Grants and Services that are available to improve the energy efficiency of your home and save you money.

Warm Front Scheme:
Warm Front is a government scheme which provides a grant to make your home more energy efficient. Grants of up to £3,500 are available to help people on certain benefits make their homes warmer and more energy efficient.

Who can claim?
If you own your own home or rent it from a private landlord and are receiving one or more of the benefits listed below, you may be eligible for a Warm Front Grant of up to £3,500.

Eligibility:

The eligibility for the Warm Front Grant has changed. The scheme is now targeted at people on certain income-related benefits and who are living in properties that are poorly insulated and/or do not have a working central heating system.

You are eligible to apply if you are in receipt of:

• Pension Credit, or
• Income-Related Employment and Support Allowance that includes work-related activity or support component (this includes Contribution Based ESA customers in the support group who get an income-related top up because they automatically qualify for the enhanced disability premium payable with Income-Related ESA)

If you are awarded:

• Income Support, or
• Income-Based Job Seekers Allowance, or
• Income-Related Employment Support Allowance in the assessment phase (first 13 weeks of the claim)·

You must also have one of the following:

• Pensioner Premium, or
• A Disability or Severe Disability Premium, or
• An award of Child Tax Credit that also includes an element for a disabled, or severely disabled child or young person, or
• A child under the age of five living with you

What are the Grants for?
The grants will pay, or help to pay, for the following kinds of work, which should make your home warmer, while reducing your fuel bills and making more efficient use of energy:

• Loft insulation
• Draught Proofing.
• Cavity-wall insulation.
• Hot water tank insulation.
• Converting a solid-fuel open fire to a glass-fronted fire.
• Central heating system.

How do I claim?
You can fill in an on-line application form at www.warmfront.co.uk, or contact by telephone - (freephone) 0800 316 6011 or text 0800 072 0156 between 8am and 6pm Monday to Friday and 9am and 5pm Saturday, or by post to The Warm Front Team, Carillion Energy Services, Free-post NEA 12054, Newcastle Upon Tyne, NE2 1BR. You can email your contact details to enquiry@carillionplc.com. An advisor will call you back.

Alternatively, you can contact DIAL Doncaster (01302 327 800) for further help and an application pack.

Tips for keeping warm:

• Close the curtains at dusk to keep the cold out and heat in.
• Take showers instead of baths where this is possible.
• Replace a poorly fitted hot water cylinder jacket - save £15 a year.
• Always turn unwanted lights off.
• Turn central heating down by 1 degree centigrade. You'll hardly notice the difference but could cut your heating bills by 10%.
• Use low energy light bulbs.
• Line the wall behind a radiator with foil to reduce heat loss through the wall.
• Install draught excluder round doors and windows where there is a draught.

Energy Action for Health:
Energy Action for Health is administered by Doncaster Council's Energy and Sustainability Section. It is an Affordable Warmth initiative. This nationally recognised scheme aims to improve health and tackle the causes of ill health by providing home advice visits to vulnerable residents to ensure that any help available is provided for them. The scheme is a partnership between Doncaster Council and NHS Doncaster who work together to help local residents keep warm and healthy in their homes.

During the one-to-one advice visits to a household, energy advice specific to the person's circumstances will be given, including the exploration of any energy related grants for which the householder might be eligible. Where possible, assistance in applying for grants will be provided as well as information regarding the no cost and low cost ways to save money on fuel bills.

Contact the Energy Team at DMBC, Energy and Sustainability Section, PO Box 257, The Council House, College Road, Doncaster, DN1 1RN. Telephone 01302 737 056, fax: 01302 737 473, or via e-mail: dmbcenergy@doncaster.gov.uk

Staywarm:
Staywarm is an energy service that will provide a household with all its electricity and gas needs at one low fixed price. You can join Staywarm if you or someone in your home is over 60 years of age provided that your home has no more than three bedrooms and that there are not more than four people living there.

The amount you will pay is based on the number of bedrooms and the number of people living in your home.

You can use as much electricity and gas as you need - it won't affect the amount you pay. The price is guaranteed to remain fixed for a year from when you sign up. Customers must be able to make their payments by monthly direct debit.

Further information can be obtained from DIAL Doncaster(01302 327 800), or call Staywarm free on 0845 303 3060, with a copy of your latest electricity and gas bills to hand.

Priority Services Register
Every gas and electricity supplier provides a scheme known as the Priority Services Register (some suppliers may use a different name for the priority services register). If you are a domestic consumer, and meet one or more of the following criteria, you mat register for a range of free or optional services designed to make your life easier.

Eligibility:

• Are of pensionable age.
• Have a disability.
• Have a long term ill health condition.
• Are blind or visually impaired.
• Have a hearing impairment.

The services are as follows:

• Password Protection Scheme - A unique password is agreed between yourselves and your gas/electric supplier to be used if their staff need to visit your home.
• Moving Meters - If your meter is difficult to reach or read your supplier may consider moving the meter to a more convenient place, free of charge.
• Free Gas Safety Check - You are entitled to an annual safety check of gas appliances if ALL of the adults in your home are eligible for the priority register.
• Special Controls and Adapters - Your supplier can provide and fit, free of charge, special controls and adapters to help make gas and electricity appliances and meters easier for you to use.
• Bill Nominee Scheme - If you would like your bills, or a copy of your bills, to be sent to a relative or carer's address so they can help you to read or check your bill, your supplier will arrange this on request.
• Accessing Prepayment Meters - If you are unable to access your gas and/or electricity prepayment meter then providing it is safe and practical your supplier can move this to a more accessible location free of charge.
• Services for Visually Impaired or Hearing Impaired Customers- Your supplier can provide consumer information, including meter reading and and bills, in a suitable format for you. This may be Braille, Large Print, on Audio Tape, via textphone or TextRelay.

You may be entitled to special help if your gas supply is disrupted e.g. provision of alternative cooking or heating facilities if ALL of the adults in your home meet the criteria for the priority register. If you rely on the supply of electricity to power vital medical equipment in your home, you can get advance notice if your supply has to be interrupted for planned work.

How to Register
Contact your supplier directly to obtain an application form for their scheme.

Home Heat Helpline
The Home Heat Helpline is a free service that offers practical advice for people concerned about paying their energy bills. It is open from 9:00am till 8:00pm Monday to Friday and 10:00am till 2:00pm on Saturdays.
Tel: 0800 336 699
Minicom: 0800 027 2122

Consumer Direct
Consumer Direct·offers advice on energy supply issues. For further details contact:
Consumer Direct
Tel: 0845 404 0506
or visit:
Website: www.consumerdirect.gov.uk

DIAL Disclaimer
Whilst all the information given in this fact sheet was correct at the time of going to press, DIAL Doncaster cannot be held responsible for any subsequent changes.

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