Age UK L&S wins Energy Impact Award!

£5k grant comes in handy for Age UK Lewisham & Southwark to deliver vital services to over-65s around Southwark.

Age UK Lewisham and Southwark has been awarded £5,000 of funding in this year’s Energy Impact Awards. The awards, run by leading fuel poverty charity National Energy Action (NEA) in partnership with British Gas, recognise best practice amongst agencies carrying out work that focuses on energy projects tackling fuel poverty by benefiting vulnerable people in the local area.

“Warm and Well in Winter” is a project that will aim to tackle fuel poverty, isolation and physical health and well-being. A key element in this is the work of our Handyperson Service, carrying out home visits to older people across Southwark. Through this award our handyperson team will provide guidance about ways to keep their home warm during winter alongside carrying out jobs that will contribute to their home staying warm i.e. fixing carpets, curtains or doors. The handyperson will also have a conversation with the older person to ascertain if they need referrals for further advice relating to loneliness, their personal health or further support with fuel poverty (ie: tariff switching or benefit checks).

Age UK Lewisham & Southwark said: "We are honoured and excited to have received this award. We know that winter is a particularly difficult time for many older people, and that our handyperson service is hugely valuable to the older people in Southwark and important to enabling older people to remain safe and independent."

Maria Wardrobe, Director of External Affairs at NEA said: “I’m delighted to award the funding to Age UK Lewisham and Southwark which has demonstrated some really innovative ways of tackling fuel poverty in Lewisham and Southwark. I look forward to seeing this project develop and make a real tangible impact on the lives of vulnerable people in the community.”

Steve Crabb, Director of Consumer Vulnerability at British Gas said: “I congratulate Age UK Lewisham and Southwark on their Warm and Well in Winter initiative, which was a deserved winner in the 2018 Energy Impact Awards There is a so much great work being done in communities across Britain to help people save energy and end the scourge of fuel poverty. We had some excellent application’s this year from across the country and that’s what these awards are all about, and that’s why British Gas is so proud to be involved with them and committed to working with NEA."