Poole pensioners boycott communal heating over energy bills hike

Joan Power told the BBC she turned her heating off three weeks ago in protest against rising communal bills

Pensioners living at a housing association complex have switched off their heating in protest over big rises to communal hot water and energy costs.

Some residents at Tanglewood Lodge in Poole have said the prices have become unaffordable and they fear being left with no option other than to move.

Communal energy and hot water bills at the flats have risen by 567% from £22.15 to £125.63 per week.

Stonewater, which runs the block, said it would support struggling residents.

Tanglewood Lodge in the Creekmoor area of Poole is run by social housing provider Stonewater

Joan Power is among those to have stopped using her heating, deciding to switch it off three weeks ago.

"I can feel [the cold] through every fibre of my body - it's not doing me any good… but I'm determined to make a stance," she said.

The residents pay two different communal bills - one for hot water and heating, as well as another for heating and lighting the shared lounge and corridors.

The hot water and heating bill has gone up from £13.29 to £75.38 a week, while the bill for energy in the communal areas has risen from £8.86 to £50.25 a week.

Esme McCuaig said she has been regularly using tealights since switching off her heating

The residents also have individual bills with their own providers that supply the electricity they need for things like household appliances.

Esme McCuaig, who has also turned off her heating in protest, said she has resorted to using tealights and candles to try to keep warm.

Another resident, Kim Wakenshaw, said: "The toll it takes… I'm struggling and I don't need this. I think I'm going to have to move in order to find somewhere cheaper - and I don't want to do that. It's not fair."

Kim Wakenshaw said she feared she would have to move because of the hike in energy prices at the block

Because heating and hot water is provided communally, Stonewater is deemed as a business user when it comes to energy supply

That means there is currently less help to cushion residents from price increases included in their service charges.

A Stonewater spokesperson said: "We absolutely stand with customers over these concerns.

"The parameters for social housing rents are set by government and supported housing is excluded from the 7% cap applied to other tenures.

"We do not make a penny of profit from service or energy charges and are committed to ensuring that no customer should ever be at risk of losing their home because of energy debt.

"We will always support anyone struggling to find workable solutions."