On Air Now Non Stop Music Midnight - 7:00am Dua Lipa - Hallucinate Schedule

Energy Helpmates Sought By Isle Of Wight Footprint Trust As 'Fuel Anxiety' Grows

The Isle of Wight Footprint Trust charity is recruiting volunteers to help it cope with unprecedented levels of enquiries, as Islanders feel anxious about energy price rises.

The latest estimates predict bills of around £4,650 pa from January 2023. Before the COVID pandemic, it's said that fuel poverty levels were around 11% of households on the Island, before rising to about 18%. The Footprint Trust predicts that this will rise to around 30% of Isle of Wight households by the end of the 2023 winter.

Around 21,000 homes could be affected. The Footprint Trust helps around 2,000 fuel poor residents every year, through practical guidance and grants.

Ray Harrington-Vail, from the charity, said:

“Without specialist help and support many people will sit in the cold and not put heating on at all. Others will default on rent and mortgage payments or not pay their Council Tax. Some will cancel Direct Debits for fuel and finish up in Court and may ultimately be cut off.”

The Footprint Trust is concerned that its staff will struggle to cope with the number of enquiries that they are anticipating. They estimate that enquiries will go up from around 2,000 pa to over 4,000 in the next 12 months.

It wants to recruit volunteer ‘Energy Helpmates’ as an immediate and cheaper way of getting basic guidance and help to the fuel poor who, if necessary, can then be passed on to their specialist team for more tailored help.

Their proposal is to recruit volunteers with a level of expertise in energy and related matters. Such people may be retired electricians, plumbers, gas fitters, engineers, teachers, university lecturers. But anyone would be considered who has numeracy skills and a desire to help, subject to approval.

There will be an informal open evening on Tuesday September 6 at 5pm in Newport to find out more. For more information, email [email protected]  or call 01983 822282.

More from Isle of Wight News