Community

Britain’s freezing homes, ‘a silent killer’

Published

11 years ago

April 16, 2015

COLD homes are a bigger killer than road accidents, alcohol or drug misuse, new research shows.

During the Coalition Government’s five years in power, 46,700 people have died simply because they live in cold homes.

Analysis of official data by the Association for the Conservation of Energy (ACE) today reveals, for the first time, the number of deaths each year directly related to cold homes. This represents 30% of the total number of Excess Winter Deaths according to the World Health Organisation.

The new figures from ACE estimate that this winter (2014/15) has been the deadliest in the last five years, with two thirds more cold homes deaths than the average.

The Energy Bill Revolution, the world’s largest fuel poverty campaign, has slammed the Coalition for failing to live up to its rhetoric on cold homes.

Over 46,000 people have backed an Avaaz petition which was delivered to George Osborne, Ed Balls and Danny Alexander today demanding that all parties prioritise using infrastructure funds to invest in home energy efficiency in their manifestos which are due to be finalised this week.

Campaigners point to a long list of Government failures throughout the last Parliament which have seen an unprecedented fall in the support available to people who can’t afford to heat their homes:

The Coalition has cut the Energy Companies Obligation, presided over Green Deal debacle, and abolished schemes like Warm Front.
The most effective way to bring down energy bills is to install energy efficiency measures which can save a household more than £400 per year. But the amount of energy efficiency support available to the fuel poor has plummeted 80% in the last two years. This year saw the lowest number of families since 2002 receive Government insulation support to keep their homes warm, according to today’s ACE research.

The Government boasts about installing energy efficiency measures in 1 million households under their new schemes but if they had kept to their old schemes, 2.8 million households would have received them. As a result 1.8 million families have missed out on home improvements during the Parliament.

Ed Matthew, director of the Energy Bill Revolution, said: “Cold homes are one of the most deadly killers in Britain today, but this silent menace is too often ignored because it happens behind closed doors. The evidence shows that insulation support for the fuel poor has plummeted through the floor during this Parliament. The Government must step up and put a stop to these unnecessary deaths, by committing infrastructure funds to home energy efficiency and ending our cold homes crisis once and for all.”

Today’s figures show that cold homes killed more people in 2013 than carbon monoxide, fire, assault, and road/rail accidents combined.

Britain is second only to Estonia for fuel poverty in Europe, and cold homes have led to more people admitted to hospital with breathing problems than Sweden over the past five years.

The NHS is bearing the burden of this Government failure. Cold homes cost the NHS £1.36billion every year, according to Age-UK.

Leaky and cold homes are a cause of illnesses including chronic lung disease, asthma, bronchitis and pneumonia.

According to consultants Cambridge Econometrics, investing just 3% of the infrastructure budget in energy efficiency would take 2 million homes out of fuel poverty by 2020. Such a programme would increase UK GDP by £13.9billion a year by 2030 and create 108,000 new jobs.

Mass public support saw the Energy Bill Revolution’s campaign video recently go viral. The video of political leaders singing a spoof version of Frozen hit ‘let it go’ reached 5 million people.

Sam Barratt, Campaign Director of Avaaz said: “David Cameron may think insulating homes is ‘green crap’, but having a warm home can be the difference between life and death for the most vulnerable in our society. It really is a disgrace that only Estonia has worse fuel poverty than Britain in Europe. All parties must commit to radical action using infrastructure funds to insulate homes to save lives in their manifestos to stop this country’s cold home killer.”

Community

Duck race draws crowds to Cresswell Quay

Published

22 hours ago

June 4, 2026

Tom Sinclair

AN ANNUAL Rotary duck race and pig roast brought crowds to Cresswell Quay on Friday (May 29), with organisers hailing the evening a success.

The event, organised by Narberth and Whitland Rotary, saw yellow ducks released onto the water as spectators gathered along the quay to watch the race unfold.

Perfect conditions

ORGANISERS said the tide and weather “could not have been better” for the popular community event.

Families enjoyed a relaxed evening of entertainment, food and fundraising, with Bat-A-Rat proving popular with youngsters while adults enjoyed a pig roast, with pork provided by Tom at Andrew Rees Butchers.

Live music from Jack Castle added to the atmosphere as people gathered at the riverside venue.

***Rotary fun: Crowds gathered at Cresswell Quay for the annual Narberth and Whitland Rotary Duck Race and Pig Roast***

Thanks to supporters

JOHN Sleigh, of Narberth and Whitland Rotary, thanked everyone who attended and helped make the evening such a success.

He said: “What a fantastic evening. The tide and weather could not have been better for the annual Rotary Duck Race and Pig Roast at Cresswell Quay.

“We thank you all for being there and making the event such a success.”

Community

Crisis response dogs launched to support people through trauma and distress

Published

23 hours ago

June 4, 2026

Tom Sinclair

A NEW project using specially trained dogs to support people during moments of trauma, grief and crisis has been launched by Cariad Pet Therapy.

The volunteer-led Crisis Response Dogs project aims to provide comfort, emotional support and compassionate human contact to people experiencing distress, loss or heightened stress.

The dogs and their trained handlers will be able to support people in hospitals, schools, emergency response settings, wellbeing events, relief centres and community support environments.

Cariad Pet Therapy says the project is designed to offer a calm and non-judgmental presence at times when people may be struggling to cope.

Volunteers involved in the scheme have undertaken a bespoke training programme, including accredited Mental Health First Aid, Emotional First Aid, Trauma-Informed Practice, Safeguarding, Professional Boundaries, Dynamic Risk Assessment, Dog Welfare, Crisis Awareness, and training in psychological responses to trauma and distress.

The project is also working with emergency management and resilience partners, including the South Wales Local Resilience Forum, to support communities during emergencies, major incidents and recovery situations.

As part of its development, volunteers have attended specialist seminars on suicide prevention, the human-animal relationship, emergency planning and resilience.

Robert Thomas, Crisis Response Dogs lead for the project, said: “We have already witnessed the incredible impact these dogs can have on people facing difficult moments.

“Sometimes a calm presence, a conversation, or simply the comfort of a dog can make someone feel seen, supported, and less alone.”

The project has received funding from The National Lottery.

For more information about Crisis Response Dogs, or to request a deployment, contact Robert Thomas on 01437 609985 or visit www.crisisresponsedogs.co.uk.

Crisis response dogs: Cariad Pet Therapy has launched a new project to support people during trauma, grief and distress across Wales (Pics: Cariad Pet Therapy).

Community

Youth centre given colourful new look thanks to local firm

Published

2 days ago

June 3, 2026

Tom Sinclair

YOUNG people at a Haverfordwest youth centre have helped transform one of its rooms into a bright and welcoming space.

The Edge Youth Centre, Haverfordwest, has thanked W.B Griffiths & Son Ltd for supporting the painting and decorating project, which saw young people work alongside Chris, a painter and decorator from the company.

The project has given the room a colourful refresh, creating a cheerful space for young people using the centre.

Rabart Decorators Merchants, Pembroke Dock, also supported the work by supplying the colourful paints.

A spokesperson for The Edge Youth Centre said: “We’d like to extend a huge thank you to W.B Griffiths & Son Ltd for supporting us with the painting and decorating of one of the rooms at our Youth Centre.

“The young people were fortunate enough to work alongside Chris, a painter and decorator from W.B Griffiths & Son Ltd, to transform the room.

“Thanks to Chris and the young people’s hard work and enthusiasm, the space is now looking bright, welcoming, and cheerful.

“We’d also like to thank Rabart Decorators Merchants, Pembroke Dock, for generously supplying the colourful paints. Your support has helped create a vibrant room that young people can enjoy for years to come.”

The centre added: “Thank you both for your generosity and for helping us create such a positive space for our young people.”

Photo caption: Bright new look: Young people worked alongside W.B Griffiths & Son Ltd to refresh a room at The Edge Youth Centre, Haverfordwest.