Home Energy Community Survey

Energy Access and Poverty Plan

Council endorsed an Energy Access and Poverty Plan to increase equitable access to clean and affordable energy in the Tweed.

View the plan on Council's website.

Thank you to everyone who provided feedback. Here's what we learned:

Thank you to everyone who shared their experiences through the Home Energy Bills survey. In addition to 51 responses to the survey, we heard from a range of other stakeholders:

• Presentation to the Tweed Community Care Forum, 13 February
• Community engagement via Seniors Week Energy Pop Up stall at Tweed City, 14 & 15 March
• Agenda item on the Equal Access Advisory Committee meeting, 10 April
• Service providers workshop, 17 April. 10 community, health and housing service providers shared their experiences, interactions and suggested solutions

Thanks to this local feedback and a review of other relevant research and resources, Council has prepared a draft Energy Access and Poverty Plan to inform Council’s response to the issue of energy affordability in the Tweed community.

You can read the plan on Council's website. This draft plan will be presented to Council for formal endorsement.

A range of possible solutions have been investigated with local stakeholders.
The following actions have been determined as Council’s key focus areas that can be funded, tracked and reported with current resources:

• Action 1: Co-design promotional messaging with target audiences
• Action 2: Promote greater uptake of NSW Government energy rebates
• Action 3: Promote World Energy Day on 22 October, encouraging households to compare their electricity costs, provider and energy use.

With greater resources we could have greater impact. The plan describes key priorities for advocacy, partnerships and funding including:

• Wishlist 1: Ongoing funding for an Energy Support Worker program
• Wishlist 2: Microgrid and community battery feasibility studies, particularly that support priority community members and social housing tenants in the Tweed
• Wishlist 3: Energy efficient existing homes standards
• Wishlist 4: Install more solar on social housing.

Council is looking to understand your experience with energy bills

We would like to understand your experiences with energy bills, what you're already doing to save money and what resources or support you may find useful for managing electricity bills.

Council is a signatory to the Global Covenant of Mayors, a global alliance for local government climate leadership. As part of its climate change reporting, Tweed Shire Council is required to assess whether we have secure, sustainable and affordable energy in the Tweed.

We’d like to ask you a few brief questions to understand your experience.

Our community survey is open until close of business Tuesday 30 April 2024.