The findings were made in a report from Ï㽶ÊÓƵ’s Centre for Regional Economic and Social Ï㽶ÊÓƵ, titled The study uniquely translates energy usage from kilowatt hours into everyday terms, and analyses the difference in hours and days of hot water and heating between different households.
Sheffield Hallam’s Professor Aimee Ambrose, who led the study alongside PHD researcher Amy Grace, said: “Using the language of kWh tells us very little about how many days and hours of heating and hot water a household can actually afford to access. But by translating energy figures into actual hours and days, we can better reflect people’s lived experience and see the impact that consumption inequality has on communities.
“There is striking inequality across every group we studied, with under-consuming households not being able to meet basic warmth and comfort needs, while the highest consumers use significantly higher levels. Whether it is regional or economic factors, or based on income, people’s personal circumstances undoubtedly have a major impact on their ability to heat their homes.
“An entire month’s difference in access to a warm home between the UK’s highest and lowest consuming households is shocking. If you think of that in the context of this year’s cold winter, which lasted from November to February, it could mean that some people were unable to heat their homes for the equivalent of one of those four months.”
The study also found that London is the highest energy consuming region, with average households in the capital accessing five and a half days more heating and hot water each year, compared to the lowest consuming region in the South West. London’s richest households also use considerably more energy than affluent homes in other parts of the country, for example there is a gap of eight days per year between London’s highest consumers and the highest heating users in the North West.
Unsurprisingly, housing tenure also impacts gas consumption, with homeowners using the most energy, while social housing tenants use the least. Owner occupied homes access anywhere between four and eight more days of gas than those in social housing.
Overall, gas consumption reduced between 2021 to 2022, reflecting high levels of inflation and the energy crisis. The level of reduction during that period was highest among top earning households, which reduced their usage by 100 hours on average, three times that of the least affluent groups. This suggests that the highest consuming households have the greatest scope to reduce their gas consumption in response to economic pressure, and are able to reduce expenditure while staying comfortable and heating their homes.
Professor Ambrose continued: “Our research proves that there is less scope for the lowest consuming households to reduce their consumption from an already low base, suggesting that many people are already using as little energy as they can. For more affluent households however, there is room to alter their energy use based on economic conditions.”
