Help with electricity, gas and water bills
Help with making your home warmer and more energy efficient
If you are:
- Living in a cold, damp or draughty home.
- Only heating part of your home.
- Not sure how to use your heating system or find it confusing.
- Have a broken heating system.
- Struggling to afford your gas or electricity bills.
- Owe money to your gas or electricity supplier.
- Having billing or meter issues, or other disputes with your energy supplier.
- Interested in getting funding for insulation or to upgrade your heating system.
- Wanting to access grants and other financial support
- Struggling with the cost of your water bill.
help is out there!
Call the Warm & Safe Wiltshire advice line on 0800 038 5722.
This service is run by the Centre for Sustainable Energy whose friendly advisors offer free, impartial advice on the phone or you can contact them through their website: https://www.cse.org.uk/my-home/advice-projects/warm-and-safe-wiltshire/
The Centre for Sustainable Energy are offering free home surveys to help you find the best way to increase the energy efficiency of your home and keep bills down: https://www.futureproof.uk.net/wiltshire-and-swindon-home-survey-offer/
You can now borrow thermal imaging cameras from Warminster Library to check for heat loss from your property to see what small improvements you could make to save money on your energy bills. You can also see if more substantial work such as insulation would be beneficial.
Below are some of the schemes that may be available to homeowners and tenants in private or social housing in Warminster and the surrounding villages.
To see if you are eligible contact the Wiltshire advice line who can assess you and help you apply: 0800 038 5722. Each scheme is different and eligibility may depend on the energy rating of your home (EPC), your council tax band, your income, your age and health etc.
Help with electricity, gas and water bills:
Winter Fuel Payment
Over 800,000 pensioners are missing out on the Winter Fuel Payment because they are not claiming Pension Credit. Pension Credit gives you extra money to help with your living costs if you’re over State Pension age and on a low income, even if you have savings. Details and how to apply are here: https://www.gov.uk/pension-credit
If you were born before 23 September 1958 and get Pension Credit, Universal Credit, Income-related Support Allowance or Income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance you could get £200 or £300 to help you pay your heating bills for winter 2024 to 2025.
https://www.gov.uk/check-benefits-financial-support
Water Bills
If you are having trouble paying your water bills you can get advice from Warm & Safe Wiltshire Advice Line: 0800 038 5722 or contact Wessex Water directly on 0345 600 3 600.
https://www.wessexwater.co.uk/bills-and-accounts/help-to-pay-your-bill
Wiltshire Council Household Support
- Boilers (e.g., gas, LPG, oil, electric)
- Night storage heaters
- Other heating systems
- Heating repairs
- Hot water/immersion tanks (limited, case by case basis)
Up to £3000 for vulnerable home owners on low incomes with broken heating.
Call the Warm & Safe Wiltshire advice line on 0800 038 5722.
The Priority Services Register
This is compiled by utility companies and records people and households who would be particularly put at risk by an
interruption in their energy or water supply and need extra help; it’s a FREE enhancement to their normal domestic services. For example, you may have mains-powered medical equipment helping to keep you safe, or you might have high water use needs because of a health condition.
Eligibility for registration includes any of these:
Your household includes children under 5 years
Your household includes people over 60 years
You have a disability (including hearing or sight)
You have a chronic illness
You temporarily need extra support – for example, you’ve
suffered a life-changing event
For more information, including the help you could get, and to register on-line – FREE of charge – use these links….
SSEN * (The electricity network operator that cover Warminster)
Wessex Water Priority Services
Also, if you are a heavy water user because of a health issue in the household, you can apply for a reduced water tariff here:
Wessex Water Bill Cap scheme
* SSEN is Scottish & Southern Electricity Networks, who operate the local electricity distribution cables in this region, not the power company who bills you. Your power company may have their own Priority Services Register, and you should register there as well if you are eligible.
Cold Weather Payment
If you are on certain benefits and if the average temperature in your area is recorded as, or forecast to be, zero degrees celsius or below over 7 consecutive days you should automatically get £25 for each 7 day period of very cold weather between 1 November 2024 and 31 March 2025. Click the link to see if you are eligible to claim benefits or call Warm & Safe Wiltshire advice line on 0800 038 5722.
https://www.gov.uk/cold-weather-payment/eligibility
Help with making your home warmer and more energy efficient
In Wiltshire surveyors from the Centre for Sustainable Energy can visit your home, assess how you can make energy-saving improvements and how you might get help to finance them: https://www.futureproof.uk.net/product/full-survey-and-retrofit-plan/
The available schemes include:
Great British Insulation Scheme
For homeowners, landlords and social or private tenants
You may be able to get support to install:
- cavity wall insulation
- solid wall insulation (internal or external)
- loft insulation
- flat or pitched roof insulation
- underfloor insulation
- solid floor insulation
- park home insulation
- room-in-roof insulation
https://www.gov.uk/apply-great-british-insulation-scheme
Home Upgrade Grant
For homes that do not have a gas boiler
- Wall insulation
- Loft insulation
- Low-carbon heating technologies such as air source heat pumps
- Renewable technologies such as solar PV
- Hot water cylinder insulation
- Digital and smart controls
- Smart measures such as smart heating controls.
- Low energy lighting
https://www.wiltshire.gov.uk/article/8693/Home-Upgrade-Grant
Better Housing Better Health
Grants for:
- Loft insulation
- Cavity wall insulation
- Heating upgrade
- Chimney draught excluders
- draught-proofing strips/seals
- energy saving lightbulbs
- hot water pipe Insulation
- hot water cylinder jacket
- letter box brushes
- power down devices/remote controlled sockets
- radiator reflector foil
- secondary glazing units
- thermally lined curtains
- electric blankets
- emergency heater
- dehumidifier for damp and mould issues
Helpline number is 0800 107 0044 https://www.bhbh.org.uk/
Boiler Upgrade Scheme
Heat Pumps
If you are a home owner you may be able to get a grant to cover part of the cost of replacing fossil fuel heating systems (oil, gas, electric or LPG) with a heat pump or biomass boiler.
- £7,500 towards an air source heat pump
- £7,500 towards a ground source heat pump
- £5,000 towards a biomass boiler
https://www.gov.uk/apply-boiler-upgrade-scheme
Connected for Warmth
Insulation & air source heat pumps
If you are a home owner or rent privately you may be able to get free insulation or a new heating system including radiators and a heat pump depending on your income and health, the energy rating (EPC) of your property and the type of heating it has at present.
https://www.connectedforwarmth.org.uk/insulation
Helpline 0800 107 8576
https://www.connectedforwarmth.org.uk/air-source-heat-pumps
Helpline 0800 029 4547
ECO4
Insulation, boiler upgrades, solar panels etc.
A scheme funded by energy firms to help homeowners or tenants improve their homes. ECO4 is designed to assist low-income, fuel-poor, and vulnerable households, particularly those living in homes with energy efficiency ratings of band D or below. While social housing tenants are a primary focus, private homeowners and tenants can also benefit if they receive any of the following benefits:
- Income Support
- Working Tax Credit
- Universal Credit
- Pension Guarantee Credit
- Income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA)
- Income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
- Child Benefit
- Housing Benefit
- Child Tax Credit
- Pension Savings Credit
ECO4 can be used for:
- Cavity Wall Insulation
- External Wall Insulation
- Internal Wall Insulation
- Loft Insulation
- Flat roof Insulation
- Room-in-roof Insulation
- Underfloor Insulation
- Air Source Heat Pumps
- Gas Boiler Upgrade (non-condensing boilers & older condensing boilers)
- Night Storage Heaters
- Heating & Hot Water Controls
- Solar Photovoltaic Panels
- Energy-Efficient Lighting
You can contact your energy supplier direct or ring the Warm & Safe Wiltshire advice line on 0800 038 5722 or go to https://eco4.org.uk/
Solar Together
Solar panels
Wiltshire Council’s group buying scheme to help home owners and landlords install solar panels
https://solartogether.co.uk/wiltshire/home
Lendology home improvement loans
Low interest home energy improvement loans for owners or renters of properties in Council tax bands A-D and Energy Performance Certificate D and below. Contact direct on 01823 461099. https://www.lendology.org.uk/loans/energy-efficiency-loans/