Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN) announced on 19 December 2023 that households in its north of Scotland and central southern England distribution areas can access the YES Advice Line, run by YES Energy Solutions, for free and impartial energy efficiency support1.
The service covers help with applications to funding for home energy improvements, advice on benefit entitlement, and guidance on green technologies that can cut costs over time1. Customers who register through SSEN are contacted by YES Energy Solutions, whose advisors ask a series of simple questions to establish where support is needed, taking individual circumstances into account1. Householders choose the level of service that suits them1. Each new customer also receives a free energy saving pack containing gadgets and tips intended to reduce energy use at home without compromising on warmth1. The line can be reached on 03301 359 1101.
SSEN said more than 500 people a month call the YES Advice Line for help with saving energy and making bills more affordable, and that 1,700 of its customers received help from the line last winter, with the advice proving the means to save over £900,000 on their annual energy bills1.
"By working together, SSEN and YES Energy Solutions can bring the right information and advice to customers who are looking to bring down their energy bills and we can even help change the way they heat their homes, by bringing low carbon technologies into consideration."
Laura Winning, YES Energy Solutions' energy advice centre manager, said the service "not only prepares them for this winter but will provide guidance on changes people can make year on year"1. SSEN did not state in its announcement how long the partnership will run, how it is funded beyond partner contributions, or whether eligibility is restricted beyond living in its two distribution areas; those details have not been reported1.
Why it matters for households
Energy independence at home rests on knowing what a property loses, what can be changed and what money is available to change it. The advice line sits upstream of that work: it points to funding for home energy improvements, checks whether a household is claiming the benefits it is entitled to, and raises low carbon heating options1. For households in Scotland, this runs alongside the government-funded Home Energy Scotland service, and in England alongside other free home energy advice routes1. SSEN reported that 1,700 customers received help last winter and that the advice proved the means to save over £900,000 on their annual energy bills, but it did not break that figure down by measure, property type or household1.
What happens next
No end date, funding period or expansion of the scheme beyond SSEN's north of Scotland and central southern England areas has been reported1. Households in those areas can call the line now; the announcement gives no closing date for the free energy saving pack1.