The Committee on Fuel Poverty’s 2024 Annual Reports concludes that current policies to reduce fuel poverty have proven ineffective, and such policies should target energy efficiency programmes to reduce fuel poverty. The Committee on Fuel Poverty (CFP) is an advisory non-departmental public body that is sponsored by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. They have a responsibility to monitor and report on the progress of the government’s Fuel Poverty Strategy, along with helping foster partnerships between the government and various external stakeholders.
Energy Efficiency – Heating Control:
In the last two years, the proportion of all energy efficiency work under the Energy Company Obligation (ECO) scheme has moved away from insulation improvements and towards heating control upgrades. The report from CFP outlines that in England, fuel poverty is flatlining rather than falling. In 2023, it was estimated that around 13% of households were in fuel poverty – unchanged from the year before. Energy prices remain around £700 above pre-pandemic levels, rising this winter. These price increases are having a dramatic effect on many, especially the fuel-poor.
The Fuel-Poor – Who Are They?
There are certain characteristics which define someone as fuel-poor. They are on a lower income and may depend on some kind of benefits (27%, according to the CFP report). Often they will live in older housing or in rural properties. They will also be paying more than many of their neighbours just to heat a similar-sized house because they live in a cold home.
The fuel poor are often in debt to their energy company and suffer from poor health more than their better-off neighbours. Around 17% of fuel-poor are on prepayment meters, and 28.8% of such were single-parent households. Some 45.9% of fuel-poor households were owner-occupied, 35.1% privately rented, and 18.9% were social housing tenants.
What is Heating Control?
We have established that energy efficiency through heating control is key to reducing fuel poverty—but what actually is heating control? Heating control is an approach that looks at smart ways to keep warm while not overheating a home and wasting energy. The best way to conserve energy is to make sure as little as possible is wasted in the first place.
