Dumfries and Galloway Citizens Advice Service is encouraging people worried about heating their homes this winter to seek help on energy bills and the cost of living.
The agency has already seen a massive increase in the number enquiries from across the region.
And with the winter chill beginning to bite many more are expected to seek help in the coming weeks.
The service can help people worried about bills to boost their incomes through additional grants or social security payments.
Data from across the agency’s network suggests one in 10 people seeking advice on energy costs are also suffering “food insecurity”.
Phil Stewart, chief executive of the service, said: “The number of people contacting us for assistance for energy and financial support has doubled in the last six months to almost 10 per cent of our entire clientele.
“This evidences the dire situation that is affecting householders right across the region, many of whom have progressed from struggling to suffering due to lack of heating and affordable, nourishing food.
“We are gaining clients who in other times would not have needed to contact us for energy advice and other financial and charitable support.
“This has amounted to £150,000 finding its way back into the pockets of our communities. As a result, we are increasing our number of specialist energy advisers to cope with demand.
“Last year D&GCAS unlocked £6.85 million for people in Dumfries and Galloway. Our advice is free, impartial and confidential. We will never charge people for advice and during this cost of living crisis it costs nothing to check how we could help.”
People can get advice in a number of ways, including one-to-one from Dumfries and Galloway Citizens Advice Service, or a range of online options including the interactive self-help tool www.MoneyMap.scot, the Money Talk Team service or the public advice site.
