Lancashire: Cadent funds £500,000 scheme to tackle fuel poverty and energy inefficiency in 248 park homes
- 166 park homes at Burlingham Park (near Garstang) and 82 more at Carrwood Park (Walton-le-Dale) are set to gain modern, efficient heating by being connected to the gas grid
- Mostly occupied by retired or semi-retired owners, these homes are currently heated by LPG bottles or tanks, or electric heaters, which are inefficient and costly to operate
- Latest projects announced in a national, multi-million-pound scheme funded by Lancashire’s gas network Cadent and delivered by Affordable Warmth Solutions (AWS)
Funding of nearly £500,000 has been secured to connect 248 park homes in Lancashire to the gas grid and provide residents with modern, efficient heating systems for the first time.
Existing old, inefficient electric and LPG heating systems are set to be a thing of the past for residents of 166 properties in Burlingham Park (Cabus, near Garstang) and 82 at Carrwood Park (Walton-le-Dale). They are the latest to benefit from a national scheme to tackle fuel poverty.
Lancashire’s gas network Cadent has confirmed the funding to install – via its partner AWS – a new underground gas main and connect each home to gas for the first time.
A successful bid by Blackpool Council to the
Warm Homes Fund (established by National Grid and administered by AWS) means residents will have the cost of installing new energy-efficient boilers, radiators and associated internal pipework all covered
at nil cost to them.
The work to install the new gas infrastructure at Carrwood Park gets under way on Monday (10 February) and at Burlingham Park shortly after.
This is all part of a scheme delivered by AWS for Cadent, as part of the gas network’s commitment to support the connection of thousands of homes under Ofgem’s Fuel Poor Network Extension Scheme.
Eighty-one similar projects helped support 4,608 homes in 2018/2019 alone, through a total of £5.1m invested by Cadent and a further £13m for new heating systems by partner organisations, such as local authorities, housing associations and the Warm Homes Fund.
Jenny Moten, Director of Cadent’s North West Network, said: “Those of us connected to the gas grid generally take it for granted that we are, enjoying the benefits of reliable, affordable heating.
“Having a home that’s warm, and reliably so, and without it costing an absolute fortune, makes such a huge difference in financial terms, but also to your health and wellbeing.
“Since 2013, with AWS, we’ve helped support many thousands of fuel poor homes, in many cases having a life-changing impact on the people who live in them.
“Our investment here at Burlingham Park and Carrwood Park means that the residents will soon be able to enjoy modern, safe, reliable, efficient heating.”
Jeremy Nesbitt, Managing Director of AWS, said: “We’re delighted to deliver these two exciting schemes on behalf of Cadent and Blackpool Council. Replacing old, outdated electric and LPG heating systems with efficient and economic gas heating will really make a positive difference to the lives of the residents.”
Cadent is the UK’s biggest gas network. It manages a huge network of more than 80,000 miles of underground gas mains and above-ground stations, which deliver gas to more than 11 million properties connected to the grid. Its area of operations extends from the Lake District to London.
What is fuel poverty?
In England, a household is considered to be fuel poor if
- they have required fuel costs that are above average (the national median level), and
- were they to spend that amount, they would be left with residual income below the official poverty line
According to
gov.uk, there are three important elements when determining whether a household is fuel poor:
- household income
- household energy requirements
- fuel prices
What is a park home?
A park home is a detached bungalow-style home, usually set in a private estate. Designed to be lived in permanently, they often vary in size and layout.