Fuel Poverty among Families in Rural Wales Helen Roach Development Officer NEA Cymru

 Children, chronically sick, disabled and older people are particularly vulnerable  Targets to eradicate fuel poverty by 2010 (vulnerable households), 2012 (social housing) and 2018 (everyone)  Householders that need to spend more than 10% of income on fuel to achieve an adequate level of warmth Introduction to fuel poverty

Fuel poverty leads to debt or inadequate heating It affects:  Health  Education  Wellbeing  Social Exclusion  Housing Source: Getty images © Introduction to fuel poverty

Fuel poverty is twice as prevalent in rural areas as urban areas of Wales  Low income 7 of 9 rural authorities have at least 20% of households on low income Higher costs than urban areas – 10-20% Seasonal work 1 in 5 families in Wales are in fuel poverty Causes

Fuel poverty is twice as prevalent in rural areas as urban areas of Wales  Price of fuel or the inability to access cheaper fuel Mains gas is cheapest way to heat home Less than 1% use renewables Prices have increased across the board Oil clubs 1 in 5 families in Wales are in fuel poverty Causes

Fuel poverty is twice as prevalent in rural areas as urban areas of Wales  Energy inefficient homes Lower average SAP (38 compared to 54 in urban areas) 82% have central heating (compared to 93% of urban properties) and more likely to use open fire or stove. Hard to treat homes 1 in 5 families in Wales are in fuel poverty Causes

Help Available  Energy Efficiency and Heating Schemes Nest, CERT, CESP, Green Deal, ECO, Arbed, Landlord Energy Saving Allowance, Feed in Tariffs and Renewable Heat Incentive  Rebates and Social Support from Suppliers Warm Home Discount, Home Heat Helpline, Priority Service Register  Policy and Legislation Energy Bill, Energy Performance Certificates, Housing Health and Safety Rating System, Welsh Housing Quality Standard

Calor project  Roundtable discussions  Training for local advisors  Information pack and webpages Engage the private sector Support from high profile strategic partners Variation in approaches to reflect local circumstances Revenue funding to support local networks Lack of local property data Work with farmers Link to other initiatives

Campaign calls Fuel Poverty Charter Coalition Wales  Fully costed action plan with time-based milestones  Support for all fuel poor households  Co-ordinated approach across all sectors Roadmap for 2010 target Develop monitoring and evaluation plan Integrate Welsh schemes with UK schemes Emergency heating crisis fund Programme of work for health and social care services Create green jobs and apprenticeships

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