Free energy training for frontline staff and volunteers: fuel poverty and energy bills

A few weeks ago we published a feature called  Winter + energy bills + COVID-19 constraints = potential fuel poverty crisis  explaining the perennial problem of fuel poverty that manifests itself each winter. 

COVID-19 has already increased usage from staying at home and will continue to do so as the temperature goes down and the heating turns up. Loss of income, redundancies and short-time working are all contributing to an unprecedented energy crisis for many people - and the wintry weather is making its presence felt as we move through January and the coldest part of the year.

And with the new lockdown, even more people will be having to stay at home and turn on their heating – if they can afford to. Now more than ever it’s important to raise awareness to vulnerable consumers of how to stay warm, how to use less energy, and how to pay less.  

Are your staff and volunteers aware of the support available? CAN is offering free online training to help people provide support and information where needed.  

Forthcoming sessions - a choice of dates:  

• Wed 20th Jan 1.00 - 2.30pm
• Tue 26th Jan 10.00 -11.30am
• Fri 29th Jan 1.30 – 3.00pm
• Wed 3rd Feb 2.00 – 3.30pm
• Tue 9th Feb 10.00 – 11.30am
• Fri 12th Feb 2.00 – 3.30pm
• Wed 17th Feb 2.30 – 4.00pm
• Tue 23rd Feb 2.00 -3.30pm
• Mon 1st March 1.00 – 3.30pm

The training session will help you:  

• explore ways to help vulnerable people save energy and money in their homes  
• understand what support is available to them  
• help people find the cheapest supplier  
• know where to signpost clients to and understand what else they might need to consider  

For joining information please email office@communityactionnorfolk.org.uk.    

We can also arrange a session for staff and volunteers at a time convenient to you.   PLEASE NOTE: this offer is open to VCSE, public sector and private provider organisations across the Eastern region – not just Norfolk. If you are interested in booking a session for your staff or volunteers please email  rik.martin@communityactionnorfolk.org.uk or call 01362 698216 and leave a message - we'll get back to you.   

Big Energy Saving Network  

As part of the Big Energy Saving Network initiative, we deliver training to frontline staff in VCSE organisations, public agencies, housing associations - indeed any organisation whose staff engage with vulnerable clients - to help them support those clients in improving energy efficiency and staying warm in their homes, raising awareness about the Priority Services Register, switching suppliers and generally getting better deals on their energy bills.   

Big Energy Saving Winter  

The straightforward message from the Big Energy Saving Winter campaign is that there are three easy ways to save on energy bills: 

• CHECK
• SWITCH and
• SAVE 

More about the Big Energy Saving Network 

BESN is a community outreach project targeting vulnerable energy consumers. BESN was designed to deliver support to consumers using face-to-face contact through ‘trusted intermediaries’ such as champions, volunteers and frontline workers – those that we at CAN are delivering training to. It has achieved considerable success when measured against its core aims of reaching out to, and enabling, vulnerable individuals to make informed decisions on energy saving behaviour.