This week (17 – 23 Jan) is Big Energy Saving Week and one of our key partnerships is being celebrated for all it does to help residents keep hold of their cash during Winter.
Cold to Cosy Homes is our large scale project that offers free independent energy advice and energy saving measures to vulnerable households.
It has now offered advice and measures like draughtproofing to hundreds of households throughout the region, saving locals huge amounts of energy and money.
Working in partnership with local authorities, this year the project has extended its reach to the entire county. Homelife Carlisle is one of these partners who similarly offer home improvement grants of up to £7,500 for households in need.
Representatives from CAfS and Homelife Carlisle, a Home Improvement Agency, provided by Carlisle City Council, met with MP John Stevenson in Carlisle this week to discuss the work.
January is usually the most difficult of months with homeowners experiencing a long wait until payday along with a higher demand on their home energy requirements due to the colder temperature.
This year, families are experiencing even tougher conditions with energy prices skyrocketing leading them to have to make tough choices when it comes to the affordability of heating their homes.
The best way to discover ways of how to reduce energy costs is to get independent, specialist advice and Cold to Cosy homes Cumbria offers that free to eligible households. They can also offer so much more in terms of support with switching suppliers or tariffs, installing smart meters or smaller measures like LED bulbs and radiator reflectors, draught proofing and sign posting on to larger measures which can lead to a reduction in bills of hundreds of pounds per year.
Of course, it’s not just about saving money but reducing our carbon emissions and reducing energy use can go a long way in supporting the Cumbria target of becoming carbon neutral by 2037.
Residents wishing to access energy saving support should contact Cold to Cosy Homes or Homelife Carlisle and they will be cross referred to receive the maximum support and guidance for their situation with just one phone call.
Carlisle MP John Stevenson said: “This partnership is one of a number across Cumbria made by Cold to Cosy Homes which enables every household to get free independent advice, an example of how they are committed to reaching as many vulnerable and low-income households as possible during these difficult times.”
CAfS representative Kieran Macfadzean said: “By working in close partnership with Homelife Carlisle we can offer a broad range of households sound, independent advice on all aspects of staying warm and reducing their energy bills. We often advise about support that may be available from Homelife Carlisle to achieve larger works such as insulation and installation of renewable heating systems.
“In a time of escalating energy bills, we can all benefit from finding out how we can change our energy use and save ourselves some money.”
In December 2021 a Cumbrian Sustainable Warmth consortium of district councils – that aims to address fuel poverty, improve energy efficiency and carbon savings – was told that they had received £19,955,000 funding from the UK Government.
The application for the Sustainable Warmth Competition, was submitted on the consortium’s behalf by Carlisle City Council.
The funding aims to boost the local economy to retrofit a target of 1,310, mainly private sector homes, with energy efficiency measures, including low-carbon heating across Cumbria.
Carlisle City Cllr Paul Nedved, Portfolio holder for Economy, Enterprise and Housing, added “We would encourage any residents who would like energy advice or find out what grants are available for energy saving measures to get in contact with CAFS or Homelife Carlisle to see how we can assist you save energy and keep warm.
“We will soon be launching a new grants scheme after we successful bid for government funding on behalf of the district councils in Cumbria. Keep an eye on www.carlisle.gov.uk/homelife for updates.”
Households can find out more and apply at www.cosyhomes.org.uk or call 01768 216500 to talk to one of the team.
As 2021 draws to a close, I’d like to say a huge thank you to all our supporters on behalf of the CAfS team. We have had many ‘highs’ over the last year – from great success in bringing funding into Cumbria for a whole range of projects which help reduce our carbon emissions, to meeting for the first-time face to face with our new colleagues recruited virtually during the pandemic. We have also had some ‘lows’ – by far the worst of those being the outcome of COP26 which was a major blow for the future of humanity although sadly not a surprise. However, we continue our fight against climate change undeterred – helped by the knowledge that public and organisational support in Cumbria for rapid action to reduce carbon emissions is growing day by day. 
A huge congratulations to our Cold to Cosy Homes team who came home with something for the trophy cabinet from the North West Energy Efficiency Awards.