Our Save Your Energy project worked with young people aged 16-25 across Wales, educating and training them to engage with energy issues, providing the understanding, tools, personal support and resources that they need to make better informed choices and decisions regarding energy.

A toolkit has been developed to help youth workers integrate energy advice into their work with young people, the project also enabled social action projects to be developed by young people across Wales.

Funded by the Energy Industry Voluntary Redress Scheme – www.energyredress.org.uk

Train the trainer sessions are available, all around how to use our "Save Your Energy" toolkit resource, newly developed to support young people to make energy informed choices in their homes. This toolkit has been developed as part of our "Save Your Energy" project, to enable specialist youth facing professionals embed energy and fuel support into their work with young people across Wales.

The "Save Your Energy" Toolkit activities aim to target young people aged 16-25 who are in some way responsible for the heating and electricity bills in their home. This includes but is not limited to young carers, young people with disabilities, young homeless people, young people with low income, young people who are not in education, employment or training, young care leavers, young people who are in further or higher education, or young people who are in a vocational training programme.

The toolkit is filled with engaging activities and sessions for young people, giving them the tools and knowledge to be able to learn about budgeting, energy efficiency, fuel bills, and other means of support that they can access. There will also be an opportunity for young people to expand their learning and get involved with social action projects/campaigns in their community.

If you would like to express interest in this training session, please fill out the form below.

Anna will be chatting to young people and youth facing professionals, about energy choices and experiences in the home, with the aim to inform, educate, and encourage others to start thinking about energy and accessing the support that they need.

FIRST EPISODE Monday 11th January

• Oil – EAP for up to £175 as a contribution towards the purchase of a tank of oil. Maximum of one award for oil during the pilot.
• LPG – EAP for up to £60 as a contribution towards the purchase of LPG. Maximum of up to three awards during the pilot (subject to the client’s EAP award history and maximum support limit).

The EAP off-grid fuel payments will form part of the standard EAP limits. The award will be made by BACS (Bank Transfer) only. The Fund will accept independently submitted applications and use discretion where required. However, it is looking to receive applications for the off-grid fuel payments as partner supported online applications wherever possible.

For more information, please contact the Discretionary Assistance Fund online or telephone 0800 859 5924.

Welsh Government relaunches Boiler Repair Scheme for winter 2020/21

The Welsh Government’s Discretionary Assistance Fund (DAF) makes Emergency Assistance Payments (EAP) as a non-repayable grant to help with essential costs in the event of an emergency or disaster. The payment can currently help people meet the cost of food, gas and electricity, clothing and emergency travel.

Under the boiler repair scheme, a vulnerable person meeting the pilot eligibility criteria (below) will be able to book a Gas Safe registered engineer to assess and make minor repairs to central heating boilers.

A grant of up to £120 (for labour and parts) is payable. Applicants will receive a decision within 24 hours for an EAP application made between Monday-Friday. If the application is successful, a PayPoint voucher or BACS payment to cover the cost of repair will be issued.

To qualify for a payment under this pilot scheme, the applicant will:

• have experienced a central heating boiler breakdown not under warranty or covered by a maintenance agreement and be responsible for its repair and maintenance;
• provide written or electronic confirmation to evidence a registered service engineer has been booked, or provide a booking reference number[1] for the engineer booking;
• be living with children and young people aged 17 or less, older people aged 60 and over, or living with a chronic health condition or disabled people;
• be resident in Wales and not living in social housing or private rented accommodation where the landlord is responsible for heating repairs;
• be at least 16 years old; and
• be living in a low income household based on Table 1 below, or otherwise be in receipt of means-tested benefits and have no access to other money and tried all other affordable sources of funding.

If a repair cannot be repaired, then supplementary heating can be made available through the DAF. If needed, a whole house assessment can be booked with the Welsh Government’s Warm Homes Programme Nest scheme.

The pilot scheme will operate from 1 December 2020 to 31 March 2021. The DAF can be contacted between 9.30am–4pm Monday to Friday on freephone 0800 8595924.