Home energy advice
Home energy advice
Home energy efficiency advice
The Private Sector Housing Team offers free and impartial advice to all owner occupiers and private tenants about all household energy efficiency needs and requirements including information about how you can save money by making changes to your insulation, lighting, heating systems, etc. The level of support available to you will depend upon your circumstances, but everyone has the opportunity to save money and make their homes more energy efficient.
What is energy efficiency?
Energy efficiency is about minimising the amount of energy you use in your day-to-day activities without changing your lifestyle dramatically. There are many ways to do this, which can save you money as well as protect the environment and preserve our natural resources. Many of these measures are low cost/no cost, however some require a financial investment.
Why should we do this?
An energy-efficient home not only saves on fuel bills, our homes will be warmer and we will contribute to the protection of the environment.
Funding for improvements
Eligible homeowners in Chesterfield could benefit from financial support to help make energy efficient improvements to their properties and reduce their bills. You can find out more on the Green Home Grant page.
Warmer Derby and Derbyshire
A free phone number 0800 677 1332 is now available to give people living in Derby and Derbyshire impartial advice on how to stay warm at home and cut their energy bills. The Warmer Derby and Derbyshire service is a partnership between the Marches Energy Agency charity and the Local Authority Energy Partnership (LAEP).
You can call for advice about:
- energy bills
- switching tariff
- how to make their homes more energy efficient
- how to apply for grants for heating systems and insulation
Home visits are also available where required.
For more information visit: Keep warm in winter - Derbyshire County Council
Warm home discount scheme
Each year the main energy suppliers in England offer a rebate of £140 off the electricity bills of households which receive guaranteed pension credit. You may also be eligible if you are on a low income and claim a means-tested benefit. For more information visit: Warm home discount scheme (GOV.UK)
Check with your supplier directly to see if you are eligible. The rebate is paid by the end of March each year; the number of discounts a supplier can give is limited so contact them as early as possible.
If you live in a park home you need to apply through an organisation called Charis. A new scheme opens each autumn. Visit: Park homes warm homes discount (Charis) to register your interest.
Winter fuel payments
The winter fuel payment is a yearly payment of between £100 and £300 to help people aged 65 and over with the costs of keeping warm. The amount you will get depends on your circumstances. Most eligible households receive payments automatically between November and December. If you are eligible but don’t get paid automatically you need to make a claim.
For more information, call the Winter Fuel Payment helpline on 0845 915 1515, or 0845 601 5613 for minicom users.
You can also visit: Winter fuel payment - GOV.UK.
Derbyshire oil buying scheme
Rural Action Derbyshire is operating an oil buying scheme to help reduce the heating costs of people who rely on kerosene to heat their homes.
There are communities across the whole of Derbyshire which are off the gas grid and the majority will use kerosene to heat their homes. The cost of kerosene is very volatile and has been rising steeply over the past few years and contributing to rising fuel poverty particularly (but not exclusively) in rural areas. The oil buying scheme uses the power of collective purchasing to achieve lower prices for everyone.
The oil buying scheme is open to anyone in Derby and Derbyshire, to domestic users, community groups and businesses. For more information visit the Rural Action Derbyshire (RAD) website
Insulation
Insulating your home can save you money on your fuel bills and make your home a warmer, more comfortable place to live. It also helps to keep you cooler during the summer and your home will therefore have a better balance all year around.
Cavity wall insulation
Around a third of all the heat lost in an uninsulated home is lost through the walls. If your home has cavity walls, insulation is a good way to reduce the amount of energy you need to heat your home and could save you around £110 a year on your fuel bills.
Loft insulation
Without proper loft insulation a lot of the energy you use to heat your home will be lost through your roof. The recommended depth for loft insulation is 270mm and this could save you around £145 per year on your energy bills if you don't have any insulation at the moment.
Solid wall insulation
If your home was built before or around 1920, its external walls are likely to be solid rather than have a cavity. If you have solid walls you can either insulate them with external or internal insulation, saving you around £375 a year on your energy bills.
Floor insulation
Insulating beneath floorboards will reduce heating bills and improve the comfort of your home. You could save around £50 a year by insulating your floors. Gaps and cracks around floors and skirting boards are easy to fill yourself using a tube of sealant - reducing heating bills by around a further £20 a year.
Draught proofing
Using strips and excluders to draught proof around leaky door and window frames can save around £25 a year on heating bills. If everyone in the UK draught proofed around doors and windows, we'd save nearly £200m per year!
Tank and pipe insulation
Both tank and pipe insulation keep your water hotter for longer by reducing the amount of heat that escapes.
For more information go to Gov.uk.
Landlord’s Energy Saving Allowance
If you are a landlord and make energy saving improvements to your property, you could reduce the tax you pay. You can do this by claiming the Landlord’s Energy Saving Allowance (LESA). Find out if you are eligible, what the allowance covers and how to apply for it.
You can claim LESA if you are a landlord renting out residential property and are either:
- an individual landlord - someone who pays income tax on profits from letting
- a corporate landlord - someone whose rental business is registered as a company and you pay corporation tax on profits from letting
For more information visit: HMRC Property Income Manual
Minimum energy efficiency standards in the private rented sector
From 1 April 2020, all privately rented homes must have an energy performance rating of at least Band E, or register an exemption. Prior to that date interim requirements apply.
Visit the GOV.UK link Domestic private rented property: minimum energy efficiency standard - landlord guidance for further guidance.
Smart meters
Smart meters put consumers in control of their energy use, allowing them to adopt energy efficiency measures that can help save money on their energy bills and offset price increases. For more information, see the government's guidance: Smart meters: a guide (GOV.UK).
HECA (Home Energy Conservation Act 1995) Report 2019
The Home Energy Conservation Act 1995 (‘HECA’) requires all Local Authorities in England to submit reports to the Secretary of State demonstrating what energy conservation measures they have adopted to improve the energy efficiency of residential accommodation within their areas. This covers measures to improve properties in the owner-occupier, private rented sector, and social rented sector. The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) uses data submitted from Local Authorities HECA returns, to inform policy thinking on energy efficiency and to build an ongoing picture of local and national energy efficiency policy delivery.
For more information on the progress within this area visit: Chesterfield Borough Council’s progress report for 2019 – 2021
Further help
For further help and advice please contact us:
Telephone: 01246 345748
Email: hia@chesterfield.gov.uk
By post:
Private Sector Housing Team,
Chesterfield Borough Council,
Town Hall,
Rose Hill,
Chesterfield,
S40 1LP
