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Mission Australia helping families cut energy bills to prevent poverty spiral |
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| 15 Oct 2008 |
 Anti-Poverty Week Sunday, October 12 - Saturday, October 18 Families in Adelaide’s north western suburbs are slicing as much as $200 from their energy bills each quarter through a Mission Australia program that helps them manage their energy consumption and costs. The Energy Matters program is a joint initiative of Mission Australia and energy provider AGL... With the focus this week across Australia on Anti Poverty Week, Mission Australia’s Operations Manager Carla Leversedge said the program played an important role in preventing a spiral into poverty, by assisting families before problems became too hard or intractable. Ms Leversedge said more than 80 low-income families have participated in Energy Matters since October 2007, receiving support and information from Mission Australia caseworkers about lowering energy consumption around the home, including choosing and using lower energyconsuming appliances. The program works in conjunction with Mission Australia’s Early Intervention and Family Support Programs to provide support across a range of areas. “Energy Matters helps families to identify how much energy is used in their homes and ultimately allows them to control where savings can be made,” Ms Leversedge said. “Many families are struggling with increasing groceries bills, petrol prices, rent and mortgage payments, so it’s a big help to be able to keep an eye on usage and costs of an essential service such as power..” Mission Australia’s Energy Matters coordinator Joyanne Mirra says assistance begins with an “energy audit” of the family’s home, identifying how energy is used and where savings can be made. “Energy Matters provides the household with energy saving recommendations, links and referrals to other support services – such as housing and financial counselling – and household budgeting,” Ms Mirra says. “Follow-up contact to compare energy bills to the previous 12 months indicates that households significantly reduce their energy use, with bill savings of up to $200 a quarter. Ms Mirra says that to be eligible for Energy Matters assistance a family must be involved in AGL’s national hardship program, Staying Connected, which helps customers whose temporary or long-term financial difficulties affect their ability to pay their gas and electricity bills. AGL Group General Manager Retail Energy, Jim Galvin says Energy Matters has become a valuable and worthwhile partner for the help offered through the company’s Staying Connected program. He says some families use the savings achieved through Energy Matters advice to pay off outstanding debts, while others report that the program has helped them avoid accruing energy debt. “The advice provided by the Energy Matters case workers can help any family looking to reduce its energy consumption for financial or environmental reasons,” Mr Galvin says. “It’s becoming increasingly important for all of us to become aware of just how much energy we use, and ways to minimise that consumption.” Ms Mirra says some of the most beneficial advice provided in the Energy Matters program relates to zoning (only heating or cooling the room you are in) and blocking draughts. Other suggestions include:
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