Millions of households across Britain are facing a stark increase in their energy costs, with bills set to rise by an average of £500 per year compared to just a few winters ago. The change comes into effect as the regulator's new price cap takes hold, deepening a crisis that already sees an estimated six million children living in fuel poverty.
Ofgem's January Price Cap Brings Steady but Painful Rise
The energy regulator, Ofgem, has confirmed that its price cap for a typical household will increase to £1,758 a year from 1 January 2026. This calculation is based on the estimated annual use of 2,700 kWh of electricity and 11,500 kWh of gas for a home in England, Scotland, or Wales.
While the upcoming adjustment represents a modest rise of around 1%, the broader picture is far more severe. The average family will be spending approximately £500 more in 2026 than they did during the winter of 2021, highlighting the sustained financial pressure on household budgets.
Charity Warns of Soaring Debt and Cold Homes for Children
The national fuel poverty charity, National Energy Action (NEA), has issued a dire warning about the human impact of these persistently high costs. The organisation states that six million children in the UK are now living in fuel-poor households, where families struggle to afford adequate heating.
Adam Scorer, the chief executive of NEA, said the situation is critical. "We enter the coldest months of the year with energy prices stubbornly high and a warm home out of reach for millions of households," he stated. "Household energy debt continues to soar to new unwelcome records and will total over £5billion in 2026."
Scorer painted a grim picture of the choices families face: "Millions of families will have either gone deep into the red to heat their homes while their children are off school or been blue with cold over Christmas. Winter cruelly exposes the cost of a cold home to young children."
Government's Warm Homes Plan Under Scrutiny
Amid the crisis, there is a focus on the Government's proposed £15 billion Warm Homes Plan. Scorer indicated that more details on this initiative are expected "very soon," describing it as "the biggest single opportunity to turn the tide on fuel poverty and cold homes."
However, he set out clear tests for the plan's success, questioning how many more children would spend future winters in warmth and how many of the five million homes slated to benefit would be those where families currently cannot afford a healthy temperature.
Although a £150 reduction on bills is anticipated for most households in April following the recent budget, Scorer emphasised that another difficult winter must first be endured. The combination of high prices, record debt, and the onset of cold weather creates a perfect storm for the nation's most vulnerable families.
