Southend vows to kick fuel poverty into touch
Published Thursday 3rd March 11 in Council - news and information releases news
Southend-on-Sea Borough Council has demonstrated its commitment to further improving housing standards in the borough by signing the East of England Fuel Poverty Declaration.
The declaration was developed by the independent charity National Energy Action to encourage organizations and individuals across the eastern region to provide affordable, warm homes.
Fuel poverty results from a variety of factors including low income, poor energy efficiency, poor housing and high fuel prices.
It has social, economic and health impacts not only for individual households but also the wider community as a whole.
By signing the Fuel Poverty Declaration the Council is demonstrating its commitment to reduce fuel poverty within the borough.
It aims to achieve this by
- considering affordable warmth when developing policy
- working in partnership to implement effective affordable warmth measures for households
- supporting the adoption of practical actions to assist households achieve affordable warmth and
- employing low carbon affordable warmth measures where possible.
The declaration was signed on the Council's behalf by Councillor Anna Waite, the Executive Councillor for Adult Social Care and Housing.
She said: "Fuel poverty is a very important issue which affects owner occupiers and private tenants as well as council tenants.
"By signing the declaration we are committing ourselves to combating fuel poverty wherever this is possible.
"All fuel-poor households should have the opportunity to make informed decisions about how they achieve affordable warmth.
"As an authority we should be doing all we can to ensure that as many homes as possible in the borough are as energy efficient and warm as they can possibly be."