Why not have a browse of the following reports and publications that we have written or produced, or to which we have contributed. Use the menu on the right to select reports or publications by theme
A report to Consumer Focus funded by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation that seeks a better understanding of consumers’ actual expenditure on fuel and how this affects our understanding of fuel poverty | October 2010
Click here to download (PDF file 2MB)
Written by Donald Hirsch (Loughborough University), Ian Preston and Vicki White (both Centre for Sustainable Energy), this report makes an important contribution to our understanding of fuel poverty, particularly with respect to how low-income consumers respond to high fuel prices.
The research also sheds light on the relationship between fuel poverty and income poverty – a central issue for the Hills Fuel Poverty Review. The findings should help both inform the next stage of the Hills Review and future fuel poverty policy.
Smart meters have the potential to deliver significant benefits, but the programme for their introduction runs a high risk of failure. This report was written by CSE for consumer champions, Which? | November 2011
Click here to download (PDF file 431kB)
This report examines the current plans for the roll-out and operation of smart meters, and measures the plans against a range of consumer-oriented objectives (e.g. low costs, a confidence-inspiring roll-out process and a fair share of the benefits). But the report concludes that without remedy, the smart-meter programme may fall short, leading to consumer resistance and/or surrendering the bulk of the benefits to energy suppliers.
Written by Simon Roberts and Zoe Redgrove | November 2011
A guide to improving the energy efficiency of traditional homes in the city of Bath
Click here to download (PDF file 3MB)
Warmer Bath is a 76-page book of practical guidance designed help improve the energy efficiency of Victorian and Georgian homes in Bath.
It grew out of a series of public meetings, workshops, consultations and surveys which explored local attitudes to preserving the historic environment of Bath and tackling climate change. For more about Low Carbon Bath read the project profile here.
Written by Will Anderson and Joanna Robinson
Published June 2011 by CSE and the Bath Preservation Trust (BPT)
A research paper commissioned by CSE drawing on peer-reviewed articles and government-funded analysis to address some of the concerns that are expressed in relation to wind power.
Click here to download (PDF file 288kB)
Produced by CSE as part of PlanLoCaL (www.planlocal.org.uk). It was written in response to requests from community groups for factual information about wind energy, in part to counter the many myths and misconceptions surrounding this technology.
Published May 2011
In-depth study which reveals that the costs of policies designed to tackle climate change are likely to be borne disproportionately by low-income groups | July 2010
Click here to download (PDF file 2MB)
In-depth study which reveals that the costs of policies designed to tackle climate change are likely to be borne disproportionately by the poor.
Prepared on behalf of Eaga Charitable Trust by Ian Preston and Vicki White (CSE) and Pedro Guertler (Association for the Conservation of Energy).
July 2010
A study of the 'coping-strategies' of households facing fuel poverty and the daily reality of living on a low income in a British winter | June 2010
Click here to download (PDF file 315kB)
A study of the 'coping-strategies' of households facing fuel poverty and the details of the daily reality of living on a low income in a British winter. Includes a face-to‐face survey of 700 households and 50 in‐depth telephone interviews.
By Will Anderson and Vicki White, both of the Centre for Sustainable Energy, and Andrea Finney, University of Bristol. Funded by eaga Charitable Trust.
June 2010
Smart meters: what should they look like, and how should they work? | October 2009
Click here to download (PDF file 2MB)
This study sought to define a core specification for real-time energy displays (smart meters) derived from a qualitative investigation of consumer experience of the gadgets currently available on the market.
Written by Will Anderson and Vicki White (both Centre for Sustainable Energy) on behalf on the Energy Saving Trust, the study was based on focus-groups plus literature reviews by Clive Frankish (University of Bristol) and Sarah Darby (University of Oxford).
October 2009
Evidence prepared for Bristol City Council to help develop local development framework policies that encourage reduced energy consumption and greater sustainable energy generation | June 2009
Click here to download (PDF file 2MB)
Researched and written by CSE and Adrian Smith, Independent Planning Consultant.
NB this 80-page report contains a large number of maps and graphs. In order to keep the file size down, these are reproduced at a low-resolution. A high-resolution PDF (13.5MB) can be found on Bristol City Council's website here.
June 2009
The small book produced to mark CSE's 30th anniversary | June 2009
Click here to download (PDF file 749kB)
Please note: the book's unusual format is reflected in the uneven pagination of the PDF.
Free copies of this book are available. Email info@cse.org.uk with your name and address.
June 2009
Personal Carbon Trading: if such a policy came to pass, who'd win, and who'd lose? Published by Defra | March 2008
Click here to download (PDF file 474kB)
This report builds on CSE's earlier work for Defra (see A Rough Guide to Individual Carbon Trading) and attempts to identify the distributional impacts that would emerge in the event of the introduction of a Personal Carbon Trading scheme. It looks at the likely winners and losers in different income groups, across geographical area and by household composition.
Written by Joshua Thumim and Vicki White (both Centre for Sustainable Energy)
March 2008