Save Energy
Barnet Council has released some simple energy-saving tips as part of a series of measures to help people struggling to heat their homes, cook and stay warm this winter.
The tips include reducing thermostats by a degree Celsius to take 10 per cent off bills, and cooking using a slow cooker which compared to a gas hob or oven can make significant savings.
Cllr Alan Schneiderman, Chair of Barnet Council’s Environmental Committee said
“We know that with the cost-of-living crisis and energy bills shooting up that a lot of people will be worrying about how to heat their homes this winter.
“We have already announced several measures we are taking to help, with a £9million financial support package including £2million of targeted support to those in crisis.
“However, in addition, there are also some simple changes people can make to reduce their energy use, cutting down on their bills and helping the environment at the same time.”
Barnet Council is providing guidance, in accordance with energy experts, to bring residents a list of tips to help reduce energy costs this winter:
- Switch to using LED lightbulbs. These use 90 per cent less than normal bulbs. In a few months, LED light bulbs can pay for themselves through their energy-saving quality.
- Switch off electrical appliances when they’re not in use. You can save around £65 a year by turning off your appliances instead of leaving them on standby mode.
- Turn your lights off when you’re not using them. This will save you around £25 a year on your annual energy bills.
- Try a slow cooker as a cheaper cooking alternative. An electric cooker costs on average 87p per day to run. Meanwhile, a slow cooker costs just 16p a day.
- Only boil water that you need. Avoid overfilling the kettle and save yourself £13 a year on your electricity bill.
- Wash your clothes carefully. You can save around £34 a year by washing clothes at 30 degrees and reducing your wash to one run per week.
- Turn down the temperature. Every degree you lower on your thermostat by could lower your heating bill by 10%.
For the full list of tips and further support go to Save energy and keep warm this winter | Barnet Council.
Notes to Editors
- These figures are taken from the Energy Saving Trust - for a typical three-bedroom, gas-heated home in Great Britain, using a gas price of 10.3p/kWh and electricity price of 34.0p/kWh (based on Energy Price Guarantee October 2022). Water savings are based on average occupancy.)