making a fresh start with energy debt
Grants to Organisations
Case Studies
Age Concern Torbay
Age Concern Torbay will receive £46,643 over a two year period to employ an additional staff member on the Age Concern Information and Advice Team, to develop a money advice service with particular emphasis on fuel debt and addressing fuel poverty. Carolyn Williams took up this role in August 2005.
Because of the project, the staff team at Age Concern Torbay have benefited, through the increased knowledge of fuel poverty issues and fuel debt. Carolyn has found that the funding has significantly added to the services Age Concern Torbay can deliver.
For example, Carolyn helped a 79-year-old man who had no functional heating system and who had run up large bills. After checking his benefits, Carolyn applied for a Warm Front Grant and successfully applied to the EDF Energy Trust to clear the debts on his electricity bills so that he could make a fresh start. He now has a new gas heatingsystem, manageable fuel bills and much better health.
Through the project a lot of publicity is being done to promote awareness of the EDF Energy Trust within local GP surgeries, other agencies and voluntary organisations in Torbay.
Hastings & Rother Citizens Advice Bureau
Hastings & Rother Citizens Advice Bureau received £10,000 over one year to employ a part time money advice worker. Dina Christodoulou's role is to train community based workers in dealing with debts including fuel debts, in raising awareness of the Trust through contacting local agencies, and in undertaking seminars and to help individuals and agencies to complete applications to the Trust.
Most of the people Dina has assisted have fallen into debt due to a change in their circumstances through ill-health, unemployment and relationship breakdown. Dina and her colleagues are beginning to see more people with mental health problems who have become caught up in the system and have no idea how to sort out their problems. Many people's indebtedness has grown to such an extent that bankruptcy is often the best option, but raising the fee has always been a problem. Dina feels that one of the best things about the Trust is the fact that it allows individuals to apply for bankruptcy fees.
Bristol Debt Advice Centre
Bristol Debt Advice Centre was awarded £34,564 to employ a full time Money Advice Development worker over a one year period. Heather Allan's main roles include raising the awareness of the EDF Energy Trust within the Bristol area, advising and supporting agencies as well as individuals in the community and providing energy efficiency advice to applicants.
The funding has enabled Heather Allan to help a great many people. In particular, a gentleman who had had a successful career as a salesman until a mental seizure had resulted in his driving license being taken away and ultimately the loss of his job, together with a mugging that left him with permanent injuries, preventing him from working at all, fell seriously behind with his energy payments. Heather was able to help him apply successfully for a grant to clear his electricity debts, thus giving him breathing space to sort out his other finances.
Heather says that, by giving clients budgeting and energy efficiency skills, combined with a grant to clear their arrears, both the Trust and Bristol Debt Advice Centre have taken these clients a long way towards making a fresh start.