A report from Sheffield Live! on rising energy costs and the impact on our communities.

Through a new government Energy Bill Relief Scheme, the government is providing a discount on wholesale gas and electricity prices for all non-domestic customers (including all UK businesses, the voluntary sector like charities and the public sector such as schools and hospitals) whose current gas and electricity prices have been significantly inflated in light of global energy prices.

 

Sheffield Mencap.mpg from Sheffield Live on Vimeo.

 

After the government announcement, Carol Cook, fundraising and communication manager at Sheffield Mencap, said: “Obviously we are grateful for any support that we can get, and six months support does give us time to take a breather and reassess how we are going to raise the rest of the money. However, that is a short term solution. Our bills, it seems like, are just going to keep rising exponentially and the people that we support aren’t going to stop needing our support in six months.

“Long term something needs to happen about the actual cost of energy and the cost of electricity. It’s not feasible for us as a charity to suddenly produce 165% more income to cover these bills when the energy companies are still making huge profits every year and people can’t afford to pay their bills.”