Fuel poverty rates by local authority

The headline national numbers hide wide local variation. In Scotland in 2024, 52% of households renting from a local authority were fuel poor, against 22% in the private sector overall³. In Wales, modelled estimates put around 340,000 households, 25% of the total, in fuel poverty as at October 2024⁴. This page explains what the local statistics cover, how the rate is defined in each nation, which areas sit at the top and bottom, and how to find the figure for your own area. The wider context is on our UK home energy statistics pillar page.

Scope of the sub-regional fuel poverty data

The sub-regional fuel poverty report is the UK government's breakdown of fuel poverty below regional level for England. The 2026 edition, covering 2024 data, was published on 14 May 2026 and applies to England only¹. It sits alongside the annual fuel poverty statistics report for England, published on 26 March 2026, which provides the national picture and projections of the number of households in fuel poverty in 2025 and 2026⁵.

The sub-regional figures carry the status of "official statistics in development", a designation used while a statistical series is still being evaluated, whereas the annual report is accredited official statistics¹. The dataset is also listed on data.gov.uk as official statistics, updated on the same date⁶. For the household-level picture behind these numbers, see our guide to fuel poverty statistics.

Rates across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland

Fuel poverty is a devolved policy area, defined and measured differently in different parts of the UK, so the national rates cannot be compared like for like⁷. The most recent cross-nation snapshot puts fuel poverty at around 11% of households in England, 34% in Scotland, 14% in Wales and 24% in Northern Ireland². Scotland's higher figure reflects its broader 10% of income definition rather than a straightforwardly worse situation.

Wales publishes its own modelled estimates: around 340,000 households, 25% of all households in Wales, were in fuel poverty as at October 2024⁴. The difference between that 25% and the 14% figure quoted in cross-nation commentary comes from the different definitions and modelling approaches used, not from a change in circumstances. Northern Ireland's regulator uses the 10% of weekly income measure for its fuel poverty work⁸.

Local authority level breakdowns exist for England and Scotland. Wales publishes modelled estimates at a national level, and Northern Ireland's figures are produced for the region as a whole rather than by council.

How the rate is measured and what counts as fuel poor

In England, fuel poverty is measured using the Low Income Low Energy Efficiency (LILEE) indicator. A household is counted as fuel poor if it lives in a property with an energy efficiency rating of band D, E, F or G under the Fuel Poverty Energy Efficiency Rating methodology, and its disposable income after housing costs and energy needs would fall below the poverty line⁹. A household in England is considered fuel poor if it has an FPEER of band D or below and residual income below the official poverty line after modelled energy costs⁴.

England previously used the Low Income High Costs indicator, under which households were said to be in fuel poverty if they would have to spend more than the median amount on fuel to keep their home at a reasonable temperature, and spending that amount would push their income below the poverty line¹⁰.

Scotland and Northern Ireland use a different test: a household is fuel poor if more than 10% of its net income, after housing costs, is required to pay for its reasonable fuel needs, with extreme fuel poverty at more than 20%¹¹. Northern Ireland's regulator applies the same 10% of weekly income threshold⁸. Fuel poverty is affected by three key factors: a household's income, its fuel costs, and its energy consumption⁷. For how the England rate is calculated in detail, see what is the fuel poverty rate in England?.

Local authorities with the highest and lowest fuel poverty rates

The clearest local authority level evidence comes from Scotland. The Scottish House Condition Survey shows how sharply rates vary by area and tenure. In 2024, 52% of households renting from a local authority and 45% of households renting from a housing association were fuel poor, with the social sector overall at 49% and the private sector at 22%³. Urban households had a fuel poverty rate of 29% by urban-rural classification³.

Income is the strongest single marker. Households in the lowest income band, under £15,000 a year, had the highest rate of extreme fuel poverty at 74%, and those in the second bottom band, £15,000 to £24,999, had a fuel poverty rate of 51%³. By household type, families had a rate of 25%, older households 30% and other households 29%, with extreme fuel poverty at 15% among other households³.

At local authority level, island and rural areas show the highest extreme fuel poverty rates in Scotland: Na h-Eileanan Siar at 24%, Orkney Islands at 22%, Shetland Islands at 22%, Highland at 22% and Argyll and Bute at 19% in the 2018 to 2019 period¹². For England, the End Fuel Poverty Coalition has published a fuel poverty map ranking local authority areas, combining official fuel poverty figures with data on energy efficiency measures¹³, and a risk index estimating the risk of someone being in fuel poverty for each local authority in England¹⁴. Regional data for England is available based on LSOA level calculations or local authority and metropolitan authority level¹⁵.

Reasons for big differences in rates across local authorities

Three things drive a local authority's rate: the efficiency of its housing stock, the incomes of its residents, and its fuel costs. All three vary geographically. In Scotland, fuel poverty levels are higher in remote rural areas (43%) and remote small towns (34%) than in urban areas (24%)¹². The 2022 survey found the rural rate at 35% against 30% for urban households¹⁶. Fuel poor households are also more likely to live in remote rural areas: 13% versus 8% of non-fuel poor households in inefficient homes¹¹.

Housing quality and tenure matter as much as geography. Scottish fuel poverty rates generally decrease as council tax bands rise, from 38% in band A to 11% in band F and 14% in bands G to H, a close proxy for housing quality¹⁷. Areas dominated by social renting carry the 49% social sector rate, while areas with higher owner occupation and newer housing sit far below it³.

Fuel costs move the numbers too. Scottish Government scenario modelling based on Ofgem price caps estimated a fall of around 1 percentage point for private rented sector households in the April to June 2026 cap period compared with January to March 2026¹⁸. In England, the fuel poverty gap for households with gas central heating was £230 in 2025¹⁹. For the efficiency side of the equation, see fuel poverty by EPC band in Scotland.

Locating the figure for your local authority

For England, the sub-regional fuel poverty report on GOV.UK is the primary source, giving rates for every local authority from 2024 data¹. The ONS Explore local statistics service presents fuel poverty for England as one of 116 local indicators, with the underlying Department for Energy Security and Net Zero data published on 14 May 2026⁹. The same dataset is listed on data.gov.uk⁶.

For Scotland, the Scottish House Condition Survey provides the local authority breakdowns³. For Wales, the modelled estimates publication is the source⁴. If you want to check your own household's position rather than your area's, the Centre for Sustainable Energy publishes a fuel poverty calculator to estimate fuel poverty status²⁰. Our guide to fuel poverty statistics by local area walks through the datasets in more detail.