If all the media warnings come to pass, we are facing a long cold financially stretched winter.
What can we do to navigate the bumps ahead?
It seems obvious, but the place to start is with the household budget. What comes in money wise and what goes out.
It looks as if a great deal of the "going out" part will be to finance energy for heating and cooking.
Many households with a healthy disposable income have not found it necessary to have a budget, as their income adequately covers household living and additional outgoings. It may be that they may now have to look at things differently.
There will be lots of variations around the country, depending on geographical location and type of housing.
People living in the south of England will not have the same energy issues as someone living in the north of Scotland.
Climate temperature in these two areas differ enormously.
Added to that, the insulation properties of many buildings may be almost non existent. Are there practical steps that people can take to minimise this situation?
The answer is yes, although some of the ideas may take a bit of getting used to, and seem a bit "wartime" and outlandish.
They may seem small and insignificant, but these changes all add up and they do work, so we may be grateful to try some of them out when the cold is biting.
If finances allow, addressing insulation is the way to go. This is a costly business, and certainly not everyone can afford to tackle it, but well worth doing.
It is hoped that more assisted insulating projects will soon be in the pipeline.
The government may help in some small way to reduce massive energy bills, but it will still be up to individuals to find ways to cope.
There is of course a marked divide. To burn or not to burn?
Fewer people have open fires in their homes although there has been a rise in installations of wood burning / multi fuel stoves.
This type of heating can provide warmth and possibly be adapted to heat or cook food. Finding appropriate fuel may still be expensive, but many will be able to source fuel from a variety of sources at a more reasonable rate.
Pieces of wood which may have been discarded before will now have taken on a new value!
This type of heating goes against the climate change agenda as it necessitates burning fossil fuels which damage the environment.
Householders will have to weigh up if it is more important to keep warm at a reasonable cost or keep to the date for low / zero carbon emissions.
Finding draughts and places where heat escapes are important.
Whilst many houses have double glazing, some do not.
Heat escapes through windows and window frames and from under doors not to mention through roofs.
Blocking up these areas can at least help conserve the heat in a room.
Door draught excluders may well have been a thing of the past, but could make a come back. An alternative can be any heavy/ woollen blanket/coat, which can exclude the heat from escaping under a door.
One of the original uses for curtains was to keep out draughts and conserve heat. The heavier and longer the better.
In modern homes, blinds are often the chosen window dressing. These are not so effective at keeping heat in and draughts out unless they are the wooden shutter variety, so it might be time do dig out or purchase / make some good old heavy curtains. A curtain used to cover a draughty door can be very efficient.
Keeping doors closed is a common sense thing to do but unsurprisingly ignored in many households. If the house is warm, open doors don`t make much of a difference, but if left open with a heat shortage can quickly cool down a room.
Where possible, it makes sense to concentrate on one room to spend most time in. Ideally make it the easiest room to heat.
If radiators are being used, they should be working well and generating the amount of heat that they are supposed to. So often radiators require to be "bled" as air gets into the system and not enough heat is generated from the energy used.
Depending on the type of heating, i.e. central heating or individual heaters, a plan should be made as to when the best time would be to have heating on.
This is especially important for elderly people who may be at home for long spells and may feel the cold, or may have health issues.
Clothing is important. The days of T shirts and shorts as casual house wear may be well and truly over.
It`s a fact that layers of clothing are more effective than one thick layer.
However the layers must be able to trap air to keep in warmth, so ideally wool or most probably micro fleece would be what to go for.
It may sound a bit ridiculous and dramatic, but it helps if extremities are kept warm, so keeping hands, feet and head warm can help keep the overall body temperature up. It isn`t a glamorous image, but woolly hats, gloves and socks may be your saving grace this winter, and may again become a popular Xmas present!
Moving around is important too. Getting outside for some exercise and keeping circulation going is key. Even inside, some simple exercises carried out every so often will keep blood circulating well.
With limited finances, the subject of food has to be addressed.
Ideally, the basics of protein, vitamins and some carbohydrate should be included and also adequate fluid intake.
It really depends on where everyone lives as to how easy it is to shop and buy food.
Unfortunately, many will be filling up with the empty calories of crisps, biscuits and snacks which have no nutritional value.
Canned food, which had taken a bit of a back seat, may find popularity again as tins can be stored without a fridge.
With a bit of planning, a freezer should be a helpful source of food storage.
Cooking in bulk, although using a bit of energy, can provide many meals if stored in freezer.
A freezer is also more efficient if it is actually full, as a freezer will use more energy keeping an empty space cold.
Freezers do have to be monitored as research has found them, especially the large American variety to be very sore on electricity.
There are useful "testers" which can be used to test each electrical appliance and find out how much energy they consume.
Soup is an obvious food answer, as I am a great soup fan. It can be made from just about anything and made in bulk, can provide a quick and easy meal at any time with minimal heating up.
Slow cooker meals can also be made in bulk. Stews with all sots of additions including potatoes which are filling and nutritious.
Old favourites like rice pudding and bread pudding are good fillers, especially if additions are made. Yes they may need an oven or hob, but an oven at a low heat. Experimenting with slow cooker recipes can invent all sorts of variations.
Omelettes, and scrambled eggs can be made quickly and with the addition of cheese and toasted bread can be a useful quick dish.
Having a flask of hot water or hot drink is useful to top up fluids especially for elderly people who don`t want to keep boiling a kettle.
Many of these suggestions sound like things that were done during the war....and a few of them were!
We have to realize that we are facing a situation which turns our way of life on its head.
We cant have endless energy when we want it, we cant buy what we did, we have to find ways to compensate for all the things we took for granted and that will mean a few hard lessons for many, but will also bring about lots of creativity.
We are an inventive race, and perhaps for too long we have been spoon fed with all the labour saving easy life additions that we have come to expect and enjoy.
We now have to find out ways of doing things ourselves, for ourselves which may come as a new experience to many.
The current crisis will pass, but will prices ever come down to what they were....I very much doubt it.
For as long as the majority of the country is having to struggle, through no fault of their own, the minority has continued to get richer and will set the agenda for the rest of us.
