New scheme saving the planet and residents money

Leyton residents Tara and West are benefiting from the Lower Bills, Warmer Homes programme after they picked up and installed free energy-efficiency measures to help lower their energy bills.

Rising energy bills, coupled with sub-zero temperatures, have made this a difficult winter for many across the borough.

And Tara and West are not alone in struggling to strike the balance between staying warm in their home while trying to keep the costs down.

Tara said, “We have found the winter to be much colder than previous years. Between the heavy snowfall in December, we feel we've had more days of frost than in previous winters. The rise in energy bills does not help with how much colder we feel in the home.”

Like many others across the country, Tara has had to adapt her everyday behaviour to find ways of lowering energy bills.

Access free energy-efficiency measures

She added, “We run cold wash for the laundry only in the evening and we don't run baths. The hot water we use is for dishwashing and two quick showers a day. Even with all these measures in place, our monthly energy bill still comes to around £350. It's unsustainable and difficult to manage.”

With the help of the Lower Bills, Warmer Homes programme Tara and West were able to access free energy-efficiency measures. They collected reflective radiator panels, a low-kitchen faucet attachment and door draught-excluders for their flat in Leyton.

They found each measure easy to install and it is estimated having them in place will help save them £138 a year as well as making the flat warmer.

Tara added: “Ideally our monthly energy costs go down or at least the energy we do pay for can go further.”