Socially Grown, a marketing company based at Keele University, in partnership with Residential Energy Services (RES), has successfully secured funding of £373,329 from the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero. The funding aims to support the launch of a mobile energy advice service for households that are often difficult to reach. The initiative is also supported by the Midlands Net Zero Hub.
Their success comes as part of the Government’s Local Energy Advice Demonstrator Programme (LEAD), which seeks innovative approaches to providing energy efficiency advice to those in need. This programme will fund 9 pilot projects that explore novel methods of providing in-person, home energy advice to consumer groups in the Midlands.
Since 2014, RES has offered energy subsidy awareness and advisory services to more than 20,000 households in the UK. The company specialises in educating households on energy efficiency measures and manages the entire process from initial advice to installation.
Socially Grown and RES will use the funding to launch a community outreach and education program that will focus on hard-to-reach and vulnerable homes. The program will utilise a mobile unit to provide local energy efficiency awareness, engage with difficult-to-reach households, and co-create energy plans to lower fuel bills and enhance housing conditions.
The initiative will initially roll out in Staffordshire and Shropshire, targeting 6,000 households annually through a pop-up hub that will be stationed at key locations like health centers, community centers, and rural events.
According to data from End Fuel Poverty, a significant number of households in England allocate more than 10% of their income to energy bills. Many low-income households reside in inefficient homes, underscoring the need for enhanced energy efficiency measures.
The project’s two-year timeline aims to address these issues head-on. By providing tailored in-person advice and retrofit solutions, the partnership between Socially Grown and RES seeks to empower underserved communities with practical solutions to energy efficiency.
Amanda Solloway, Minister for Energy Consumers and Affordability, expressed the government’s commitment to ensuring access to energy efficiency expertise for all, regardless of location. The initiative aligns with broader investments in energy efficiency across the UK, aiming to make homes more energy-efficient and cost-effective in the long term.
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