A HOMELESSNESS charity based in St Austell has been making and distributing free warm packs this winter to help people on low income reduce their energy bills.

Harbour Housing has received £10,000 of funding from National Grid’s Community Matters Fund via Localgiving to help people in the community combat fuel poverty. 

Harbour have been distributing two different types of warm packs depending on whether recipients have gas or electric heating. 

All contain fleece blankets, draft excluders, LED light bulbs, thermal curtains, and socket timers. The gas packs contain radiator foil and radiator bleed keys, and the electric one comes with an electric blanket that costs just 2p an hour to run. 

Together, the items provide cost-effective ways of keeping warm and reducing bills through energy-saving alternatives.

Harbour Housing teamed up with local partners to help with the distribution of the packs to those in need. St Blazey Recycle, Reuse, Resale, St Austell Community Kitchen (STAK), Daisy Dukes, DISC Newquay and Bill Davies the Community Maker for mid-Cornwall from Volunteer Cornwall have all received packs to give to low-income families and individuals across the local area. 

Mr Davies helped to distribute the warm packs to those in the Restormel region. 

He said, “It’s always great to work in partnership with organisations like Harbour who are giving back. 

“It’s fantastic to be able to get these packs, which are so useful and will benefit people, to those who need it the most that wouldn’t be able to access it otherwise. 

“It’s a good example of something simple that has benefited so many people, that can be replicated again and again. A little bit of kindness makes such a big difference.”

Harbour Housing’s operations director Malcolm Putko said: “The packs have flown out the door this winter, which unfortunately shows the level of need across our communities. 

“It has been great to be able to work alongside other key community groups to help in this way and get the packs out there.

“Feedback from recipients has been overwhelmingly positive: one recipient of a pack even said, “It saved my life,” as his new electric blanket was all he had to keep warm during a period of illness. 

“This just goes to show how relatively simple items can make such a difference.” 

Mr Putko added: “A big thank you to National Grid for this grant, and we hope there are more funding opportunities like this in the future. 

“We know that issues of fuel poverty and the increased cost of living are not going to go away overnight.”