ELDERLY and other vulnerable residents are being given a helping hand to reduce their energy bills this winter.

Communities preparing for colder months will get some top tips on saving energy and keeping warm.

Dorset Community Action is working with partners to organise advice surgeries in west Dorset as part of Big Energy Saving Week, which starts on Monday, October 20.

Similar events were organised last year and proved to be very popular. Free advice to help people save money is sure to be welcome as the rising cost of living puts pressure on households.

Big Energy Saving Week is a national campaign with the support of the government, charities and the energy industry.

Simon Thompson, of Dorset Community Action, said: “This project is aimed at vulnerable people in particular, offering them energy advice and helping to get a better deal by either changing tariff or switching supplier, besides checking that they are getting the right benefits.”

DCA works with other local partner organisations – First Dorset Credit Union, Dorset Energy Advice, Magna Housing, Citizen’s Advice in Dorset, Healthwatch and the Co-op – to support people worried about their fuel bills and wanting advice.

Mr Thompson added: “We hope that everyone who comes to any of the six sessions we have arranged during and after Big Energy Saving Week will also pass on information to others.”