CAB, said the number was increasing.

She said: “I think it’s fair to say it is up across the board. The best thing to do is to seek help early on and not ignore the bills that are coming in.”

Fuel poverty is defined as spending 10 per cent or more of a household’s income on household fuel so a single-person household with an income of £17,500 would be in fuel poverty if they spent £33.65 or more on household fuel per week.

Workington MP Tony Cunningham agreed fuel poverty was proving a problem locally.

He said he had only received about half a dozen letters this year about fuel poverty, compared with 1,400 letters about the recent threat to the Post Office card account.

But, he said: “Just because people aren’t writing in doesn’t mean that the problem doesn’t exist.

“If one person is suffering from fuel poverty that’s a concern.”

However, while the CAB is appealing to those struggling to meet fuel costs to contact them for help, housing associations are taking steps to ease the future burden for tenants.

Impact Housing chief executive Mike Muir said the company was working with Derwent and Solway and Westfield to form a partnership to help reduce the cost of fuel for tenants, including those in the 3,500 housing-association semis in south Workington.

The company is in the early stages of preparation to form an energy company so it can buy household fuel at wholesale prices and act as supplier to its tenants at the rate it paid, cutting bills by an estimated 25 per cent if implemented.

The associations are also making energy-efficiency improvements to their local homes, including improving insulation and replacing old boilers with cheaper-to-run models.

Mr Muir said: “I think inevitably fuel poverty will continue to rise until we are geared up as a society to the issue of rising fuel bills.

“Insulating homes better and putting in better boilers will reduce carbon dioxide.

“I think the energy company would make a significant difference.”

Workington town centre has more than 2,000 early-20th-century terraced properties, many of which Mr Muir said could benefit from better insulation.

The Energy Advice Centre in Carlisle is running a Government programme informing residents of ways to make their homes more energy efficient.

In future, Mr Muir said, houses will be built facing south with solar panels fitted to the roofs, a lot of shared heating systems, triple glazing and even small wind turbines to make them more energy efficient.

In the meantime advice and assistance can be sought on coping with fuel poverty.

Age Concern is running schemes across West Cumbria to help elderly people this winter under its Eat and Heat campaign, encouraging people to keep well by eating healthily and keeping warm.

For information and help dealing with fuel poverty and rising fuel costs, call Workington Citizens Advice Bureau on 01900 604735 or Age Concern on 01900 844670.

Published by http://www.timesandstar.co.uk