Major cash boost for heating initiative

Perthshire-based HEAT Project has been awarded nearly £100,000 to enable it to continue its work supporting households living in fuel poverty.

The grant, which has been awarded through Ofgem’s Energy Industry Voluntary Redress Scheme, will fund that aspect of HEAT Project’s work for two years.

It will run alongside existing funding from the Safe Deposits Scotland Charitable Trust which supports the HEAT Project’s efforts to help private landlords and tenants reduce their energy bills and meet the Scottish Government property’s Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) standards in eastern and Highland Perthshire.

The HEAT Project, which is part of Blairgowrie and Rattray Development Trust, has provided energy saving advice to over 500 households in the region since 2017, contributing to reducing annual CO2 emissions in the area by over 2000 tonnes.

Martin Mathers, manager of the HEAT Project, welcomed the news.

He said:“Ofgem’s Energy Redress grant allows us to expand our vital energy advice service.

“Using our established links with community bodies in the area, we will be able to deliver an effective, efficient and reliable service to many more households.

“We particularly want to help households facing high energy bills and declining incomes as well as elderly and vulnerable groups in eastern and Highland Perthshire.

“Our advice will be professional, practical and tailored to the needs of each household.”

He went on:“Improving the energy performance of our homes is important not just for household bills and climate change but can also improve quality of life and health.

“There is evidence that cold and damp homes can lead to increasing incidence of respiratory diseases and greater risk from COVID-19.

“The HEAT Project has continued to offer an online and telephone advice service throughout lockdowns.

“With the gradual easing of restrictions, we will once more be able to safely offer in-house survey and advice sessions.”

Stuart Nichol, chair of Blairgowrie and Rattray Development Trust, added: “During the COVID-19 pandemic, the significant increase in unemployment and reduction in household income in the project area has resulted in many households spending a larger proportion of their income on keeping warm.

“This is worse for houses off the gas grid, and the older, harder to treat properties, typical of the rural parts of the project area.”