As the weather begins to turn and temperatures start to dip, a specialist team is offering to visit Basingstoke and Deane residents’ homes for free, to give them advice on how they could save hundreds of pounds on their energy bills every year.
Every household in the borough can book a survey with Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council’s money-saving energy experts, no matter whether they rent or own their home or what type of property they live in.
The surveys are completed by trained advisors in the council’s Green Team and are designed to help residents save money while keeping their homes warmer in the winter and cooler in the summer.
The visit includes the use of thermal imaging to understand where heat is being lost and a check to make sure radiators are working properly.
The advice the team gives is tailored to individuals’ homes and residents will benefit from a written report that sets out practical actions they can take to make their home more energy efficient. This can include simple everyday changes to more significant actions like adding insulation and switching to low carbon heating.
Over 1,150 households across the borough have already benefited from having a survey since the launch of the service three years ago, potentially saving each of them hundreds of pounds every year on their bills.
Residents have praised the surveys, with Diane describing the visit as “very interesting and informative” and saying it “raised our awareness”, while Nicola said it was “exactly the kind of help and information we needed”. Chris added that the survey was “very thorough” and explained ways to improve energy efficiency “in layman’s terms.”
The Cabinet member responsible for the energy-saving help Cllr Chris Tomblin said: “If you are worried about rising energy costs and looking for ways to reduce your bills, our specialist team can help.
“This is part of our aim to help improve energy-efficiency in homes across the borough at a time of rising fuel prices and to cut carbon in support of our climate change pledge.
“Whether you rent or own your home, I encourage you to book in for a free survey with our experts. It’s free, only lasts an hour and the tailored advice you would get could help you to save hundreds of pounds every year.”
Free surveys can be booked at www.basingstoke.gov.uk/home-energy-survey