How our programmes are helping everyone address the climate emergency

Information on the Nest scheme is made available in several formats, including easy-read, braille, audio, large print and in multiple languages. This is supported by Language Line to provide interpretation for people whose first language is not English or Welsh, as well as minicom and the Next Generation service being available for D/deaf people and people who experience speech difficulties. All this underlines the Nest scheme’s commitment to adhere to the values of the Well-being of Future Generations Act, including collaboration, integration and prevention.

The Northern Ireland Sustainable Energy Programme (NISEP) provides financial support for households on low incomes to make their homes more energy efficient. Around 80% of its funding is targeting customers who otherwise might not be able to insulate their homes. The programme’s 19 domestic schemes help householders install energy efficient heating systems, cavity wall and loft insulation.

Our active travel programmes, including the eBike Loan, eBike engagement and eBike Grant Fund, are focused on making cycling accessible and affordable to all, with a particular emphasis on disabled people, rural communities and disadvantaged groups. As an example, on 25 August, the Scottish transport team hosted an online event supporting cycling for disabled, older and rurally based people.

Similarly, the Low Emission Zone (LEZ) Support Fund is available to help those who may find preparing for the introduction of LEZs the most challenging. The fund provides financial support for low-income households and micro businesses towards the disposal of non-compliant vehicles and the provision of sustainable travel modes, which can help them to save money and enhance local air quality.

Additionally, the Plugged-in Communities Grant Fund offers funding for not-for-profit housing associations, housing cooperatives and constituted community groups in Scotland to procure the services of a zero-emission car club vehicle for use by their tenants and the wider community. The programme specifically targets transport inequalities by increasing access to zero-emission vehicles among those from low income households, providing travel options where choices may be more limited and normalising the use of electric vehicles.

In March, Efficiency for Access published a research paper ‘How can energy access programmes address the needs of people with disabilities?’. Authored by Richa Goyal, senior insight manager and research co-lead at Efficiency for Access, the note provides guidance to energy access practitioners on the ways in which their efforts can best address the needs of disabled people. The report auto-tags each section, which helps people with visual impairments read the report.

To amplify the report further, we created a checklist for both energy access programmes and off-grid appliance manufacturers to help ensure that their work addresses the needs of disabled people. We also hosted a webinar that explored how the energy access sector can best address the needs of disabled people.

We’re a partner of Happy to Translate, the initiative that supports organisations to engage with people who speak little or no English. In addition to translating information about Home Energy Scotland into other languages, braille and audio, callers to our advice centres can have a three-way conversation with an advisor and an interpreter in their chosen language or BSL, and we can arrange an interpreter for home-visits.

No matter what language our customers speak, where they’re from or what barriers they may face, we make sure we can clearly communicate so they receive quality service, energy and money saving advice and the support they need.

Through Home Energy Scotland, we’ve also been working in partnership with Scottish Water since 2017 to help households in Scotland save water, energy and money. This year, as part of our water saving programme, we worked with Deaf Action in Scotland to help make our water saving advice brochure more accessible.

For someone who uses British Sign Language (BSL), standard English could be their second or third language and for them, written English can be hard to understand. Adapting our communication materials into BSL is very important for inclusion, and we have now translated our water saving advice brochure into a series of eight simple and comprehensive BSL videos.

Some of these projects include:

• New research pieces from the Research Institute for Disabled Consumers.
• A deaf smart energy resource hub by Royal Association for Deaf people.
• Energy advisor e-learning from Disability Resource Centre.
• Community energy advice for disabled clients from Live Inclusive.
• An energy advice service from Deaf Action.

The eCargo Bike Grant Fund provides funding to help small businesses and sole traders to invest in electric cargo bikes to enable their everyday transport operations. Support for SMEs and micro-businesses is especially important in the current climate, as they are more likely to have been negatively impacted by Covid-19 than larger organisations. This financial year, the programme covers 40% of the total cost of an ecargo bike, double the amount offered last year.

Another of our flagship programmes that we deliver on behalf of Department for Transport is the On-street Residential Chargepoint Scheme (ORCS), which provides grant funding for local authorities to install plug-in vehicle charging infrastructure for residents with no access to off-street parking. The ORCS scheme is particularly important because in many parts of the UK, off-street parking is unavailable to residents, particularly those living in urban areas. This funding is enabling electric vehicles to become more accessible to a wider, more diverse audience.

Following feedback from workshops with minority ethnic groups, we identified a barrier to many faith groups applying for funding due to one of the funding criteria. Since making a change, we’ve been encouraged that more minority ethnic groups have taken up the support CARES offers. This includes Inverness Masjid, which installed solar panels and battery storage at its mosque, cutting its energy bills and carbon emissions. The cost savings it makes are reinvested into its work, which contributes to a wider positive impact across the communities it serves.

We support both rural and urban communities. From small communities in remote locations with fragile electricity grids, to towns and cities where indexes of multiple deprivation are higher, CARES has ensured communities have access to renewable power for their community’s needs.