Energy Saving Week calls for 20% reduction in energy use

The theme of this year's event, organised by the Energy Saving Trust, is a 'Community a Day' and sees the trust encourage their members to pass the energy saving message on and commit to save 20% of energy we use everyday.

The week runs from this Monday to Sunday with several councils and businesses helping to promote energy efficiency on a variety of themed days. Today is families' day and Saturday is being dubbed Home Improvers’ Day.

As part of Energy Saving Week, North Lincolnshire council is one of several councils encouraging its residents to apply for government grants to introduce energy efficient measures at home. With £7million being distributed in grants last year, technologies such as solar panels, wind turbines, solar thermal hot water, ground source heat pumps, and wood fuelled boiler systems have become more affordable.

Several businesses are using the campaign to promote energy saving measures to their customers and staff. Earlier this week, Sainsbury’s offered free energy efficient light bulbs to its customers with the hope of saving 100,000 kilowatt hours of electricity – that’s enough power to supply 22 homes for a year while The National Federation Women’s institutes held coffee mornings in partnership with Café Direct, to promote energy efficiency amongst its 200,000 plus members.

Each day of Energy Saving Week, 63 million letters are being stamped with a unique postmark for the Energy Saving Trust as part of Royal Mail’s contribution to the campaign. The postal service is also advising staff on how to cut their carbon emissions and offering them discounted energy efficient light bulbs.

On Friday and Saturday, retailers Currys and B&Q respectively will be holding Energy Clinics in selected stores across the country where Energy Doctors from the Energy Saving Trust will be on hand to offer advice on healing those energy guzzling problems.