So: what can we do about it?
It is horrendous, there is absolutely no doubt about that. I saw the 51% forecast and worked out what my energy costs would be. I live in a very old house. Sobering doesn't begin to cut it.
However, at the risk of sounding like Pollyanna, I firmly believe that nearly everybody can do something to mitigate the costs next winter, and the time to start doing that is now. Thankfully winter is still a few months away, and I am spending some time this summer making plans and preparing for what's ahead. I would urge you all to join me.
The first thing I suggest you do is have a really good look at your home, your living patterns and your current energy bills. Understand where your energy is going, it can be quite an eye opener. Find out how much energy your appliances use. (Look in the instruction manual or google it). You pay for your energy in units of kilowatt hours ( ie an equivalent usage of 1,000 watts per hour. If you run a 500 watt appliance for one hour, you will have used half a kilowatt of energy). As a rule of thumb, anything that produces heat - heating, hot water, cooking - are going to be your main energy drains. One potential easy win - if you have a hot water tank, can you reduce the number of hours a day your water heating is switched on?
Anything that is on constantly is also going to add up over time. For example, we found we had accumulated various fridges and freezers over the years, and this had previously been a good thing in terms of batch cooking, freezing bargains etc. Now we found they were making up 25% of our very hefty energy bills, so we have decommissioned a couple and knocked a very useful 10% off our electricity usage. That's one example, but you will find your own energy drains. On the plus side, our televisions use a very reasonable 30 odd watts an hour, so no need to restrict those. LED bulbs are not cheap, but use hardly any energy, so if you haven't swapped, try and change those, one at a time if you're on a budget.
By swapping my home insurance, broadband package and swapping to a water meter, I anticipate saving around £1200 a year, which will help towards my energy costs. I was surprised that was possible, I've always run a tight ship, but the markets change over time.
There's loads to be said in terms of practical things you can do around the house to keep more comfortable this winter, but this post is getting long and I have to finish now. Perhaps I'll start a post in the next few days and we can swap tips?
I do feel we can all do something, and taking positive steps will help us feel more in control at this crazy time.