ADVICE on reducing energy bills is the prime focus of a drop-in session organised by Citizens Advice in Barnard Castle.
Staff from the centre, which is based at Woodleigh on Flatts Road, will be on hand to offer free, impartial and confidential help on how to save energy and keep bills as low as possible as part of the Big Energy Saving Week which runs from January, 21 through until 25.
The session in town is being held on Wednesday, January 23. Michelle Ridley, training and development officer for Citizens Advice, said: “We do get some people through the year who have trouble paying their energy bills and I don’t think people know that the advice is there and there is a good chance we can help people save money.
“Our advisers can help to switch suppliers by using one of the energy comparison tools available so people could start to make immediate savings.
“We may also be able to suggest further cost-cutting measures depending on your circumstances.
“This could include looking at insulating your home so it becomes more energy efficient or checking if you’re entitled to benefits, grants or discounts such as the Warm Home Discount, which is a £140 rebate from your supplier.”
The drop-in session is open to everyone and will run between 1pm and 3pm at the Barnard Castle office.
Anyone who can’t attend can pop into Citizens Advice normal sessions, which take place on Monday and Wednesdays between 10am and 4pm.
Sessions are also held at Utass’s office, in Middleton-in-Teesdale, fortnightly on Mondays from 10am to 1pm. Appointments are not needed.
![A COUNTY councillor is backing a campaign to get a pedestrian crossing in Staindrop. Frustrated parish councillors in the village summoned their county council representative Cllr George Richardson to their latest meeting to discuss several issues, including the call for a safe way to cross the A688. Earlier this year their request for a crossing was turned down by the county council’s highways officers. Parish council chairman Jonothan Raper described the reasons for the refusal as “spurious” and called on Cllr Richardson to support their campaign. He added: “One of the arguments they made was there is no clear line of desire when they studied the village – well this isn’t a clear line of desire because there isn’t a crossing, people cross whenever they can. “When the lollipop person was there, one of the things I noticed was people would walk all the way down to the lollipop person to cross the road to go to the shop or to go to the school.” He added a problem of parking at the primary school is exacerbated because people are too afraid to walk their children across the road. Cllr Richardson said he had supported previous attempts for a crossing point with the first being made about 15 years ago. He added: “We went fairly well down the road with that and they looked into it. The only recommended place was where the bus stop is and to get the visibility splays, people on the other side of the road would lose their parking. “That didn’t go down well so it just died a death.” Cllr Raper said he suspected the real reason for the officers’ refusal was the cost of installing a crossing. He added that much of the cost could be recovered from savings made on not having to employ a lollipop patrol. Cllr Raper said: “A lollipop person only provides a benefit of crossing for three hours of the day. You are getting 21 extra hours of crossing time [with a pedestrian crossing].” Cllr Richardson said he would raise the issue with the county council’s cabinet member for highways, Cllr John Shuttleworth.](https://teesdalemercury.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/georgeR-120x86.jpg)
