Southern Housing Group gives away £60 worth of money saving gadgets to every resident

Published by Miriam Laverick for Southern Housing Group in Housing and also in Communities

Southern Housing Group is offering green gadgets worth £60 to each of its 20,500 social rent homes - helping residents reduce electricity costs and understand how changes can reduce our impact on the environment.

The give-away complements the Group’s Environmental Sustainability Strategy, Towards a Greener 2011. The Strategy sets out the Group’s aims to recognise and reduce the environmental impact of company and resident activities, at local and global levels.

The Group has teamed up with British Gas to give away Real Time Electricity Monitors and Standby Savers, which enable residents to monitor and subsequently reduce their electricity use.

The free Electricity Monitor allows residents to see how much implements cost to use, and the savings made from switching off appliances that are often forgotten, such as lights and computers. Because users can see the amount of energy being used, they can take more control of how much they spend.

The Standby Saver works like a multi-plug socket, and helps to reduce electricity bills by up to £33 a year. The Saver detects when you switch off your TV with the remote control. It automatically cuts the power to everything else that is plugged in, saving electricity that would be wasted on standby. Once the TV is turned on, all the other appliances are ready to use again.

Chair of the Group’s Sustainability Working Group, Valli Van Zijl, said:

“Through our 25,089 homes in London and the South East, our 900 staff, and our work with more than 70 local authorities, we can reach and influence hundreds of thousands of people. The interests of our residents are at the centre of what we do. By collaborating with suppliers, such as British Gas, our residents and staff, we can support people in our communities and help to reduce our collective impact on the environment.”

Southern Housing Group is committed to sustainability in its communities. So far 90 new homes have been awarded EcoHomes Excellent standard, and over 90 percent of existing homes have met the Decent Homes standard for better energy efficiency.

The Strategy identifies how the Group will:
• achieve energy efficiency in running its offices, maintaining residents’ homes and developing new properties
• work to tackle fuel poverty
• improve the social and economic sustainability of its neighbourhoods by taking ownership of environmental issues
• raise awareness and promote behavioural change in individuals, communities and staff.

The Group is signed up to the best practice membership scheme, Sustainable Homes Index for Tomorrow (SHIFT), which works to assess the Group’s Environmental Sustainability Strategy and practices for continual development.

For further information about Southern Housing Group’s Sustainability Strategy go to www.shgroup.org.uk/Publications