SMS supports Big Energy Saving Week 2020
Led by the Energy Saving Trust and the Citizens Advice Bureau, Big Energy Saving Week is taking place between Monday 20th January and Sunday 26th January 2020.
January is traditionally a tough month when it comes to energy bills, with many people across the UK having to make difficult choices about whether they can afford to heat their homes.
If you are struggling with energy-related issues, then Big Energy Saving Week 2020 highlights ways to overcome those difficulties. Energy Saving Trust and Citizens Advice Bureau have produced a series of energy-saving actions to reduce the amount of energy you use and lower your bills as a result.
Using less energy is a win win, as it brings down bills and reduces our impact on the planet by using less resource. Big Energy Saving Week is a national campaign funded by the UK and devolved Scottish and Welsh governments. As part of the campaign, events organised by Citizens Advice Bureau are taking place up and down the country. These include stalls at local town halls, supermarkets and community hubs to reach people who are not aware of the support available and working with local charities to deliver outreach advice surgeries.
In 2018-19, Citizens Advice Bureau and the Extra Help Unit delivered £1.3 million in savings to people who came to the network with energy-related issues and an average saving of £232 per case.
Accessing energy saving advice
The best way to find out how to reduce your energy use is to get some specialist energy saving advice. Energy Saving Trust has general information on home energy efficiency, you can try the Simple Energy Advice website, or call 0800 444 2020.
Alternatively, watch our video offering simple tips on how to make energy savings below.
If you live in Scotland, you can access advice and information through Home Energy Scotland’s network of local advice centres, which can be contacted on 0808 808 2282. In Wales, there’s energy saving advice available through Nest/Nyth, which can be contacted on 0808 808 2244.
You can also contact your local Citizens Advice Bureau, which can provide free, confidential and impartial advice to help you make changes to your energy use that could lead to significant savings.
Energy efficiency advice for businesses
If you are a business, and would like advice on energy saving or achieving greater efficiency across your sites, then our expert energy team would be only too happy to help. Visit our Smart Energy Services page for more information, or leave your details and we’ll call or email you back.
Getting a smart meter installed
Having a smart meter fitted in your home is one of the easiest ways to facilitate energy savings and lower your carbon footprint. Smart meters are available for installation at no-extra cost through energy suppliers across Great Britain (England, Scotland and Wales).
Fitted with an in-home display screen, smart meters show you your exact energy usage in pounds and pence (in near real time). Not only do smart meters make estimated bills a thing of the past and enable you to actively manage and reduce your energy consumption, they are also laying the foundations for our future smart energy grid – the digital, interconnected national network that will provide us with a more modern, more efficient, and cleaner supply of power.
When it comes to helping make energy savings, smart meters are proven to work. Research by Smart Energy GB – the national campaign for the smart meter roll out – shows that 86% of smart meter owners change their behaviour to make energy savings once their device is installed.
