We have helped to prove that low income households are more likely to be convinced of the need to protect the environment than other people. This has been discovered as part of an international energy project.

In 2009 Birmingham was one of four cities selected across Europe to take part in a European Union-funded project to test methods to reduce household energy consumption and cut carbon emissions. Family Housing was the only housing association chosen to be involved.

Sixty households in Summerfield and Lozells signed up to a pilot scheme which saw us install smart meters into their homes to help them understand more about how much energy they use and how they could reduce this and cut their energy bills.

The project has now ended and the results are in. The results show that:

·         The greatest shift in motivation away from cost of energy to environmental impact was amongst people who have lower incomes

·         92% reported that they had reduced the amount of energy they used because of the awareness they had gained from taking part in the scheme

·         78% said that being involved in the project helped them better understand the energy consumed by different appliances

·         Compared to answers given at the beginning of the project, there was a 27% increase in the numbers of people who now rate environmental impact as highly as cost when thinking about their energy usage.

At the same time, the residents gave their feedback on how easy the system was to use, which was then improved over the three cycles of the experiments.

Other partners in the project included Digital Birmingham – Birmingham City Council – which was managing the Birmingham side of the project, Be Birmingham, Summerfield Residents’ Group and Kate Foley, the South Lozells neighbourhood manager.

Jean Allison, a resident in Handsworth who took part in the project said:

“I now understand how using appliances relates to the amount of energy we use and how much I have to pay. Before it didn’t matter if the kettle was filled a little bit more, or when or how often I did the washing. But by using the meter I’ve seen how small changes make a difference to the amount of energy we use.

“It has also helped save me money. My monthly direct debit for electricity has gone down from £90 per month to £55. I’m really glad that I’ve been involved.”

The top three behaviour changes made by people taking part in the project were:

·   Generally being more careful about their energy use

·   Turning off their appliances when they were not in use

·    Reducing the amount of lighting they used.

By testing the system in Birmingham, Manchester, Bristol and Bulgaria, the Save Your Energy project is being used towards developing a user-friendly smart meter product for use in homes across Europe.