Turn your heating down by one degree.

You won’t notice the difference and could save up to £125 a year. Don’t go below 18°C if you are elderly, ill, or have small children.

Move your furniture away from radiators.

It will be absorbing the heat.

Keep the heat in.

Close the curtains when it’s getting dark and tuck them behind the radiator.

Set your hot water timer.

If you’re on Economy 7 make sure your water is heating up at night. An hour a day of on peak water heating adds around £360 to your annual bill.

Get a hot water cylinder jacket.

A thick insulating jacket can save around £70 on bills a year.

Get an energy monitor.

Energy monitors show how much energy you are using and which appliances use the most. People monitoring their use in this way typically save £100 a year.

Turn down your wash.

Washing at lower temperatures will help to reduce the energy used by your washing machine – and it’s better for your clothes.

Dry your clothes outside.

Tumble dryers use a lot of energy and drying your clothes outside will freshen them up.

Dodge the draught!

Fit draught-excluders to your front door, letter box and key hole to keep cosy.

Buying a new TV, washing machine or dishwasher?

Look out for the energy efficiency rating, and go for A-rated or better.

Use LED bulbs.

Each LED you fit can make you a lifetime saving of £180. Plus they don’t need changing as frequently.

Be a friend to your freezer.

Defrost it regularly and keep it as full as you can. A defrosted freezer costs around £300 less a year to run.

Turn down radiators in rooms you don’t use much.

Use your central thermostat to control overall temperature.

Fill up your dishwasher.

Doing a full load every other day is more efficient than doing half-loads, and uses less energy than washing up by hand.

Taking showers instead of baths saves around £31 a year on water heating.

Electric showers use a lot of energy, so if you have one and want to save you could get a shower timer. Taking 4-minute showers can save you £260 a year.

Keep the lids on saucepans.

You’ll be able to turn down the gas or electricity, and save money. And use the right size ring for the saucepan.

Keep the oven door shut as much as possible when cooking.

Every time you open it you’ll lose a quarter of the heat.

Cuppa tea?

Only fill the kettle with as much as you’ll actually use (though make sure you cover the element at the bottom). This will save up to £40 a year. And remember, it’s cheaper to use a kettle to boil water than an electric hob.

Make a big batch.

Cook more than one meal at a time and freeze it for another day. And use a microwave rather than the oven to reheat meals.

Get extra help

Contact us if you want more information 0800 082 2234

If you’re really struggling with your bills you might be entitled to extra support:

• The Warm Home Discount is a rebate on your household electricity bill (it was £150 for the winter of 2022-23).
• A Winter Fuel Payment of between £250 and £600 is available if you were born on or before 25 September 1957.
• Cold Weather Payments are made when the temperature in your area falls below an average of 0°C or for seven consecutive days.
• You could get help through the Energy Company Obligation to insulate your house. This will make it cheaper to heat.