‘I’m saving £120 a month by going back to the Dark Ages’

Energy firms pay families to cut electricity use at peak times as part of scheme to reduce strain on National Grid

Convincing a teenager to sit around a table and play a board game might seem like a Herculean task in the age of the internet. But for Caroline Michelle, 43, the solution is simple: turn off all the electricity.

With no lights, save for a few candles, and no television, phones or games consoles, a 15-year-old boy has no choice but to join his mother and his nine-yearold twin siblings around the dining table for an hour.

“It’s actually been really lovely,” she said. “It’s facilitated talking in our household with our teenager.”

There’s an added benefit: each hour shaves about £2.50 off their electricity bill.

Ms Michelle is taking part in the Energy Saving Sessions scheme run by Octopus Energy, which pays households that reduce their electricity usage in times of peak demand.

The idea behind it is to reduce strain on the National Grid, which is pushed closest to its limits between 5.30pm and 6.30pm when people typically cook dinner, use the kettle, and wash clothes. The scheme encourages people to avoid these energyintensive activities during this period with small payments, offsetting the cost of power.

Octopus also incentivises households to cut their electricity usage by offering “points” which can be traded in later for an energy rebate.

A spokesman for Octopus said that customers saved £4 to £5 on average over the course of their four hour-long sessions. Some 450,000 households have signed up to the scheme, and more than 250,000 took part in the trial.

For Ms Michelle, who lives in Hertfordshire and agreed to speak using another name, the scheme offered a chance both to save money and teach her children about the soaring cost of energy. “We made it into a game,” she explained.

“It’s important that my children understand that energy is not endless and we all have a duty to save as much as possible.”

Ms Michelle’s family turned off all electrical appliances, except essentials such as the fridge and Wi-fi, which must stay on to connect the scheme to the smart meter. Socalled “vampire appliances”, such as TVS and ovens, waste electricity when in stand-by mode.

The selfimposed blackouts have also helped to reduce her children’s dependence on technology, and she said that they would be “ready for the real thing”.

Ms Michelle added: “There have been one or two sessions where we’ve not plugged everything back in afterwards. There’s one TV in the house that’s been off for three weeks.

“My children are more aware of how much things cost.”

Helen James (pictured left with her two sons) also took her family “back to the Dark Ages” in an effort to save money.

The 42-year-old, who spoke using a pseudonym, estimated that she could save £120 a month by slashing her usage for an hour a day.

“It was almost like going back to our roots,” she said. “My children are now more aware of the cost of water, electricity and gas. They’ve realised it’s not free.”