NEA WEST MIDLANDS FUEL POVERTY FORUM 9.15 am Refreshments and Registration 9.30 Welcome – NEA Fuel Poverty Policy Update Andy Littlewood Project Development Coordinator NEA 10.15 Co-producing Birmingham’s Kyle Stott Fuel Poverty Strategy– a workshop Public Health Birmingham CC 11.00 Comfort Break 11.15 PSR: keeping safe, warm and Jo Giles independent at home Safeguarding Manager, Cadent 11.45 NEA Training- helping you to support others Chris Ellis Training manager, NEA 12.00 Latest news & open floor NEA Lead – please share information about funding opportunities, shared resources, new initiatives . . . . 12.15 pm Close and Lunch
Transcript
NEA WEST MIDLANDS FUEL POVERTY FORUM
9.15 am Refreshments and Registration
9.30 Welcome – NEA Fuel Poverty Policy Update Andy LittlewoodProject Development Coordinator NEA
10.15 Co-producing Birmingham’s Kyle StottFuel Poverty Strategy– a workshop Public Health Birmingham CC
11.00 Comfort Break
11.15 PSR: keeping safe, warm and Jo Gilesindependent at home Safeguarding Manager, Cadent
11.45 NEA Training- helping you to support others Chris EllisTraining manager, NEA
12.00 Latest news & open floor NEA Lead– please share information about fundingopportunities, shared resources, new initiatives . . . .
12.15 pm Close and Lunch
Policy Briefing (Autumn 2018)
Andy Littlewood– Project Development Officer
Major Developments in the Last Quarter
Price Caps
ECO 3
Private Rented Sector
NIC NIA
New Labour Party Policies
Price Caps – What it means for vulnerable customers
Good for Vulnerable Customers Bad for Vulnerable Customers
✓ Protects SVT customers from unfair prise rises
✓ Average £70 saving for SVT customers✓ Incentive for suppliers to become more
efficient
• Moves WHD recipients from the safeguard tariff to the default cap,
introducing a time limit and potentially increasing prices1 in the future
1Because the default tariff accounts for some costs that the safeguard tariff does not(such as smart metering costs), we expect it to rise at a quicker pace.
Price Caps are good, but flawed and don’t do enough to “bridge the gap”
ECO 3 – Changes to SchemeScheme now is exclusively for the affordable warmth segment. A minimum of 17,000 solid walled homes must be treated every year
Targeting
Suppliers required to meet 15% of their obligation through in rural areas.
Rural
Up to 10% of a supplier’s obligation can be met through innovation.
Innovation
ECO 3 will allow limited oil boiler delivery to take place within the broken heating system cap
Oil
Landlords with EPC F/G properties will not be able to access ECO
Private Rental Sector
Thresholds for supplier participation will decrease from 250,000 accounts to 150,000 in a phased approach
Obligation Thresholds
Challenges within the ECO Scheme
Oil boiler inclusion is severely limitedInnovation projects need to be carefully considered to ensure
benefit to vulnerable customers
Solid wall requirement not enoughLegislation is late – early delivery will
be risky and therefore difficult
Funding insufficient to meet fuel poverty
targets
PRS-Link with Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards (MEES)
• Last year, government consulted on changes to MEES in the private rental sector
• The main proposals were:
– To remove the ‘no cost to the landlord’ principle
– To implement a cap (proposed @ £2.5k) on the required contribution when upgrading an EPC F or G rated property to EPC E.
Landlords of F/G properties will not have access to ECO, so £2.5k will not go far enough for the majority of measures.
National Infrastructure Assessment
• NIC have published their NIA
• Recommendations around domestic homes include:
– Setting a target of improving 21,000 measures/week by 2020
– Allocating £3.8m to spend on upgrading social housing
– Trial innovative approaches to energy efficiency
– Tighten PRS regulations
Labour Party Policy Paper
• Labour have released a policy paper with a number of updated policies:
Area Based National Energy Efficiency
Programme worth £2.3bn/year
Zero Carbon Homes Standard, prioritising
affordable homes
Tighten PRS regulations
Ensure houses are fit for human habitation
What’s coming up?
Consultation on the future
of WHD scheme
Network regulation
review (RIIO-2)
Comprehensive spending
review2018 2019
Online Fuel Poverty Resource
An online resource hub with all you need to deliver community fuel poverty activities / events.
Free to download resources such as;
• Posters, presentations, games, templates, leaflets and much more
• Handy ‘Starter Kits’ to make getting started easier
• Regular ‘Focus On’ articles to keep you up to date on current topics/issues
• Examples of good practice from around the country
• News and bulletins from NEA
Developed by NEA with support from British Gas.
Secondment opportunities at NEA
If you are interested please contact Peter Sumby, Director of Development and Delivery [email protected]
‘Continue to be a major contributor to the energy skills market through the development and
delivery of quality assured, certificated training courses’.
NEA Training Impacts
Established training provider with over 30 years experience
Over 26,000 candidates have achieved the Energy Awareness qualification over the past 28 years
4,000 front-line advisors trained in 2017-2018.
Over 1 million householders will have been advised as a result of NEA’s training last year
What can we offer you, your organisation & your partners?........
NEA product summary
• Energy Awareness 6281-01
• Fuel Debt Advice in the Community 6281-16
• E learning – organisation or individual access to EA and FPH or bespoke product development
• 12 short courses covering fuel poverty, energy efficiency, health and smart metering
• Education offering – Primary schools through to University
NEA Curriculum Enhancement: Energy Efficiency
We can offer workshops in 5 schools in the West Midlands area: each workshop gives two free school visits.
In an average primary school classroom, at least 1 in 5 children are likely to live in a cold home, which will have a detrimental effect on their health, school attendance and ultimately their potential achievement.
Young people are influenced by the actions of others around them – but we also know that with the right information, young people can become leaders in changing the energy use behaviours of others in their schools and homes.
Workshop 1:• Investigating fuel sources• Exploring energy use in the home• Finding out how to save energy and
fuel costs• Drama / group / individual / pair
activities • Pledges for changing energy use
Between visits: • Pack of linked activities for
school to use as classroom / home learning follow up
• Series of video clips / quizzes / powerpoint slides sent to school to maintain and support themes
• National competition information
Workshop 2:• Investigating renewable fuel
sources• Solar powered models• Reviewing energy related changes
made by students• Collecting competition entries
We currently have the following free courses available for delivery in the West Midlands…..Fuel Debt Advice in the Community course and qualification 6281-16This course is an ideal introduction for advice workers involved with clients who are in fuel debt or for the more experienced adviser as an update. It covers the main issues, raises awareness and aims to give participants a clearer understanding of the pathways involved in resolving fuel debt.
Changing Energy-Related Behavior (full-day or half day)This one day course includes some of the latest theories and findings in the field of decision making specifically focusing on simple practical things we can do to encourage people to act on the energy-related advice they receive.
Improve Energy Efficiency in CommunitiesThe course will help trainees to become more energy aware and will equip them with the knowledge to provide basic energy advice and to signpost individuals to appropriate schemes, support and services to help them achieve a warmer, more energy efficient home.
Identifying Vulnerable Situations and Fuel PovertyThis course aims to make delegates aware of the definitions of vulnerability used in the energy sector and how to identify those who are at risk of finding themselves in vulnerable situations. It will also explain fuel poverty, the how to identify those at risk and the impacts of living in a cold home
Smart Meter Champion TrainingAimed at partners signed up to the Smart Meters in Communities programme, this one-day training course will equip trainees with the knowledge and action plan to spread the word about smart meters and their benefits – both internally to your wider teams and, most importantly, externally to your clients.
• Our free local training and awareness programme is live. If you reach any one of our target groups* and would like to understand more about:
• What the smart meter rollout is?• How smart meters work?• What protections are in place for vulnerable consumers?
• What obligations the suppliers have?• What are the myths, what are the real challenges and what is being done to overcome them?• How best to engage with the in-home display?
• What further support is available?
• Get in touch to book a place on our training or request an in-house bite size briefing by contacting [email protected]
• To stay up to date with future updates (including upcoming funding opportunities) sign up to our newsletter at www.nea.org.uk/smartenergygb/e-newsletter
*Our target groups in 2018 are:• people over 60 with or without personal internet access• people who are severe or profoundly D/deaf• people on a low income
• Not-for profit Community Interest Company focussed on ending fuel poverty
• We deliver practical ways to increase income an improve energy efficiency in fuel poor and vulnerable homes
• A wholly owned subsidiary of National Energy Action (NEA), the UK’s leading charity aiming to end fuel poverty
• Operate across England, Scotland and Wales
• Established since 2001
Cadent Reactive Repair Scheme
• Currently, where a National Grid engineer determines a gas appliance is not safe, the engineer is compelled to disconnect the gas supply to the faulty appliance and may disconnect the whole gas supply to the property leaving the household with potentially no heating or hot water and no means of cooking.
• At present there is no widespread provision to support such households in these circumstances.
• Experience confirms that many will struggle to afford to rectify the problem
Who qualifies?
• Owner occupiers & private rent tenants (landlord must give permission)
• Low income
• Low savings
• Health problems
Areas Covered
• Birmingham
• Sandwell
• Dudley
• Wolverhampton
• Walsall
• Wolverhampton
• Coventry
• Solihull
• Stoke
• Newcastle-under-Lyme
• Lichfield
• South Staffs
• Tamworth
• Cannock
• Shropshire
• Stafford
Assistance Available - Fires
• Fire Repair/ Replacement• If the gas fire is the only form of heating
• Repair
• Replace with standard gas fire including flue box and liner if required
• Replace with standard electric fire (with or without surround) if client does not want any building work
• If a working central heating system is in place and there is a radiator in the main living area
• Isolate gas fire and re-connect gas supply
Replacement Fires
• Gas fires • Electric fires
Assistance Available – Central Heating
• Boiler / Warm Air Unit
• Economical to repair (up to £400)
• Boiler Replacement
• Over 15 years old, unable to get parts, uneconomical to repair
• Central Heating Replacement
• Boiler and radiators over 20 years old
• Warm Air unit uneconomical to repair
Assistance Available – Hot water & Leaks
• Water Heater Repair• Economical to repair (up to £400)
• Water Heater Replacement• Uneconomical to repair
• Call out to trace and repair gas leak
• Call out to replace gas pipe
Replacement heating
• Non Cadent referral - Client must provide written evidence that the heating/hot water has been condemned – sticker on boiler
• WZ will refer to contractor to contact the client
• Contractor will contact client within 3 working days (excluding Bank Holidays)
• Quality checks will be undertaken for boiler/ central heating replacements
Progress to date
• Referrals • Heating - 254
• Repairs – 411
• Measures installed• Boiler replacements - 34
• Central heating replacements – 102
• New central heating – 33
• Central heating repair - 69
• Call outs - 47
• Pipework – 144
• Gas fire repair
Case Studies
• Stoke• Mrs T, Aged 74 claims DLA: Disabled, suffers from arthritis and back
problems. • Called Cadent as suspected CO leak. Engineer called out and tested
boiler and flue. All ok. Gas re-connected.
• Birmingham• Mr F, Aged 88: suffers from dementia, arthritis, diabetes and mobility
problens.• Gas disconnected due to gas leak from boiler. Existing central heating
system over 30 years old. Complete new system installed.
• Wolverhampton• Mrs C, aged 78 claims Council Tax Benefit: Suffers from mobility problems.• Smart meter fitted and gas supply disconnected due to gas leak. Engineer
called out traced and repaired gas leak. Gas re-connected.
