The Centre for Sustainable Energy’s (CSE) free energy advice service helps thousands of people each year save money and make their homes warmer. We’re a charity with over 45 years of experience supporting people across the South West. Last year alone, we helped over 22,500 people, saving them an average of £1016.

We’re here to offer practical solutions tailored to your situation. Whether you’re facing high bills, a cold home, problems with your supplier or simply want to make your home more energy efficient, we can help.

We understand you might feel unsure about calling, but rest assured we’re here to listen without judgment. Our service is completely free and impartial – we’re focused solely on finding the best solutions for you.

What happens during an energy advice call

Simply click on the questions below to find helpful information about what happens when you call our energy advisors. If you already know you’d like to speak with us, go to our contact us page.

What areas does CSE’s energy advice service cover?
What energy advice can I get?
How can CSE’s energy advice help me?
Am I eligible for energy advice?
How quickly can I speak to someone?
How long will a call take?
What can I do to prepare for a call?
What questions will I be asked and why do you need this information?
Who will I be speaking to?
What happens after my first call?
Will you use my information for additional purposes?
How do referrals to other organisations work?
Can I have someone else on the call with me?
Can a translator be arranged?
Is there an alternative to a phone call?

What areas does CSE’s energy advice service cover?

The Centre for Sustainable Energy (CSE) runs a free energy advice line, mostly for people in the South West of England who are experiencing high energy bills and cold homes. You might have heard of us under our local project names, such as the Home Energy Team, Cosier Homes, Warm and Safe Wiltshire and Bristol Tenants Energy Advice. Despite the different names, the service is the same and so are the advisors you speak with.

Here is a full list of the areas we cover:

• Bristol
• North Somerset
• Bath and Northeast Somerset
• South Gloucestershire
• Somerset
• Wiltshire and Swindon
• Dorset
• Hampshire
• Isle of Wight
• Berkshire

And parts of:

• Oxfordshire
• West Sussex
• Surrey

If you live outside of these areas, contact your local council to find out what energy advice support is available.

What energy advice can I get?

The advice we offer is in-depth , always based on your individual circumstances.

Generally, we can help you if you:

• Live in a cold, damp or draughty home.
• Only heat part of your home.
• Are unsure how to use your heating system or find it confusing.
• Have a broken heating system.
• Struggle to afford your gas or electricity bills.
• Owe money to your gas or electricity supplier.
• Have billing or meter issues, or other disputes with your energy supplier.
• Are interested in getting funding for insulation or to upgrade your heating system.
• Need help accessing grants and other financial support you’re entitled to.
• Struggle to pay your water bill.
• Want advice about renewable energy, draughtproofing or other energy efficiency measures.

How can CSE’s energy advice help me?

CSE is a Bristol-based charity with over 45 years’ experience supporting people across the South West. As a charity, we’re completely impartial – we have no products to sell and our only goal is to support you with energy advice. Our advice line is completely free for you to use. Last year, we supported over 22,500 people through our freephone energy advice service and saved an average of £1016 per household.

Our friendly advisors are specially trained to provide personalised advice tailored to your specific situation. We listen carefully to your needs without judgment. While you’re never under pressure to share information you’re uncomfortable with, the more details you can provide, the more targeted our advice can be.

Beyond our direct support, we also work with a network of trusted partners and organisations to give you wide-reaching support. With your permission, we can connect you with these services so you can receive additional benefits, grants and funding and other support that will improve your daily life.

All it takes is one call to get the ball rolling.

Am I eligible for energy advice?

Yes! Our advice service is here for everyone struggling with issues related to energy at home regardless of your circumstances or age. If you’re experiencing any of these situations, you’re absolutely entitled to our support:

• Living in a cold, damp home.
• Concerned about your energy bills or usage.
• Having problems with your heating system.
• Unsure if you’re receiving all the support you’re entitled to.

Energy advice is not a limited resource – helping you doesn’t take support away from anyone else. In fact, many people who contribute to society throughout their lives aren’t aware of the entitlements they’ve earned through years of work and tax contributions.

Our advisors are specifically employed to help people like you. It’s literally our job to ensure everyone can access support – whether that’s advice on reducing bills, making your home warmer or accessing support schemes made available through taxes.

How quickly can I speak to someone?

If you call us directly, you may be on hold until an advisor becomes available. We try to keep this wait time under 30 minutes. You also have the opportunity to leave us a voicemail and we’ll call you back as soon as someone is available – you won’t lose your place in the queue. Alternatively, you can fill out our self-referral form and one of our advisors will call you back. All of these options can be found on our contact us page.

We tend to be busier over winter months. Between November to February, we recommend filling in a self-referral form so that you’re not on hold for too long.

If we call you back, please note the number will show as a Bristol-based ‘0117’ number, even if you’re calling from another area. Our advisor will clearly identify themselves as calling from CSE’s home energy team, or from one of our local projects such as Warm and Safe Wiltshire (see the full list here) when you answer. If you miss our call, we’ll leave a voicemail and try at least twice to reach you. We may also email you to let you know we’ve tried to call.

In some cases, we might recommend connecting you with one of our specialist caseworkers for more in-depth, ongoing support. Your advisor will explain if this is recommended for your situation and how long you can expect to wait for caseworker contact.

How long will a call take?

Please allow at least 30 minutes, once you’re speaking to an advisor. This is so we have enough time to speak to you and gather the information we need to provide the best advice.

Sometimes issues are solved in one call, but it isn’t unusual to have multiple calls. Our advisors keep notes so you won’t have to repeat anything from previous calls, making the process as seamless as possible.

What can I do to prepare for a call?

Being prepared helps us provide the best advice quickly. If possible, have these items ready:

• A recent energy bill to help us understand your usage and tariff, and any problems you’re having.
• Your supplier’s name so we know who might need to be involved and who to contact for further information and support.
• An outline of the issues you’re experiencing, including how they’re affecting you and anyone living in your home (mentally and physically). This builds up a picture of your current situation so your advisor can better understand what you’re going through.
• Any specific questions you’d like answered. We want you to feel assured that you’re receiving the right support. Any questions or concerns you have will be listened to and addressed.
• Your email address for follow-up information.
• A pen and paper to jot down important points during the call.

Don’t worry if you don’t have everything to hand – we can still help. See the next section for the types of questions you might be asked during your call.

What questions will I be asked and why do you need this information?

All the questions we ask will help us determine the most appropriate support for your situation. You can choose not to answer a question if you feel uncomfortable.

We’ll always check that you’re happy to discuss certain topics and check before recording your answers on our secure database. This record helps us provide consistent support if we speak again and, with your permission only, share relevant details with partner organisations who might be able to help you. You can ask our advisors any questions you have about your privacy, they’ll be happy to answer any concerns.

Topics we might discuss include:

• Your income and any benefits you receive. This is to assess your eligibility for further funding or support. For example, if you’re not claiming a benefit you’re entitled to, your advisor can recommend how to apply or help with an application.
• Your health. Again, this is to determine what additional support you might be eligible for. Any answers you give are confidential and treated with care and respect.
• Date of birth. This is to help us verify your identity if we speak again in future.
• Information about others who live with you. This is to check if you qualify for other benefits or schemes that might help your home situation.

Remember, all questions are asked with one goal – to connect you with the most helpful support available. Our advisors will only ask what’s relevant to improving your situation.

Who will I be speaking to?

You’ll speak to one of our trained energy advisors. All our energy advisors have City and Guilds level 3 Energy Awareness training, plus extensive ongoing internal training to ensure advice is up to date.

Advisors have spoken to many different people, often in difficult and sensitive situations. They will always treat you with kindness and respect, and we expect the same in return.

What happens after my first call?

You may have a number of calls, depending on your specific situation.

For straightforward enquiries, we can often provide advice in a single conversation. For more complex issues, such as problems with your energy supplier or meter, we might need to:

• Make calls to your supplier on your behalf.
• Research additional support schemes you might qualify for.
• Gather more information about your situation.

Your advisor will explain what’s recommended during your initial chat and will schedule any further calls at times that suit you. You can request the same advisor if you would like to. If you get assigned for longer-term support, you’ll have a dedicated caseworker.

We’ll always keep you informed about next steps and what to expect. Our advisors keep notes so you won’t have to repeat anything from previous calls, making the process as seamless as possible

Sometimes, we may not schedule another call but will share with you some relevant information and next steps. This could be how you can access support from another organisation or links to our energy advice pages for you to look through in your own time. But if you ever feel you need further guidance, then you’re always free to give us another call.

Will you use my information for additional purposes?

Not without your permission. We might ask if you’re happy for details to be shared with other organisations, if you’ll benefit from further support (see the referral section below).

We sometimes ask if we can use people’s experiences as case studies to help others in similar situations. These stories appear on our website or in our charitable funding applications. These can be anonymised – and we always remove identifying information. This is completely optional, and declining has no effect on the support you receive from us.

How do referrals to other organisations work?

Referrals depend on your situation. If you’re entitled to benefits or funding, then you might need a referral to another organisation that can help you access these. Any organisation we refer you to is a professional, trusted partner and our advisors can guide you through the process.

CSE has been supporting people with their energy for over 45 years. We’ve built up a network of contacts and partnership organisations that help us do this. Everything we suggest is intended to improve your situation. But if you don’t want to be referred, that’s okay.

You may also be referred to our CSE caseworkers. Caseworkers differ from energy advisors in that they can help with long-term support, and they have the same energy advice training as our advisors. If you’ll benefit from this, your advisor will explain why and what you can expect.

Can I have someone else on the call with me?

We understand that speaking on the phone can be difficult for some people. If you want the support of a friend, family member or social worker this is fine. Just let us know when you speak to us that someone else is present or that you’d like to rearrange a call for when they’re available. We might ask a few questions to determine their relationship to you, but we’re happy for you to have this support.

Can a translator be arranged?

Yes. We use a service called Languageline which we can connect to while on a call (it’ll take about five minutes for your advisor to set up). Calls with a translator tend to take a bit longer so you may need several calls depending on the level of advice required.

Is there an alternative to a phone call?

If you’d prefer not to call, for example if you have access needs, a disability or anxiety, we can offer advice over email. We recommend that you fill in a self-referral form and note that you’d like to be contacted via email only. Please make sure you include your email address and postcode and check your junk or spam.

Please also be aware that conversations over email take longer and advice won’t be as immediate as a phone call.