The Energy Bill Relief Scheme (EBRS)

On 25 October 2022, the Government introduced a range of schemes to provide support for energy bills. Under one of these schemes, the Energy Bill Relief Scheme (EBRS), Sanctuary is expecting to receive a small amount of benefit on our electricity bills from October 2022 to March 2023.

For any of our customers who are homeowners any payment we receive will show when we produce end of year accounts for your scheme. This is because the amount of electricity our homeowners pay, such as to light or heat communal areas, is directly related to the amount it costs Sanctuary, whether that is more or less than had originally been estimated when your service charge was set. For example, if energy costs were £1,000 for the year and we receive £66 of Government support against that meter, then we will charge £934 in the end of year accounts.  Please note this does not necessarily mean a reduction in charges or money returned. This is because, using the same example, we may have budgeted that energy costs would be £900 and therefore, even after taking the benefit received into account, actual costs will be greater than budgeted costs.

For customers who rent from us, we agree the price we will recharge for electricity in advance. This only applies to schemes where electricity is provided by Sanctuary, for example to light or heat communal areas. During October 2022 to March 2023, we have calculated that even taking into account the benefit received, the amount we have paid in energy is more than the amount we are charging our residents through their service charges. This is because we have shielded our customers from the full extent of energy price rises. Therefore, we believe it is just and reasonable to retain the EBRS benefit we receive and not to pass it on.

Some of our properties are also connected to communal heat networks where we have a responsibility for providing heat and billing for its use. We are looking into whether any of these networks will be eligible for EBRS discount. If this is the case, we will issue further communications to let customers know and explain how we intend to apply the discount.