Citizens Advice Northumberland warns of looming 'financial cliff-edge' facing households

In one disturbing example, a pensioner risked carbon monoxide poisoning in an attempt to reduce her energy bills by using a disposable barbecue in her kitchen rather than the oven.

Another pensioner who was not claiming benefits he was entitled to only used battery powered lighting.

And a family with three children living in a housing association property were facing £6,000 arrears with British Gas.

Citizens Advice Northumberland was able to assist in all three cases.

But Rachel Turnbull, Citizens Advice Northumberland’s operations manager, who wrote the Living on the Edge report, has now called on the government ‘to tackle the financial cliff-edge facing millions of households come April’.

She said: “What the report highlights is the deep and very real consequences of rapidly rising costs on people whose health and well-being are often threatened by spiralling debt.

“The effects of this crisis show no sign of abating, given the unprecedented demand for our services.”

Its survey of 350 Citizens Advice clients across the region revealed that 93 per cent of respondents are directly impacted by rising costs.

Many are regularly skipping meals, eating children’s leftovers, and having to borrow to help them manage.

Energy costs were the biggest concern, closely followed by food. Council tax, personal hygiene and cleaning products, household costs and medical expenses were all areas of anxiety.

The cost-of-living crisis has also meant that Citizens Advice offices across the North East have seen a huge increase in enquiries.

They have helped more than 130,000 with more than 560,000 issues in the year to September 2022.

As a result, the offices recorded an income gain of £51 million, mainly through helping clients with benefits claims. They also helped clients to write off £61.5 million of debt during 2021-2022.

Sally Harwood, Citizens Advice Northumberland research and campaigns volunteer, who compiled the energy focus report, said: “There are 20,000 households in Northumberland struggling due to fuel poverty.

"One third of enquiries to our energy advice team come from rural areas where many have to cope with not only energy inefficient homes, but also the most expensive energy.

“Fuel poverty is at the heart of the ‘heat or eat’ predicament, and leads to problems of damp, mould, stress, reduced dexterity and immunity, and social isolation that can arise as a result of living in a home that is too cold for too long. These are long-term human costs that have to be addressed quickly by government.”

Citizens Advice has set out four key areas for action by government.

It has recommended that

· Benefits should be raised in line with inflation in April, and further targeted support made available.

· Energy companies must be stopped from forcing people in debt on prepayment meters.

· Action must be taken to improve the insulation of homes across the country and reduce bills for the long-term.

· Support must continue for charitable organisations which provide vital interventions and help people find a way forward.

The Living on the Edge report can be found at https://www.citizensadvicenorthumberland.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Living-on-the-edge-the-impact-of-rising-costs-on-people-in-the-North-East.pdf.