Greener Kirkcaldy
Delivering free and impartial energy advice to support Fife households
Our project at a glance
- Strategic priority area: Targeting geographic communities most at risk of fuel poverty
- Support target: 71,840 households over four years
- Duration: May 2022 to March 2026
- Investment: £549,565 over four years
- Forecast SROI: £3.44
I’m phoning to make an appointment for an energy advice home visit for my parents, as I am so pleased with the service I received a few weeks ago. The energy advisor was so lovely and friendly and very knowledgeable about energy advice, and the home visit was very informative.
Greener Kirkcaldy client
Why we’re working together
Fuel poverty is a real and persistent problem in Fife. There are 26 neighbourhoods in Fife with high levels of income deprivation that all fall within the 10% data zone in the Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation, meaning they are some of the most deprived areas in the country.
Greener Kirkcaldy is a community-led charity working locally to bring people together, supporting residents through fuel poverty and food insecurity.
Our programme builds on the success of Greener Kirkcaldy’s existing energy advice service, extending support to the most vulnerable and hard-to-reach households including older people, people on low incomes and people with disabilities or long-term health issues.
After initially setting out to engage up to 20,000 Fife households over two years, we’ve expanded our programme to reach a further 51,840 residents by March 2026.
Through community workshops, Greener Kirkcaldy’s partner network and direct mailers, we’ll share vital information designed to improve the wellbeing, safety and financial outcomes for fuel poor and vulnerable households across Fife.
Stemming from this engagement, the team will go on to help at least 2,160 residents in energy crisis through personalised one-to-one support.
Project objectives
- Delivering free and impartial energy advice and support to vulnerable households in Fife
- Ensuring vulnerable Fife residents are registered on the PSR
- Raising awareness of carbon monoxide and how to reduce the risks of CO poisoning
- Providing gas appliance servicing to help vulnerable households stay warm safely
- Offering cosy packs and heated blankets to help fuel poor households who are struggling to heat their homes
- Increasing access to emergency support for fuel poor households through fuel vouchers, food provision and workshops
- Facilitating energy safe and aware cooking workshops to help support those in food poverty and providing slow cookers
How we’re working together
One-to-one energy advice
Experienced Cosy Kingdom energy advisers provide in-depth personalised advice on energy efficiency and energy budgeting, over the phone and in person. The advisers also raise awareness of the dangers of carbon monoxide and how to reduce the risk of CO harm in the home.
Creating pathways for additional support
Through the partnership, we’re able to provide a pathway for Greener Kirkcaldy's Cosy Kingdom advisers to refer households to other sources of financial and wellbeing support including benefit checks and income maximation, PSR registration and befriending services.
Community outreach
In addition to one-to-one advice, the Greener Kirkcaldy team delivers energy efficiency and CO safety advice workshops for community groups across Fife, as well as holding drop-in energy advice clinics at community warm hubs.
Additional winter support
Through additional winter funding, we also co-created an enhanced five-month programme with Greener Kirkcaldy, called Energy Canny Communities. This project provided personalised support to more than 240 of the most vulnerable customers in Fife in winter 2022/23 and delivered energy advice and CO awareness training for 30 frontline workers in grassroots organisations.
Due to the success of the Energy Canny Communities programme and the ongoing demand, we’ve extended our funding of this programme through to March 2024. This will enable Greener Kirkcaldy to engage with a further 3,440 people and support another 320 vulnerable households and 30 frontline organisations in Fife.
How to get involved
Accessing the Safe and Warm Fife service
If you support a vulnerable resident in Fife who needs energy advice, you can refer the household to the Safe and Warm Fife service by calling 01592 807 930 or submitting a referral form on the Cosy Kingdom website.
If you live in Fife and are struggling to maintain a safe and warm home, you can get one-to-one advice from a Safe and Warm Fife adviser by calling 01592 807 930 or completing an online referral form.
(Cosy Kingdom is the brand under which Greener Kirkcaldy deliver their energy projects.)
Becoming a Safe and Warm Fife partner
You can find out more about getting involved with Greener Kirkcaldy on their website.
People most in need are the hardest to reach, and the least able to protect their interests in the energy market. Our partnership has helped to deliver free and impartial energy advice to people in Fife who are most vulnerable to the impacts of fuel poverty. Together, we’ve achieved sustainable, measurable outcomes for Fife households, providing support where it’s needed most.