Affordable Warmth at Home in the Western Isles

Tighean Innse Gall’s affordable heating reports suggests the Outer Hebrides face the highest level of fuel poverty in Scotland

Tighean Innse Gall (TIG) published the Affordable Warmth at Home in the Western Isles report* on 17th of June 2024. Findings suggest that the Western Isles face the highest levels of fuel poverty in Scotland.

With fuel poverty an everyday reality for many households in the Outer Hebrides, the findings of TIG’s report emphasises the ongoing challenges faced by people in their quest to keep warm, while tackling rising energy costs.

Findings show that over 80% of homes spend more than 10% of their income on heating, with 50% of householders spending 20% of their income heating their homes. When compared to official definitions of fuel poverty, this means the Outer Hebrides faces the highest levels of fuel poverty in Scotland.

TIG also found that many householders cannot afford to heat their homes and are therefore rationing their consumption. When looking at the question “did you feel your house was warm enough last winter?”, despite allocating over 10% of their income to heating costs, an estimated 44% of respondents reported not being sufficiently warm and 22% were only somewhat satisfied. 32% of respondents frequently or consistently resorted to reducing or turning off their heating. This trend was even more pronounced for extreme fuel poverty at 36%.

Kirsty MacLeod, Energy Advice Manager for TIG, said: “The findings from the report are extremely concerning but sadly not surprising, due to the increasing demand we are seeing for our energy advice service and the financial support we provide. The most worrying findings are the levels of self-rationing which are happening throughout homes, which is having a detrimental effect on people’s lives and the fabric of their homes.”

If you are experiencing any of the issues identified in the report, please do get in contact with TIG on 01851 706121 or info@tighean.co.uk. Resources are also available here: https://tighean.co.uk/resources/.

*British Gas Energy Trust funded a stand-alone report which was produced from a funded survey which TIG issued to all homes in the Outer Hebrides in February 2023. In total, over 2,044 homes responded, just below 20% of homes in the region. Responses came from all islands and a good geographical spread was achieved.

*British Gas Energy Trust funded a stand-alone report which was produced from a funded survey which TIG issued to all homes in the Outer Hebrides in February 2023. In total, over 2,044 homes responded, just below 20% of homes in the region. Responses came from all islands and a good geographical spread was achieved.