Fuel poverty data collaboration
Two of SDR UK’s data services partner for new project
Around nine million people in the UK are estimated to be living in fuel poverty, according to the Government’s Annual Fuel Poverty Statistics for 2025. But growing evidence suggests this figure significantly underestimates the true scale of the problem. Rising energy costs, persistent financial insecurity and poor housing conditions continue to affect millions of households, with serious consequences for health and wellbeing.
Understanding fuel poverty is the first step to tackling the challenge. Now, two of Smart Data Research UK’s data services are joining forces to investigate. The Smart Energy Data Service (SENSE), and Financial Data Service (FINDS), have launched a new collaborative project that brings together smart energy data and smart financial data for the first time. By combining these rich, anonymised datasets, the project aims to deliver a more accurate, granular picture of fuel poverty at a local level and unlock new insights to inform policy and interventions.
What’s happening
The project, ‘Understanding energy demand in areas of economic vulnerability’, is led by Energy Systems Catapult and funded by SDR UK. It represents a powerful partnership between SENSE, which provides access to smart meter and energy consumption data, and FINDS, which holds anonymised financial data from more than five million customers.
At the heart of the project is a commitment to improving how fuel poverty is measured. Existing definitions in England and Wales, such as the Low Income High Costs (LIHC) and Low Income Low Energy Efficiency (LILEE) indicators, are widely recognised as incomplete.
By integrating smart meter data from the Smart DCC (Data Communications Company) with financial records and aggregated local consumption data, the project will create new datasets capable of identifying real-world indicators of fuel poverty at Lower Layer Super Output Area (LSOA) level. This approach offers fresh insights into how fuel poverty affects people’s daily lives and how financial stress and energy demand interact.
As the UK continues its transition to net zero, the project places lived experience at the centre of energy system innovation. Too often, innovation focuses on new technologies or large-scale infrastructure, overlooking the realities faced by those struggling most to heat their homes or afford energy efficiency improvements.
By enabling researchers, policymakers, NGOs and data services to work together, this collaboration aims to provide a stronger evidence base to support more inclusive, effective responses to fuel poverty across the UK.
For more information about this project, please contact sense@es.catapult.org.uk
