Welcome Message - Event Date: 13�Nov�2008

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   Welcome to the Advice NI eConsultation on Struggling to Keep Warm at Home? Have your say on proposed changes to the Warm Homes Scheme.

The Department for Social Development has prepared a consultation document outlining proposals for revising the Warm Homes Scheme.  Some proposed changes include:
(i) Opening the scheme, including the Warm Homes Plus heating element, to the working fuel poor who are receiving Working Tax Credit;
(ii) Ensuring all applicants to the Scheme receive a Benefit Entitlement Check;
(iii) Focusing the heating element of the Scheme on those fuel poor households with no central heating, solid fuel systems, Economy 7 or Liquid Petroleum Gas;

The full consultation document can be found at: http://www.dsdni.gov.uk/index/consultations/warm-homes-consultation.htm

Advice NI aims to gather people's experiences of staying warm at home and people's views on the proposals. A report on the findings will then be placed before the Department. 

This is your chance to have your say.  The eConsultation will run from Monday 17th November 2008 until Monday 8th December 2008. 

If you have any difficulties using the forum you can contact our moderators:  NB You need to register in order to post a message.

Arfawn Yasin, Patricia Donald or Kevin Higgins at Advice NI, Tel: 028 9064 5919
arfawn@adviceni.net 

kevin@adviceni.net 
patricia@adviceni.net

Edited by Arfawn - 25�Nov�2008 at 10:07am

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KevinH Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Groupie Joined: 12�Dec�2006 Online Status: Offline Posts: 48	Quote Reply Calendar Event: Welcome Message Posted: 13�Nov�2008 at 7:49pm
	Welcome to the Advice NI eConsultation on Struggling to Keep Warm at Home? Have your say on proposed changes to the Warm Homes Scheme. The Department for Social Development has prepared a consultation document outlining proposals for revising the Warm Homes Scheme. Some proposed changes include: (i) Opening the scheme, including the Warm Homes Plus heating element, to the working fuel poor who are receiving Working Tax Credit; (ii) Ensuring all applicants to the Scheme receive a Benefit Entitlement Check; (iii) Focusing the heating element of the Scheme on those fuel poor households with no central heating, solid fuel systems, Economy 7 or Liquid Petroleum Gas; The full consultation document can be found at: http://www.dsdni.gov.uk/index/consultations/warm-homes-consultation.htm Advice NI aims to gather people's experiences of staying warm at home and people's views on the proposals. A report on the findings will then be placed before the Department. This is your chance to have your say. The eConsultation will run from Monday 17th November 2008 until Monday 8th December 2008. If you have any difficulties using the forum you can contact our moderators: NB You need to register in order to post a message. Arfawn Yasin, Patricia Donald or Kevin Higgins at Advice NI, Tel: 028 9064 5919 arfawn@adviceni.net kevin@adviceni.net patricia@adviceni.net Edited by Arfawn - 25�Nov�2008 at 10:07am

Administrator Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Admin Group Joined: 01�Oct�2003 Online Status: Offline Posts: 61	Quote Reply Posted: 22�Nov�2008 at 3:04pm
	Hi All Here is a video clip of Maria Higgins from the DSD talking about the Warm Homes eConsultation. Regards Admin Edited by Administrator - 24�Nov�2008 at 12:52am

Mrs Jenkins Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 08�Dec�2008 Location: Belfast Online Status: Offline Posts: 1	Quote Reply Posted: 08�Dec�2008 at 2:35pm
	I am an 80 year old who lives in the falls Rd area of Belfast. Last year I had a gas boiler installed through the warm homes scheme. At the time I was very grateful and was happy that my house would be warmer and was told it would be a lot cheaper to run. I am currently paying nearly £30 per week to heat my home for 4hrs a day, that’s two in the morning and two in the evening. The weather is so cold at the minute I have to keep my heating on for more that 4hrs a day, this is costing me so much money which I can’t afford. I have arthritis which I suffer badly with in the cold weather and not being able to heat my home enough is causing me to be bed bound. When I had my boiler installed it was installed in the bedroom in my home this has often worried me as I would fear the boiler would blow up or leak deadly gases if not serviced every year. This brings me to my final point that when I had my new gas boiler installed via warm homes no one told me it would have to be serviced every year and that I would need insurance cover in case of break down. I simply can’t afford to pay for servicing or insurance for a boiler. I have only my state pension to live on. As for the £250 extra fuel payment I received I am now using some of it to pay Phoenix Gas to service my boiler so the money is not being used in the way it was intended to be used – to heat my home. I think the warm homes scheme should tell people before they install the boilers that it will need serviced every year and the costs involved maintaining a boiler i.e. insurance. If the Warm homes scheme can provide these boilers why can’t they pay to maintain the boilers also. A very distressed eldery lady Mrs Jenkins Edited by Administrator - 14�Jan�2009 at 3:10pm