The life-altering impact of living with fuel poverty has been brought vividly to life in a new film featuring children and young people from across Wales.
The short film and accompanying report, Keeping Warm This Winter: Hearing the voices of children and young people in tackling fuel poverty in Wales, has been produced by Children in Wales and funded by Consumer Focus Wales. It brings together the stories of primary and secondary school pupils and highlights the real impact that fuel poverty has on many children’s lives. The project has also produced a colourful poster highlighting 10 Top Tips to stay warm.
Sean O’Neill, Policy Director for Children in Wales, said: “Far too many young people in Wales are living in fuel poverty and cold homes. The impact on them can be profound. It damages their school grades, their health and wellbeing. And it damages their life chances.
“By talking to children in schools across Wales, we have gathered real evidence of how cold homes are effecting children’s lives. And by listening to their experiences, and asking for their opinions, we have been able to put together a poster which gives children top tips for tackling the problems they may face – and a report which will challenge decision makers to make sure that children won’t face it in the future.”
Consumer Focus Wales’ Senior Director Maria Battle said: “Consumer Focus Wales is the statutory voice of the consumer in the energy market, and since we were established we have made tackling fuel poverty a priority as an organisation. We funded this project because we wanted decision makers to hear directly just why this issue is so important to our children and their future.
“Everyone should be able to live in a warm home, and that is a minimum requirement if we want our children to achieve their full potential.”
The project has also produced a poster of top tips – suggested by children and young people – which will be distributed to schools across Wales ahead of winter 2011/12.
Ms Battle added: “The top tips produced by children and young people involved in this project offer practical and effective guide to all children, young people and their families. We intend to make this widely available in time for next winter, while maintaining our fight to ensure that the energy companies, the government and other agencies do all they can to eradicate fuel poverty in our society.”
Notes:
Click to watch the film Keeping Warm This Winter
The written report is available here.
10 Top Tips for children and young people to stay warm can be seen here
The film will receive its first public showing at the Senedd today (9 Feb, 2011). Bethan Jenkins AM is sponsoring the event, and will also speak.
Consumer Focus Wales and Children in Wales are both founder members of the Fuel Poverty Coalition Cymru. http://www.fuelpovertycharterwales.org.uk/ and members of the End Child Poverty Network Cymru http://www.endchildpovertycymru.org.uk
