Energy and Household Bills
Worried about the cost of heating your home or paying your utility bills? You are not alone, and support is available.
Many people are eligible for support and do not realise it, so it is worth checking what is available. Whether you need short-term help, advice to reduce your energy use, or support to stay warm and well, explore the options below to see what assistance you may be able to get.
Get confidential, impartial advice
Your local Citizens Advice can refer you for support with energy advice, and check if you can get a grant (money you do not have to pay back) for energy.
They can also help with:
- managing your money and debt
- speaking to your landlord about cold, damp and heating issues
- benefit checks to boost your income
- grant applications
- emergency heating support (if you are in crisis and at risk of disconnection, including self-disconnection due to lack of funds)
Grants and support to help heat your home
Crisis and Resilience Fund Crisis Payments
A grant for people struggling to afford the cost of essentials like food, heating, fuel, clothing and household bills. (This was previously known as the Local Welfare Assistance Scheme).
Find out more and apply on the Suffolk County Council website
Support with heating oil costs
Heating oil grant
If you are struggling with the cost of heating oil, you may be eligible for a heating oil payment through the Crisis and Resilience Fund. If you meet the eligibility criteria you can apply for a heating oil payment of up to £350, to help with part of the cost of an oil delivery. (You should only apply when you are ready to purchase oil within the next 30 days.)
Find out more about heating oil payments on the Suffolk County Council website
Collective oil buying
You may find it helpful to join a collective buying scheme that brings together local residents to bulk buy oil to secure a better price for households.
Interest-free oil loans
The Eastern Savings and Loan Credit Union (ESLCU) have interest free 'Green Loans' to help spread the cost of buying oil. (Subject to affordability, credit check, and a membership fee.)
Find out more about Green Loans from ESLCU
Speak to your energy supplier
If you are struggling to afford your energy costs or have energy debt, contact your energy supplier and ask about payment options or grants. You can also ask your local Citizens Advice for help to budget and negotiate with your supplier.
Other grants and discounts
If you are struggling to pay your energy bills, you may be eligible for additional support. The links below contain further advice about the grants and discounts currently available to households:
- Grants and benefits to help you pay your energy bills (from Citizens Advice)
- Search for other grants you may be eligible for (from Turn2Us)
Home Energy Improvements
Improving the energy efficiency of your home can help you reduce how much energy you use.
Warm Homes Suffolk
Grants for eligible private tenants or homeowners, for wall and loft insulation, solar panels and air source heat pumps, to make homes warmer and cheaper to run.
Check your eligibility on Warm Homes Suffolk
Find ways to save energy in your home
If you own your home, or are a private landlord, you can use the government tool to learn about longer term investments that improve the energy efficiency of your home. The tool also provides information on installations, as well as grants:
Find energy improvements on Gov.UK
Boiler Upgrade Scheme
Check whether you and your property are eligible for the Boiler Upgrade Scheme, which provides grants towards the cost of installing low-carbon heating systems such as heat pumps and biomass boilers.
Apply for the boiler upgrade scheme
Solar Panels - Switch Together Suffolk
Switch Together Suffolk is a scheme that helps people in Suffolk install solar panels and battery storage for their homes. It is supported by local councils and works by bringing lots of households together to get a better deal from trusted installers.
Check what support you can get from Switch Together Suffolk
Local environment grants and funding for residents
Find out about the latest schemes to support residents with heating their homes
Warm homes healthy people
Suffolk's Warm Homes Healthy People is a project designed to help vulnerable people and families make their homes cheaper to heat.
More information from national organisations about reducing your energy use:
- Energy advice for households (from Ofgem)
- Quick tips to save energy at home (from Energy Saving Trust)
- Energy saving advice (from GOV.UK)
Warm spaces
There are lots of warm spaces across Suffolk where people can get together to socialise in a warm and welcoming environment.
Libraries: All libraries in Suffolk have warm spaces for anyone to come and use.
Community Groups: We have provided grant funding to community groups, to help them provide free or affordable activities, and support their local communities through the winter months.
Find your nearest Live Well in Winter group
The Rural Coffee Caravan: the charity runs or supports a variety of social events in rural communities across Suffolk. They have a map of all their sessions (including warm spaces) online.