Green Doctor Support This Winter

The Green Doctor service provides support across Yorkshire to help residents stay warm, stay well, and save money on household bills. The team offers practical solutions to help reduce your energy costs, support with energy bills and help to install simple energy saving measures such as LED lightbulbs, radiator panels and draft proofing.

The winter months are our busiest time of year and as always, we’ve seen an increase in the number of people contacting the Green Doctor service in Yorkshire. We support approximately 5,000 households per year, and we’ve seen people referring in from a wider demographic such as people in work but still struggling with energy costs. This is likely due to the rising energy price cap, increasing by 1.2% in January to March 2025 with a further 3-6% forecast in April [MSE].

Green Doctor home visits are much more valuable than just other telephone advice services. It allows the team to see, in person, the effect that fuel poverty is having on a home. We also offer a follow up visit or telephone call to see if any further help is needed and to check in on how the resident is getting on.

One of the biggest issues we see throughout the winter months is the risks from damp, mould and condensation. These issues are often caused by not heating the home properly, which residents often struggle with due to a low income and cold, poorly insulated homes. Lots of people are often left in a heat or eat situation. Having a home visit also allow our Green Doctor Advisors to see the extent of mould, damp and condensation in the home, the possible causes and any small or larger measures that could help to prevent it.

Lots of people are often unaware of the Priority Services Register. The Priority Services Register (PSR) is a free UK wide service which provides extra advice and support to those who need it, including when there’s an interruption to your electricity, gas or water supply. It’s free to join and helps companies identify when additional support may be needed. You can check if you’re eligible on the PSR website.

Pre-Payment Meters

A big topic of discussion at the minute is the use of pre-payment meters. A prepayment meter, also known as a pay-as-you-go meter, allows you to pay for your energy in advance. You can top up your meter with a card, app, or key. They’re often pictured in a bad light and seen as an easy way of getting customers into debt. Our Green Doctor team wouldn’t advise that they were necessarily a bad thing. Some people struggle to budget and manage a credit or direct debit account so would quickly accumulate debt.

But they do some with issues. People on pre-payment meters often disconnect themselves when they have no money. In 2023, 700,000 people self-disconnected, which was the highest ever. Pre-payment meters also come with standing charges, which is approximately 92p a day. This can cause customers to struggle as they may not use energy but still pay the standing charge per day. This means that when they do top-up, the standing charge is taken first which leaves them with less energy available.

Over 50% of households with pre-payment meters are in debt.

What to do if you need help

If people find themselves struggling with their energy bills their first contact needs to be with their energy supplier. Suppliers have a duty of care to ensure their customers can heat their home. For further support, contact the Green Doctor programme or a similar service, to see what help or advice we can give. The Green Doctor team can help with practical solutions while helping people look at their energy tariffs and possible savings from switching and help with dual fuel/direct debit/online accounts.

For more information or to arrange a free home visit* contact:
Phone: 0300 303 3292
Email: greendoctoryorkshire@groundwork.org.uk

www.groundwork.org.uk/greendoctor

*Subject to eligibility