Tag: Energy Efficiency

Ministers urged to clarify energy efficiency support funds

More people will get money off technology that keeps their homes warm in winter and cool in summer after the Government has announced plans to expand the Boiler Upgrade Scheme.

This currently offers grants of £7,500 off the cost of installing an air source or ground source heat pump, now the scheme has been expanded to offer a £2,500 discount off the cost of installing an air-to-air heat pump, which can provide heat in winter and air conditioning in summer.

The grants are available to all households and form part of the government’s £13.2 billion Warm Homes Plan, rather than being funded in addition to this budget as previously expected.

A spokesperson for the End Fuel Poverty Coalition, commented:
“The Government doesn’t seem to know if it is coming or going.

“One week they are briefing the media that energy efficiency budgets may be slashed in the Budget. The next they are talking up heat pumps and calling for households to apply for support.

“Households struggling with the fifth winter of high energy bills need to know what help will be available to them to keep their homes warm in winter and cool in summer.

“The Government’s Warm Homes Plan and fuel poverty strategies need to be published without any further delay so households know where they stand and industry can ensure enough skilled workers are trained.”

Chancellor mulls £6bn tax cut for gas firms while slashing warm homes budget

Changes to the windfall tax being considered by Rachel Reeves in this month’s budget could see the oil and gas industry handed a £6 billion tax cut, whilst promised investment in energy efficiency to cut household bills is potentially going to be slashed by the same amount (£6.4bn). 

With tax increases for working people also widely expected, any roll-back on funding for warm homes would represent yet another broken manifesto promise from this Chancellor, say campaigners. 

According to media briefings reported by The Guardian, the Treasury is considering diverting funding from the £13.2 billion Warm Homes Plan — a programme designed to improve cold, damp homes and permanently lower household energy bills — in order to fund short-term energy bill support.

The proposed move would effectively cut the UK’s energy efficiency budget by 40% over five years by substituting parts of the Warm Homes Plan for existing schemes.

Meanwhile, proposals drafted by the oil and gas lobby group Offshore Energies UK, which are being considered by the Chancellor, suggest that removing the Energy Profits Levy at the end of this year, as the industry is pushing for, would lead to a tax loss of £6 billion to the UK Treasury over the next decade.(1) 

The oil and gas industry has been lobbying hard for months to scrap the windfall tax in order to reduce their tax bill, despite the sector posting billions in profit, and companies like Shell reporting negative UK taxes last year.

In response to the proposed tax cut, Robert Palmer, deputy director of Uplift said:

“Oil and gas companies have made billions in recent years while millions of people in the UK have struggled with unaffordable energy bills. Worse, firms have chosen to hand these windfalls to overseas shareholders rather than reinvesting them to support UK jobs. To even be considering scrapping measures to cut household bills while cutting taxes for profiteering oil companies would be deeply unfair.” 

Palmer also called out the poor economics of the basin and warned Reeves against propping up an industry that is only profitable because of the UK’s generous tax regime.

“The reality is the North Sea is in rapid decline, with most of the gas already burned – and what’s left is increasingly expensive to extract. New drilling is only viable if we hand out even bigger tax breaks to wealthy energy companies, taking money away from public services. Quite apart from the climate impact, it is economic lunacy to continue to allow drilling that would not be viable without the Treasury’s thumb on the scale.”

Simon Francis, coordinator of the End Fuel Poverty Coalition, commented:

“Giving tax breaks to fossil fuel giants and failing to collect tax from large corporations while cutting support for those in fuel poverty are short-term acts of weakness by the Chancellor.

“We obviously understand the urgent need to cut energy bills, but the Chancellor – who previously brought us the Winter Fuel Payment fiasco – is not thinking things through. Taking action to improve energy efficiency helps to cut  bills in the long run, protect health and reduce our dependence on expensive fossil fuels. 

“It’s entirely possible to bring down energy bills in a fair way — by improving insulation, reforming electricity pricing, and using public investment to upgrade our grid. Instead, we’re seeing the Government ignore long-term solutions while considering tax cuts to those who need them least.”

The latest data shows that around 12.1 million UK households are struggling with unaffordable energy bills, with 5 million of those in deep fuel poverty — spending over 20% of their income on energy.

Annabel Rice, senior political adviser at Green Alliance, said: 

“If the government is serious about lowering people’s bills for good, they must invest in insulating our homes, not raid schemes that have helped families lower their energy costs to make their sums add up in the budget. 

“We’ve seen more than five different insulation schemes from the government in recent years in England and they show us one thing: stop-start policies confuse homeowners, make jobs in this industry less viable and create uncertainty for investors. With almost nine million families in fuel poverty as winter approaches, it’s time for a fully funded, long term Warm Homes Plan.”

The Warm Homes Plan had been expected to support a wide range of upgrades including insulation, heat pumps, home energy advice, and local council-led retrofit schemes. It was announced as a cornerstone of the UK’s mission to reduce energy demand, support vulnerable households, and cut carbon emissions.

But experts warn that diverting its funds to cover existing schemes will drastically limit its impact, especially for households living in the worst conditions — and risks undermining the Government’s own statutory targets to end fuel poverty by 2030.

Jonathan Bean, campaigner at Fuel Poverty Action, said:

“The Government should be focussed on getting homes fixed, and replacing the failed Eco4 scheme with a well funded home upgrade program that delivers high quality work and guaranteed bill savings.  We need a bigger investment in retrofit skills and quality control, not a budget cut that ends up in the pockets of the oil and gas giants.”

Cuts of 40% to energy efficiency measures considered by Chancellor

Reports in the media suggest that the Chancellor is set to raid the funding for its flagship Warm Homes Plan to pay for energy bill reductions.

The breakdown of the £13.2bn Warm Homes Plan funding was due to be announced last month and was expected to include additional support for social housing, heat pumps, home upgrade loans and local authority-led retrofit schemes.

At the Comprehensive Spending Review, the End Fuel Poverty Coalition stressed that this £13.2bn must be addition to the c.£8.5bn (over 5 years) budget for existing schemes like the Energy Company Obligation (ECO). The Coalition wrote to Ministers [pdf] setting out reforms needed to this scheme following a critical National Audit Office report and has in the past called for this to be funded via general taxation.

However, the proposals briefed to the Guardian would effectively substitute parts of the Warm Homes Plan for existing schemes. This would essentially reduce the total £21.7bn energy efficiency pot by 40% over 5 years, harming the very efforts that would help to bring down bills in the long term and help end the suffering of people living in cold damp homes.

A spokesperson for the End Fuel Poverty Coalition, commented

“Any cuts to the Warm Homes Plan or other programmes to improve housing conditions would be a short-sighted act of betrayal by the Chancellor.

“These electorally popular policies can help bring down energy usage in a safe way and improve the energy efficiency of the homes of people in fuel poverty.

“We obviously understand the urgent need to cut energy bills, but the Chancellor – who previously brought us the Winter Fuel Payment fiasco – appears to be listening to the wrong people.

“It is entirely possible for the Government to help reduce energy bills, but Ministers need to look in the right place for changes.

“Given that between a quarter and a third of the average energy bill is profit for different parts of the energy industry, the Chancellor should look at how the Windfall Tax could be improved, rather than giving tax breaks to energy firms as she is being lobbied to do.

“Other ways to bring down bills include addressing electricity pricing and inefficiencies in the market, using public investment to help fund grid upgrades and real reform of standing charges. We would be happy to talk to the Chancellor about our recommendations.”

The industry trade body, Energy UK, has also set out economic reasons why this move could harm efforts to improve cold damp homes.

Lessons must be learned from the NAO’s damning insulation report

The National Audit Office has found that poor oversight of the Energy Company Obligation (ECO) allowed sub-standard contractors to install faulty insulation in thousands of homes.

98% of homes that had external wall insulation installed under the schemes run by the previous government have problems and 29% of homes that were given internal insulation also need it fixing.

This amounts to around tens of thousands of installations that may have been defective, leaving households in cold, damp conditions.

Anyone affected by the scandal should contact the Ofgem ECO helpline on 0808 169 4447 or ECOhelp@ofgem.gov.uk.

A spokesperson for the End Fuel Poverty Coalition commented:

“The report reveals a system that has let cowboys through the front door, leaving thousands of victims living in misery and undermining public trust in efforts to tackle the cold damp homes crisis facing many households.

“Insulation and ventilation, when done properly, are among the safest and most effective ways to bring down energy bills and keep people warm. But sub-standard delivery and weak oversight by the last Government has turned what should have been a national success story into a cautionary tale.

“Now we need to fix the system, not abandon it.

“The government’s Warm Homes Plan must guarantee quality, with properly trained installers, independent inspections and rapid remediation if things go wrong.

“Only by getting insulation right, alongside a clear plan to move homes off volatile gas prices and targeted financial help for those struggling with their bills, can we end the scourge of cold, damp homes once and for all.”

James Dyson, Senior Researcher at E3G added:

“Every person who has been failed by this scheme deserved better; a warmer home which is cheaper to heat, delivered by competent tradespeople.

“Instead, the Conservatives’ time in office has delivered the British public yet another systemic failure in our public services. Everyone washed their hands of responsibility, from the government watchdog to energy companies and cowboy builders.

“The new government has a chance to put things right, it must move urgently to help the people affected to repair their homes at no extra cost and put in place high insulation standards to ensure this never happens again.”

Meanwhile Fuel Poverty Action’s Jonathan Bean said:

“This scandal exposes shocking levels of negligence by Government, Ofgem, Trustmark and energy firms.  They have allowed rogue contractors… to exploit the £4 billion added to our energy bills [to pay for the scheme], and damage the homes of tens of thousands of mostly vulnerable people.

“Instead of the warm homes and lower bills Government promised, people had their homes and lives destroyed.

“Now [we see] a weak Government response, allowing the scheme to continue, only checking some homes and measures, and fixing even fewer.

“Decisive action is needed instead. All homes must be checked, and all damage and faults fixed. Not just insulation, also roofs that have been damaged by solar panels and heat pumps that don’t work properly. ECO4 should be halted and replaced by a scheme with proper quality control and protections for residents. Victims must not be left suffering through another winter in cold, damp, damaged homes whilst cowboy contractors enjoy their huge profits.”

Anyone with poorly installed ECO4 work in their home can also contact Fuel Poverty Action via its website to take action.

Chief executive of charity Severn Wye, Sandy Ruthven MBE, commented:
“The figures are eye-watering but by themselves don’t tell the full story of fuel poverty and the experience of day-to-day living in a cold, damp and unhealthy home.

“External wall insulation is fitted to homes that have solid walls. Done well, it keeps heat in and cold out, but done badly it creates ideal conditions for damp and mould to grow inside. This is an unsightly nuisance at best but can be an immediate threat to health and in extreme cases can kill.

“The report’s findings that almost all external wall insulation and nearly one third of internal wall insulation need repair is hard to comprehend. But we know from the calls we receive into our advice line and home visits, that coping with shoddy installations has a devastating impact on health and wellbeing.”

Home upgrade scheme take up rates show mixed picture

The Press Association Radar team have produced a series of articles examining the latest figures for the Home Upgrade Grant (HUG) and Local Authority Delivery scheme (LAD). These are government schemes supporting energy efficiency upgrades of low-energy efficiency (EPC of D or lower) low-income (household income below £30k) households across England.

The figures show a mixed picture in terms of take up and delivery around the country for the programmes which are now closed to new applications. Overall data does show a clear increase in measures being delivered since the last General Election.

A spokesperson for the End Fuel Poverty Coalition, commented:

“Every upgrade of a home in fuel poverty is a step in the right direction.

“But we need progress to be delivered at speed and with the urgency the energy bills crisis deserves. Every winter spent in a cold damp home causes misery and health complications for millions of households.

“This is why the Government’s Warm Homes Plan must be rooted in a ‘Warmth First’ principle, treating a warm, dry and affordable-to-heat home as a basic human right.

“And upgrades to homes must come alongside reform to electricity pricing and moves to secure our energy supply in the future, especially given that the North Sea will not be able to meet our gas heating needs from 2027.”

Government urged to prioritise warmth first in £13.2bn home upgrade plan

The End Fuel Poverty Coalition has written to the Minister for Energy Consumers, urging the Government to ensure its £13.2 billion Warm Homes Plan delivers real, lasting benefits for people living in cold, damp and unaffordable homes.

In a detailed briefing also shared with key departments across Whitehall, the Coalition outlines a series of reforms to ensure the landmark retrofit scheme improves lives, protects health and cuts bills for those who need it most.

The Coalition says the success of the scheme should be judged not by how many insulation measures are installed or homes moved to EPC band C, but by how far it goes in ending fuel poverty.

A spokesperson for the End Fuel Poverty Coalition, said:

“This is a huge opportunity to fix a scandal that’s been hurting millions of households for years and years.

“Cold homes cause suffering, cost lives and drive up costs for the NHS. The Warm Homes Plan can be the solution – but only if it’s designed around the real needs of people, not just technical targets.”

The Coalition is calling for the Plan to be rooted in a “Warmth First” principle, treating a warm, dry and affordable-to-heat home as a basic human right. 

It says the programme must include a “Warm Home Guarantee” to track actual comfort and bill savings, and ensure high-quality installations delivered by skilled local workers. 

It also urges the government to fund trusted, face-to-face advice services to help residents through the retrofit journey and access benefits, energy support and legal protections.

The briefing also warns ministers against diverting Warm Homes Plan money into existing schemes, or using it to cut electricity prices for wealthier households. Instead, it argues affordability reforms like levy rebalancing should be funded separately, to avoid punishing low-income households who still rely on gas heating.

In its recommendations, the Coalition draws on lessons from successful past initiatives like the Warm Zones scheme, which provided hands-on support, repeated outreach, and direct help accessing income top-ups—going beyond simple insulation measures to ensure long-term impact.

The spokesperson continued:

“If we’re serious about reducing child poverty, pressure on the NHS, and energy insecurity, this Plan must be more than just insulation. It must be about giving people back control, comfort and dignity in their homes.”

ENDS

To read the full letter and briefing, visit 

https://www.endfuelpoverty.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/Warm-Homes-Plan-letter-priorities-1.pdf 

Ministers face voter backlash if Warm Homes Plan is cut

Trust in Labour will be further threatened if the Chancellor scales back funding for home insulation and lowering energy bills, according to new polling released today, in echoes of the row over Winter Fuel Payments.

Recent media reports suggest that the Chancellor is considering reducing the funding available to insulate homes. [1]

The research by Opinium reveals that nearly half (46%) of Labour voters say that any backtracking from Labour’s manifesto commitment to invest in insulating the country’s poor housing stock would further reduce trust in Sir Keir Starmer’s government. [2]

Among those who voted for Labour in the last general election but aren’t currently planning on voting for them again, well over half (56%) say it would reduce their trust in Labour – damaging the party’s attempts to woo voters back from Reform, the Lib Dems, Greens and others. [3]

Almost half (48%) of Labour voters said the warm homes election promise was a factor in their decision to vote for the Labour Party. 

Labour promised to invest £13.2bn in a Warm Homes Plan to help improve the country’s leaky housing, which is making people ill and driving up NHS demand. A recent Medact survey found that three-quarters of front-line clinicians regularly see patients made ill by poor housing conditions, and almost half have discharged patients into homes they knew would make them sick again.   

In the run-up to the General Election, over half of prospective Labour voters (59%) said they supported a funded nationwide insulation programme to slash deaths caused by cold, damp houses. Meanwhile other researchers found that 59% of voters opposed stripping all pensioners of Winter Fuel Payments. [4]

In the new research, pollsters found that nearly all voters (87%) believe it is important for political parties to stand by their manifesto commitments. 

Ed Matthew, UK Director for the climate change thinktank E3G said: 

“Cutting a programme that will make immediate and direct improvements to people’s lives would backfire. 

“The public is sick of wasting money trying to heat cold, leaky houses and want this government to honour its manifesto pledge. If they fail to do so it would demonstrate that Labour have not learned from the Winter Fuel debacle at all.”

A spokesperson for the End Fuel Poverty Coalition, said:
“This polling clearly shows that it is now a case of heat or defeat for the Government. 

“The Labour Manifesto said the promised funding will offer grants and low interest loans to support investment in insulation and other improvements such as solar panels, batteries and low carbon heating to cut bills.

“Either they back a Warm Homes Plan to the full extent promised in the manifesto, or they will be punished at the ballot box. 

“The Chancellor must not be able to engineer another ‘Winter Fuel Payment’ disaster by refusing to help tackle fuel poverty and MPs should make that clear.”

The polling comes on the day that health workers will deliver an open letter to Secretary of State for Health and Social Care Wes Streeting MP, endorsed by several royal colleges. The letter urges the Government to honour its election promise to reduce energy bills and allocate at least £13.2 billion to a nationwide insulation programme in the upcoming Comprehensive Spending Review. 

Maria Carvalho, spokesperson for Medact, commented:

“It’s simple. All we want is what was promised in the election campaign. That means a fully funded Warm Homes Plan, investment in green jobs, skills, and training, stronger protections for renters after upgrades are completed and delivery of high-quality home retrofits.”

In recent days groups of businesses and over 50 senior figures from charities have written to the Treasury to express concerns that the Warm Homes Policy policy is facing severe cuts.

Deputy Director of Uplift, Robert Palmer, added: “The nearly nine million people up and down the country living in cold damp homes, desperately need the Government to commit to the Warm Homes Plan.

“It is so important to them that this research reveals 46% Labour voters will lose further trust in the party if it backtracks on this key pledge.

“There is now deep concern following reports that the Treasury is looking to trim the amount the government has pledged to spend on insulating homes

“We have some of the leakiest housing stock in Europe and the priority should be making those fit to live in through the promised £13.2 billion Warm Homes Plan announced in the 2024 manifesto.

“We’re calling on the Government to commit to this funding now, which is also crucial to their election promise to bring down energy bills. If they don’t it could be a broken promise too far for many of those who put their faith in voting for Labour last July.”

ENDS

[1] Sources: The Times (27.05.25), the FT (05.05.25), Politico MEC Bulletin (29.04.25)

[2] Opinium conducted a politically and nationally representative online poll of 2,050 UK adults from 14th – 16th May 2025.

[3] Of the Labour voters polled, the research suggests 54% would still vote for the party, but 12% would vote Reform, 7% would vote Lib Dem, 6% Lib Dem, 3% Conservative with the others choosing another party or now being unsure of their vote.

[4] “Over half of prospective Labour voters…” Opinium conducted a politically and nationally representative online poll of 2,185 UK adults from 29th – 31st May 2024.

Two thirds of people (67%) were also aware of the move to remove winter fuel allowance payments from pensioners, apart from those who receive means-tested benefits, and 59% opposed it, with only 28% in favour. YouGov / ECIU.

Report reveals scale of health crisis fuelled by poor housing

A new landmark report by health charity Medact reveals that three quarters of health workers regularly see patients whose poor housing is harming their health – with more than 1 in 10 witnessing this almost every day.

Drawing on an opinion poll of over 2,000 healthcare workers, Home Sick Home: Frontline views on the public health crisis of unhealthy homes explores the public health impacts of the UK’s housing crisis on patients, health workers, and the NHS. The study found that nearly half (45%) of health workers have had to send a patient home knowing their housing would make them ill again.

“We see the same issues time and again – families living in mould-ridden, insecure homes, children developing asthma and anxiety, elderly people afraid to turn on their heating,” said Sophia, a clinical psychologist quoted in the report. “We’re not treating patients. We’re sending them back into the very conditions that made them sick.”

Key findings:

  • 70% regularly see mental health conditions caused or worsened by housing issues

  • 65% see patients living in excessively cold homes; 61% hear of damp and mould; 63% see unaffordable rent driving ill-health

  • 64% regularly treat children whose health problems are likely linked to insecure housing; 67% say damp and mould are causing children’s respiratory issues.

The report echoes previous findings of research by the Social Workers Union which revealed that over a fifth (21%) of social workers working with children, young people and families have seen their service remove a child or children from their family in the last three years where unsafe or inappropriate housing conditions was a key contributing factor.

The report says that the crisis is especially acute among vulnerable groups, with older adults, disabled people, and children experiencing housing-related illness. From mental health crises in new parents to chronic asthma in children, the testimonies included in the report reveal how unsafe housing is deepening health inequalities across the UK. The survey found that 66% of respondents see disabled people in unsuitable homes likely making them ill at least once a month.

“Given everything we know about the positives of good-quality housing, I never thought I’d see a rise in Victorian-age diseases,” said children’s doctor Krishnan in the report.

From cold, damp, overcrowded homes to skyrocketing rents and constant eviction threats, the report paints a picture of a housing system in collapse – and a public health crisis that is impacting both people’s health and the NHS.

It shows that health workers back political action to protect patient health and the NHS: 69% believe making renting more affordable would reduce the burden on the NHS, whilst 58% say increasing the supply of social housing would ease NHS pressures

More than two thirds (69%) agreed with the statements “I feel powerless to support my patients with their housing conditions” and “government spending to prevent illnesses created by cold homes is better for the NHS than having to spend money to nurse patients back to health”.

The report sets out ten recommendations, including rent controls, a national retrofitting programme, building more social housing, and a social energy guarantee to ensure no one has to choose between heating and eating.

Medact member and children’s doctor Dr Amaran Uthayakumar-Cumarasamy said:

“Colleagues feel a deep-seated sense of helplessness and feel redundant in their capacity to make meaningful health improvements in the lives of patients. Coupled with the existing pressures of working in a system that’s under-resourced, this leads to apathy. It’s tempting to think that the NHS alone can socially prescribe its way out of the housing crisis, but my experiences and those of colleagues suggest this simply will not scratch the surface let alone bring meaningful and lasting change. Yes, the NHS does need resourcing but if we’re serious about ‘an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure’, then that needs to be translated into policy.”

Laura Vicinanza, Senior Policy and Stakeholder Engagement Manager, Inclusion London said:

“It is no secret that disabled people are at the sharpest end of the housing crisis. Yet, this problem has been ignored for decades. Too many Disabled people are trapped in inaccessible homes, battling evictions, and facing skyrocketing rents – often forced to cut back on essentials just to afford their housing costs. Medact’s new report uncovers a very grim reality: poor and unaffordable housing doesn’t just worsen people’s existing health conditions—it creates new ones, with health professionals left to pick up the pieces of a broken housing system. But it doesn’t have to be this way. The Government has the power to solve this crisis. They can act now by making rents more affordable and kickstarting a revolution in accessible social homebuilding. We cannot afford to wait any longer.”

Dr Abi O’Connor, researcher at the New Economics Foundation, said:

“Private landlords have been allowed to increase rents to eye-watering levels and now we’re seeing the consequences – it’s making people and our economy sicker. If the government are interested in improving the economy for ordinary people, it is clear they must address the plague of unaffordable rents. In the short term they should introduce rent controls to give people stability, and in the long term they will need to build more social housing which is the only way to provide people with safe, affordable homes .”

A spokesperson for the End Fuel Poverty Coalition, commented:

“Addressing the housing challenge is more than health workers can do themselves.

“Not only do we need to see investment in a £13.2bn Warm Homes Plan to help improve housing conditions, but we also need a full range of fully-functioning and well-resourced public services.”

Social workers report cold homes crisis for children

As millions of households struggled through last winter in cold damp homes, the impact on children has been revealed in newly released data.

Over a fifth (21%) of social workers working with children, young people and families have seen their service remove a child or children from their family in the last three years where unsafe or inappropriate housing conditions was a key contributing factor. [1]

Unsafe housing conditions can include maintenance issues, mould, damp, insect or vermin infestations or cramped conditions.

More broadly, 78% of all social workers strongly agree that housing conditions are a concern for people they support, with over a third (36%) strongly agreeing that over the last three years, the number of people they help live in unsafe or inappropriate housing conditions which has increased.

The research among social workers was conducted by the Social Workers Union and follows previous reports by ITV that the cost of living crisis has led to a third of UK social workers witnessing child removals in the past three years where poverty or financial poverty has been a key factor.

John McGowan, General Secretary of the Social Workers Union, commented:

“Removal of a child from their family is always a last resort, but sadly when conditions become dangerous action has to be taken.

“This data shows that the reality of life in modern day Britain is a struggle for many households. The country’s poor housing stock poses a danger to the wellbeing and development of children and poses a risk to the health of many adults with pre-existing health conditions.

“Social workers go above and beyond to help those at most risk in the country and are highlighting safeguarding concerns on a regular basis. However, addressing the housing challenge is more than social workers can do themselves. 

“Not only do we need to see investment in a £13.2bn Warm Homes Plan to help improve housing conditions, but we also need a full range of fully-functioning and well-resourced public services. 

“Ministers must own up to the fact that it is only the Government that can provide the funding to reverse the decline in public services and ensure the most vulnerable get the support they need.”

Among all social workers, housing conditions are a concern with large numbers strongly agreeing that ‘the number of people I work with who are living in unsafe or inappropriate housing conditions’ has increased over the last 3 years.

However, the results varied across the UK, with those in the North East of England, London and Wales most likely to report that housing was a major concern. [2]

Simon Francis, coordinator of the End Fuel Poverty Coalition, said:

“Millions of people from the youngest children to our oldest pensioners are living in cold damp homes, unable to heat their homes to a safe temperature or racking up massive debts – with some even turning to loan sharks. 

“To add insult to injury, around a quarter of what is spent on heating our draughty properties is wasted, because the UK’s old housing stock is some of the worst insulated in Europe.

“Ministers are making the right noises when it comes to helping improve housing, but the Chancellor needs to put the money where their mouth is and commit the funding needed for a Wam Homes Plan which will help people improve the energy efficiency and insulation of their homes.

“And until these reforms are delivered, Ministers must not forget about the millions of people suffering in cold damp homes – they should provide enough support to ensure that everyone is able to stay warm every winter.”

Amaran Uthayakumar-Cumarasamy, an NHS Children’s Doctor based in South Yorkshire, commented:

“Some of the most acute harms of the UK’s unsafe, unaffordable and insecure housing are shouldered by our most disadvantaged children and young people.

“Whilst the findings of this report are shocking, they won’t come as a surprise to many of us working in the NHS. Increasingly, children’s health professionals across the UK are witnessing cases of respiratory illness, undernutrition and worsening mental health all linked to undignified housing circumstances. 

“What’s more, rather than providing a foundation for their health, unfit, unsafe and expensive housing continues to severely impact their educational attainment, social health and life chances.

“Without radical change towards fairer policies that support affordability, energy efficiency, accessibility and security of tenure, housing will continue to entrench and reproduce childhood mass illness and stark disadvantage.”

Matthew Scott, senior policy officer at the Chartered Institute of Housing, added:

“Warm, safe homes are the cornerstone of our health, but this research demonstrates the life changing impact housing can have on children’s wellbeing.

“Local authorities’ Housing Revenue Accounts are stretched to their limit following decades of rent cuts and caps over the last ten years, and it is nearly three decades since the last significant central investment in upgrading homes, which came through the transformative Decent Homes Programme.

“The government should seize the opportunity to reverse the cycle of underinvesting in housing quality, so every child has a safe, secure home. In its forthcoming Spending Review, we urge the government to set out a new programme of investment in existing homes, including fully allocating the £13.2 billion promised for its Warm Homes Plan and taking steps to put the finances of housing providers on a more stable footing.”

ENDS

[1] 2,295 members of the Social Workers Union responded to a survey conducted online between 3 and 21 October 2024. Respondents were screened to ensure active employment in social work. ITV News broadcast a report with unique access behind the scenes with a social work team on 4 December 2024.

[2] Regional / National differences for this question:

  • North East 41%
  • London 41%
  • Wales 41%
  • South East 39%
  • Yorkshire & Humber 39%
  • North West 39%
  • East Midlands 38%
  • Northern Ireland 37%
  • West Midlands 32%
  • South West 28%
  • Scotland 24%
  • East of England 26%

Featured image posed by model. Signed model release on file with Shutterstock, Inc (asset ID 510078436).

Millions to spend a fourth winter in cold damp homes

New figures reveal that 16% of UK adults (8.8m people) live in cold damp homes, exposed to the health complications that come from living in fuel poverty. [1]

While the Government has announced that a Warm Homes Plan will help improve people’s homes in years to come, this will come too late for the one in ten (9%) who frequently experienced, dangerous, levels of mould in their homes over the past 12 months.

People who live in poorly insulated homes risk seeing damp and mould spread and the NHS warns that people living in these conditions are more likely to have respiratory problems, respiratory infections, allergies or asthma. 

Damp and mould can also affect the immune system while living in such conditions can also increase the risk of heart disease, heart attacks or strokes.

Cold homes can cause and worsen respiratory conditions, cardiovascular diseases, poor mental health, dementia and hypothermia as well as cause and slow recovery from injury.

To tackle the problem, a large majority of people support a fully funded nationwide insulation and ventilation programme to create healthy, energy efficient homes that will slash excess deaths caused by cold, damp houses in winter. 

Nearly three-quarters (72%) agree the worst insulated homes should be the priority as almost half (47%) of those polled are worried about how they will stay warm this winter, with 46% worried if they have to rely on the NHS this winter. [2]

A spokesperson for the End Fuel Poverty Coalition, commented:

“The sheer numbers of people living in cold damp homes this winter should send alarm bells ringing throughout Westminster. 

“These shocking figures have hardly changed since last year and with energy bills heading upwards again in January, the situation is now critical for the Government.

“The Chancellor must take two immediate steps in the Comprehensive Spending Review. Firstly, she must fully support the Warm Homes Plan with £13.2bn of funding and a commitment to help the worst insulated homes get support first.

“Then Ministers must also bring in more support for vulnerable households this winter and speed up plans to bring in a social tariff for next winter – a move that is backed by the vast majority of voters.”

Following the findings of the poll, commissioned by campaign group Warm This Winter, organisations have signed an open letter sent to Darren Jones, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury calling for the Government to commit to the  £13.2 billion. 

Warm This Winter spokesperson Caroline Simpson said: “It is shocking that whilst people are looking forward to celebrating the festivities, too many are still living in true Dickensian conditions, where cold damp homes are making them ill.

“We need to see a Government that has the ambition to create the homes people deserve and banish these appalling conditions to a bye-gone era where they belong.”

ENDS

[1] Opinium conducted an online survey of 2,000 UK adults between 22nd and 26th November 2024. Results have been weighted to be nationally representative.  In 2023, there were 54,196,443 people aged 18 plus in the UK according to ONS.

[2] Opinium conducted an online survey of 2,014 UK adults between 7th and 8th October 2024. Results were weighted to be nationally and politically representative of the UK adult population.