Welcome to the Warmer Healthy Homes pages
These pages will tell you about the work of the UK Public Health Association, their core group the Health and Housing Fuel Poverty Forum (HHFPF) and its pilot in Greater Manchester - the Fuel Poverty Initiative.
Find out more about the Health and Housing Fuel Poverty Forum
Cold homes are a public health issue. Current figures show that, in Britain, over 40,000 more people die in winter (December to March) than would be expected at other times of the year. Exposure to cold is known to increase risk of heart attacks and strokes; affect mobility and risk of falls and impair mental health; and trigger respiratory illness, including asthma. The tragedy is that these health risks are preventable.
Find out more about cold and damp homes and their effects on health
The aim of this website is to inform ‘Front line’ health or social care workers how to get help for a person living in a cold home. We have provided an archive of key facts, targeting tools, research, case studies, plus access to funding and training suggestions. We seek to assist cross-sector working to tackle cold homes by providing:
- information on the issues of concern to different sectors
- lessons from work already done in this field to help ‘hard to reach’ vulnerable people
- opportunity for purposeful discussion to improve cross-sector working
Guidance for professionals seeking to help people at risk
HHFPF and the UKPHA have been instrumental in bringing together partners to fund a pilot which consolidates their research and lessons learned. Running from May 2008 to May 2010, the pilot and its real-time evaluation are explained.
Find out more about the Greater Manchester Fuel Poverty Initiative
Help for people at risk
There are energy efficiency grants and other help available to assist people in cold homes, but these are not reaching some of those who need it most.
If you spend more than 10% of your income on fuel costs
If your home is cold and/or damp
If you have difficulty affording fuel bills
To find links and guidance for people seeking advice on how to make their own home warmer and healthier, please click on the relevant link below.