Scope disability energy support with water advice service

Client: Scope

Scope’s ‘Disability Price Tag’ research shows that on average, disabled households need an additional £975 a month to have the same standard of living as non-disabled households.

In 2020, the Energy Savings Trust funded Scope to set up a new service, Disability Energy Support (DES). DES delivers energy advice and support to disabled people. Prior to the Cost of Living Crisis, fuel poverty was already an issue for disabled people.

Many disabled people tell us they face the stark choice of heating or eating to alleviate financial pressures. Every day Scope receive calls from disabled people who are living in cold homes, skipping meals and even unable to afford to shower. Scope and its consortium of partners have been working closely together to make the referral journey to DES as smooth as possible. And, crucially, to support the industry to learn from what we are hearing, and take action to understand and support their disabled customers.

Since it was launched, DES has supported 17,434 people through the cost of living crisis, saving disabled consumers an estimated £4,221,410.79. As demand for the service has increased, so has funding for it, and support, from a range of partners.