Orkney family left with 1,000 litres of heating oil - but no boiler

Karen Ivey described her situation as "desperate"

An Orkney family has been left with 1,000 litres of heating oil but no boiler after an abrupt change in government policy.

Karen Ivey applied for a new oil boiler under the Warmer Homes Scotland scheme in August when her old machine failed and flooded her Hoy home.

But government support for oil boilers was withdrawn on 6 September.

Now Mrs Ivey's family home has no heating or hot water and she is living in temporary accommodation.

Yet she has recently received a government grant available to low income families to buy 1,000 litres of oil to see her through the winter.

The Scottish government said it was satisfied she was provided with the correct advice and offer.

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Mrs Ivey, 60, who lives in a converted former school building, qualified for the boiler grant due to a number of health conditions.

"I'm desperate," she said. "I've got no heating. No hot water. If I was somewhere else in a different part of the UK there are there are boiler schemes that are fitting oil.

"Nobody is taking any notice of the fact that where we are can be extremely cold and an awful lot of people on these islands must be dependent on oil. It can't just be me."

The Hoy resident's boiler failed

The Scottish government removed support for oil and liquid petroleum gas (LPG) boilers after the SNP struck a partnership deal with the Scottish Greens.

But Mrs Ivey is perplexed that she was funded to buy heating oil, but not a replacement oil boiler.

"It means we have all this oil, and we have no boiler and no way of getting a boiler", she said.

"We'd been told we met the criteria for a replacement oil boiler, but the policy changed on 6 September, the same day the surveyor came to see our property.

"There'd been no taper to the scheme or anything. It just stopped. It's really upset me."

Fuel poverty

Orkney suffers from the worst fuel poverty rates in Scotland due to a combination of high energy costs, low incomes and old housing stock which is often hard to insulate to modern standards.

Orkney Lib Dem MSP Liam McArthur said he is sympathetic to the Scottish government's aim of switching to low carbon heating alternatives to oil, but argued this change is too much, too soon.

Mr McArthur, who is lobbying on his constituent's behalf, said: "Normally you would expect a lead-in time following on from any change in policy.

"That hasn't happened on this occasion and it's leaving people like Karen entirely in the lurch in a part of the country which has long had the highest rates of fuel poverty.

"It is inexcusable the Scottish government has not paid more thought and attention to the likely impact of this change in policy."

Lower carbon alternatives

Warmworks Scotland, which oversee the Warmer Homes Scotland scheme, said it is only new oil and LPG boilers which have been withdrawn from the scheme and grants for other types of systems, like air source and ground source pumps and modern storage heaters are still available.

Mrs Ivey is in discussions with Warmworks and is considering taking up an offer for a high heat retention electric storage heating system, although she is worried about the suitability for her property and how she will afford to pay the electricity bills.

The Scottish government said it had investigated her case and was satisfied she was provided with the correct advice and offer through the Warmer Homes Scotland scheme.

A Scottish government statement said: "Support for upgrading existing oil or LPG heating systems through the scheme ended on 6 September.

"Any customer who has received a letter offering oil and LPG heating before that date will have their offer upheld. Any customer surveyed on or after 6 September is being offered lower carbon alternatives."