On February 24, 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine. This war has sparked an intense energy supply crisis in the U.K., Europe and other parts of the world. According to a new report that academics at York University published, 53 million people, or more than 75% of households, in the U.K. will have ended up in fuel poverty by January 2023. Fuel poverty is typically defined as when energy costs exceed 10% of a household’s net income. British ‘warm banks’ may be a solution.

About 86.4% of pensioner couples in the U.K. may fall into fuel poverty in January 2023 according to estimations. Of single parents, 90.4% of those with two or more children may also suffer from energy poverty. In January 2023, energy bills in the U.K. could top £4,200.

Creating British Warm Banks

The staff at Brickyard Bakery and Academy cookery school, in Westgate Guisborough, Britain, are providing good-natured help. The academy has been opening up a British warm bank above the shop every weekday for citizens to be in a warm place. Bakery and Academy owner Ed Hamilton-Trewhitt has stated that “heat from the bakery’s huge oven was being wasted heating an empty room above.” Hamilton-Twewhitt has subsequently furnished the area in a style full of nostalgia for the British psyche.

For the Community

Hamilton-Trewhitt spoke of the elderly community by stating that “I was worried about them during the pandemic and I’m worried about them now. I’ve got all this extra heat which is just disappearing up through the floorboards.” The owner also stated how “This is completely free, there’s newspapers and magazines and tea and coffee.”

This might just be the attitude necessary to help people survive this winter as the estimated bill of £4,200 per household is quite significant. Hamilton-Trewhitt stated that the bakery had always done its best to help the community and has previously offered free school meals to local children in the style of Marcus Rashford.

Previously, Hamilton-Trewhitt has cooked for the Queen and created dishes at the Ritz Club London.

Other British Warm Banks

British warm banks have opened across the United Kingdom in libraries, museums, cafes and even fire stations. These are publicly owned spaces or ones that are in a relationship with the government, available for the public to escape the cold. Young families, restaurant workers and an NHS cleaner are among those who have taken advantage of the free heat of Gainsborough library in southeast Ipswich. Carla Francesca spent some time here on Thursday with her two-year-old daughter. Francesca reported it was warm and a more cheerful place than her home, which remains unheated during the day to save money.

In a cold winter during a fuel crisis, British warm banks are becoming a significant coping method for the world’s second most altruistic country and making a difference.

– William Fletcher
Photo: Flickr