One In 25 Older People Have No Central Heating

Recent data has shown one in 25 people over the age of 65 live on their own without central heating, putting their health at risk. 

This means there are more than 66,000 elderly people in England and Wales in one-person households who face freezing cold conditions during the winter, the Express reported. 

Age UK told the publication this could have “potentially serious consequences”, with its director Caroline Abrahams saying: “Older people lacking central heating often find it very difficult to stay warm during the winter months. Living alone can make this worse, as it means one person’s income has to stretch further to cover the fixed costs of heating.”

The area with the greatest problem was found to be Barrow-in-Furness in Cumbria, with 5.4 per cent of its elderly population living alone without central heating. This was followed by Gwynedd in north-west Wales at 4.6 per cent. 

London also has a high proportion of over-65s who do not have heating, with Waltham Forest (4.3 per cent), Lambeth (4.1 per cent), and Westminster (4.1 per cent) the worst affected areas. 

At the end of last year, Age UK called for the government to take further action to help elderly people afford to turn on their heating. 

It wanted discounts for lower-income households to be able to afford their energy bills, vulnerable households to receive funding for energy efficiency improvements, and more active promotion of the Energy Bill Support Scheme to help those on prepayment meters. 

Following the surge in energy prices over the last year, it warned more than a million older households were at risk of a “long, bleak winter”. 

Making your home more energy-efficient helps to bring down bills, which is why getting a boiler replacement in north London could help elderly people so they can keep their heating on over the winter.