A grant of £3 million is being awarded by the Cadent Foundation to fund ‘green doctors’, energy efficiency experts who will support fuel poor customers.
The grant will support the expansion of community action charity Groundwork’s green doctors programme, part of a new three-year strategic partnership with the foundation funded by the gas network operator.
Green doctors are experts who help vulnerable customers improve their home’s energy efficiency.
The grant will enable the charity to deploy trained advisers in at least ten priority locations, providing energy cost saving advice to thousands of vulnerable households.
Some of the services offered by the green doctors include identifying causes of heat loss in the home, helping to identify and tackle damp or mould problems, offering advice for saving energy, installing small energy efficiency measures, such as draft excluders and supporting people to switch energy providers to save money.
They will also provide remote support over the phone and online and promote behaviour change.
Additionally they will work with other services to provide rounded support to vulnerable households, including onward referrals to maximise benefit claims, address home safety issues and tackle food poverty.
In its first year the project aims to support at least 3,000 vulnerable households through consultations, deliver at least 300 training events in local communities and install 9,000 small energy saving measures to achieve annual cost savings amongst vulnerable households of up to £465,000.
Julia Dwyer, director of the Cadent Foundation, said supporting fuel poverty is one of the organisation’s “fundamental objectives”.
“With one in ten people across the UK struggling to heat their home, it’s vital to ensure that money and resources are available to support individuals and families in some of the worst hit areas. We’re delighted to support Groundwork’s green doctors programme and look forward to working with them closely over the next three years to help lift people out of fuel poverty”, she added.
Graham Duxbury, national chief executive of Groundwork, said the charity was “delighted” with the funding.
He added: “This is the largest grant we have ever received for our green doctors programme and it will undoubtedly have a huge impact on some of the most vulnerable people across Cadent’s network.
“Around 4 million people in the UK are in fuel poverty, unable to afford to live in a warm, dry home. With more people at home, increased utility costs and unemployment rising due to the financial impact of the pandemic, more families will be experiencing extreme financial hardship as well as the emotional strain of keeping themselves and their loved ones well.
“Working with priority groups such as young people and families, low-income households, residents of poor housing and those suffering ill health, this new partnership will help vulnerable households boost their income by saving energy, so that they can live more comfortably and reduce their environmental impact.”