Scarf-up this week for warmer homes says Charity

Age Scotland is supporting Cold Homes Week, which runs from 2nd-6th February and calls on the Government to significantly increase investment in making our cold houses easier and cheaper to heat.

The Energy Bill Revolution, a movement supported by a wide array of charities and companies - including Age Scotland - recognises that our poor quality and energy inefficient homes are a major contributor towards unaffordable energy bills, high levels of fuel poverty and climate change from carbon emissions.

Over the course of the week, Age Scotland will be tweeting our support and encouraging people to sign up to the campaign and tell their MP to sign the pledge.

The latest statistics on fuel poverty in Scotland make for harrowing reading, with two thirds of pensioner couples and nearly half of single pensioner households living in fuel poverty.  With energy companies failing to pass on the benefits of the crash in oil prices to their customers and incomes remaining relatively stable, installing energy efficiency measures is one of the most effective means of keeping your home comfortably and affordably warm.

Age Scotland's policy officer, Greg McCracken, said "Our hosing stock is extremely inefficient, which means much of what heat we generate simply disappears through the roof and other parts of the building.  If the Government is really serious about tackling fuel poverty and climate change, they need to do more to support homeowners invest in the fabric of their property.  Shifting spending towards a major energy efficiency programme would achieve both of these aims, as well as having a major impact on health inequalities of older and vulnerable households."

Visit our Spread the Warmth pages for more information on how you can get involved.