Housing Fuel Poverty Index: overall improvement in fuel poverty in 2024
From September to December, there was a small rise in the proportion of social homes in the UK failing to reach 18°C in any seven-day period, but the overall picture for last year showed improvement, according to smart thermostat provider Switchee’s Housing Fuel Poverty Index
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There was another small uptick in the proportion of social homes in the UK experiencing fuel poverty in the final three months of 2024, according to the latest data update from smart thermostat provider Switchee. However, the annual picture for 2024 shows an overall improvement in fuel poverty.
Switchee’s quarterly Housing Fuel Poverty Index, the data from which is shared exclusively with Inside Housing, uses smart devices in social rented homes to track fuel poverty in real time. Those homes failing to reach 18°C in any seven-day period are deemed to be in fuel poverty. Using this metric, the latest data shows that, from September to December 2024, an average of 4.72% of social homes were in fuel poverty, up from 4.53% during the same period in 2023.
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The new figures also give us the first opportunity since this index has been published in Inside Housing to compare an entire calendar year. This shows a much more positive trend, with an average of 4.5% of homes in fuel poverty on any given day in 2024, compared with 5.42% in 2023. That translates to one in every 21 homes being in fuel poverty in 2024, as opposed to around one in 18 during the previous 12 months.
This suggests some of the issues around fuel poverty are being addressed, despite continuing pressure on household energy bills. And the figures are particularly encouraging given that the UK was cooler in 2024 than in 2023. The average temperature across the country in 2024 was 9.78°C, more than half a degree above the average from 1991-2020, according to the Met Office, but slightly cooler than the average of 9.97°C in 2023.
Regional trends
Looking across the full calendar year, the rate of fuel poverty fell in all but one UK region in 2024, as judged on Switchee’s metric. Only in Yorkshire and the Humber did it increase, with an average of 3.78% of social homes failing to reach 18°C in any seven-day period, compared with an average of 2.96% of homes in 2023.
Greater London had the lowest level of fuel poverty in 2024, with just 3.1% of social homes on an average day being classed as in fuel poverty. That was down from an average of 3.62% in 2023.
4.5%
Percentage of homes in fuel poverty on any given day in 2024
5.42%
Percentage of homes in fuel poverty on any given day in 2023
Wales showed the most dramatic change in fuel poverty, with the average rate falling by a higher proportion than any English region. In 2023, an average of 8.64% of social homes failed to reach the 18°C threshold on a typical day, but that figure dropped to just 5% in 2024, an improvement of more than 40%. By contrast, Scotland showed relatively little change year on year, improving from 5.4% in 2023 to 5.34% last year.
Among English regions, the South West and West Midlands continued to have the highest proportion of social homes in fuel poverty, although they were also among the most improved performers year on year.
In the South West, an average of 5.79% of homes were in fuel poverty during 2024, while in the West Midlands the figure was 5.69%. However, both regions showed an improvement of more than 20% compared with 2023, when their averages were 7.31% and 7.2% respectively.
After the capital, the East of England had the lowest rate of fuel poverty, with an average of 3.27% of social homes failing to reach 18°C on any given day. That was down from 3.98% in 2023.
The South East and East Midlands were the other two regions that outperformed the national average in 2024. In the South East, 4.32% of homes on an average day were judged to be in fuel poverty, down from 5.22% in 2023, while in the East Midlands, the figure was 4.45%, down from 5.3%. These represented improvements of 17% and 16% respectively.
The North East showed similar levels of improvement, with 5.47% of social homes in the region found to be fuel poor on average in 2024, compared with 6.52% during the previous 12 months.
“The latest data shows encouraging progress in tackling fuel poverty across the UK, despite ongoing energy challenges, says Izzy Henry, data analysis lead at Switchee.
“However, regional disparities remain; a continued focus on addressing fuel poverty will be crucial to ensure all regions benefit from these positive trends.”
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