Home owners offered insulation grants

ENERGY experts have urged householders in one of the country’s worst fuel poverty blackspots to take advantage of funding from the Government to help alleviate bills.

Home owners in Ryedale in North Yorkshire are being given the chance to apply for grants to make their properties more energy efficient and cheaper to heat.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

A series of community events is being held next month by the Yorkshire-based Community Energy Solutions (CES) and Ryedale District Council to help drive down energy costs through the Renewable Heat Premium Payment Communities Scheme.

Fuel poverty – defined as the need to spend more than 10 per cent of household income on fuel to maintain adequate warmth – has already dramatically increased amid predictions that bills will continue to rise by as much as 25 per cent by 2020.

Altogether 27 per cent of homes in Ryedale have been officially classed as being in fuel poverty – the greatest percentage of households in the region.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

CES programme director Lee Cattermole said: “The RHPP communities scheme is the perfect opportunity for home owners who would benefit from renewable heat technologies but who have previously found them too costly to install.

“I would urge anyone, even those who aren’t sure whether they can apply, to come along to one of the community events.”

An event will be staged at Hutton le Hole’s village hall on November 6 before another session is held at Sherburn Village Hall on November 8. Both events will run from 3.30pm to 7.30pm.

Council and CES representatives will also be on an information bus on November 7 between 10am and 11am in Burythorpe, 11.45am and 12.45pm in Settrington, and 1.45pm and 2.45pm in West Lutton.