A Research Paper on the Relationship Between Energy Poverty and Children’s Health:
Background and Study Rationale
Light, heat and power are fundamental requirements to participate in society and a pre-requisite for social inclusion. However, many people in Ireland continue to experience energy poverty, which is defined as the inability of a household to attain an acceptable standard of warmth and energy services in the home at an affordable cost.1 According to the Survey of Income and Living Conditions (SILC), in 2018, 43% of people living in consistent poverty went without heating at some stage in the previous year due to cost, and 29% could not afford to keep their house adequately warm. 2 It is estimated that almost one in six households spend more than 10% of their income on energy which is the official measure of energy poverty in Ireland.3 The reality behind these figures are apparent to SVP’s 11,000 members who meet families every week living in cold, damp and poorly insulated homes.
