National Energy Action

National Energy Action, the fuel poverty charity, campaigns so everyone can afford to live in a warm and safe home. This is something denied to millions because of poor housing, low incomes, and high bills. Working across England, Wales and Northern Ireland, everything we do aims to improve the lives of people in fuel poverty. We directly support people with energy and income maximisation advice and we advocate on issues including improving the energy efficiency of our homes. We do not work alone. Partnerships and collaboration have been at the heart of NEA for over 40 years, helping us drive better health and wellbeing outcomes for people struggling to heat their homes. National Energy Action was founded in 1981 when students at Durham University established a group of volunteers to install loft insulation in the homes of elderly local people. Their experiences led them to realise there was a huge problem with people living in cold and unhealthy homes, suffering from fuel poverty. Subsequently, working with Newcastle City Council, this project was replicated on a wider scale by putting together different funding streams to develop community insulation projects. On 18 May 1981, Neighbourhood Energy Action was formally launched as a development programme of the National Council for Voluntary Organisations. Since then Neighbourhood Energy Action has evolved into National Energy Action (NEA), employing over 70 staff across England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Our actions have brought real social change, enabling millions of people to access grants and assistance to help them live in a warm home. Our campaigning work has also ensured that fuel poverty is now firmly on the public policy agenda. We also work closely with our sister charity Energy Action Scotland. You can find out more about their work to tackle fuel poverty in Scotland at www.eas.org.uk