National Grid has announced the launch of a funding programme to support British and American households struggling with energy costs.
The newly created Grid for Good Energy Affordability Fund will initially operate for three years and will distribute £3.5 million of funding per year among UK charities and organisations that offer immediate financial support to families in fuel poverty. An additional £3.3 million will be donated over the three years to US organisations providing similar support, bringing National Grid’s total pledge over the next three years to £13.8 million.
An initial £1.2 million worth of support has already been allocated to four UK charities and organisations, which offer various kinds of support to vulnerable households. This first funding pot has been split between Affordable Warmth Solutions, which provides free home insulation and other energy efficiency measures to households who don’t qualify for government programmes, Fuel Bank Foundation, which provides emergency financial support and advice to households with a fuel pre-payment meter in fuel crisis, the National Energy Foundation, which works to improve the energy efficiency of homes and offers advice and practical support to make homes warmer, and National Energy Action, which works with communities to help keep vulnerable people warm at home.
Komie Jain, global head of social impact and community engagement at National Grid said: “Many families continue to face difficult choices when it comes to their energy bills, and we are determined to play our part in alleviating the financial strain. While immediate relief is vital, our vision extends beyond that. Our aim is for the fund to also support households with longer-term efficiency solutions, providing financial benefits for years to come.”
Jeremy Nesbitt, managing director of Affordable Warmth Solutions, added: “The donation will enable AWS to reach out to those most at risk from the cold and provide them with essential warmth and comfort during periods of extreme weather. We’ll be working with the other National Grid partners to ensure assistance is targeted at those most in need.”
Fuel poverty is a growing concern
September 2024 statistics from the UK’s energy regulator Ofgem noted that between Q1 and Q2 2024, energy debt and arrears rose by 12%, from £3.31 billion to £3.7 billion, with the total sum of debt increasing by almost half between Q2 2023 and Q2 2024.
Just a month prior, a report from the Committee on Fuel Poverty revealed that attempts to reduce fuel poverty had almost entirely failed, with rates of fuel poverty falling by just 0.1% between 2022 and 2023.
In response, several actions are being taken to protect UK energy consumers. August 2024 saw the creation of the Energy Crisis Commission (CCC), a new group which seeks to learn lessons from the UK’s handling of the energy crisis to ensure British energy markets can avoid future price shocks of this kind. Meanwhile, minister for energy consumers Miatta Fahnbulleh has urged the UK’s top energy suppliers to support families in fuel poverty in an open letter, stating: “It is essential suppliers also play their part to ensure that more households do not fall into debt and that those already in arrears are adequately supported.”
