This article has been forwarded by Suffolk Acre....
"SUFFOLK ACRE is working in partnership with 30 other organisations including charities, local authorities and housing associations to help bring cheaper energy to households across the UK through a new initiative funded by the Department for Energy and Climate Change (DECC).
The CheaperEnergyTogether.org partnership, led by not-for-profit organisation the Peoples Power, will provide a collective and instant energy switching service to get households a better deal through the power of group buying, and will also offer free energy saving advice and support.
The project launched on 5th February and has already taken off with a huge bang. In short, the more people who sign up, the better the prospects for all of us of a good deal when it the time comes for the auction. CheaperEnergyTogether.org is open to all UK households, and whilst having a particular focus on those facing fuel poverty, and those who have not switched before, all UK residents are invited to sign up. Residents can sign up online, by telephone, or at a series of local events over the next two months, before a big community switch is held in March.
Signing up does not commit you to anything, all it does is say that you would like to receive details of the energy price offer following the auction in March. When you sign up you will receive an email asking you to confirm you would like to sign up to receive the offer. There is no obligation and no cost to you other than five minutes of your time… but the savings on your energy bill could make this significantly worthwhile.
Energy Secretary Edward Davey said the DECC funding would help “drive forward collective purchasing and switching initiatives at a local level, helping consumers get a better deal on their energy bills”.
“We need to find new ways to help people with their energy bills, working with communities and councils across the country” he said. “I am delighted so many organisations want to run new co-operative schemes to help people, especially the fuel poor, to get the best deals in the market.”
In Suffolk, fuel poverty affects over 50,000 people, 18.5% of households compared to the national average of just over 16%
The switching service will be completely FREE to consumers and a small referral fee will be charged to energy suppliers of between £5 and £8 per switch (far less than the industry average of £40-£70 per switch). All referral fees will contribute to the cost of running the initiative, no profits will be made.
If you’d like to find out more, or to sign up for cheaper energy together, then visit www.CheaperEnergyTogether.org Signing up is FREE, easy and there is no obligation. If you or your friends don’t have internet access you can call the project FREEPHONE helpline on 0800 888 6611"