Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN) is proud to announce a new partnership with Carers UK to help support unpaid carers across the Distribution Networks Operator’s UK regions.

The collaboration is enhanced through a £40,000 investment by SSEN and aims to provide vital resources and support to those who care for family members, friends or neighbours who are disabled, ill or elderly.

There are an estimated 5.7 million unpaid carers in the UK. In SSEN’s licence areas alone there are 3,028 Carers UK members in the north of Scotland and 4,822 in central-south England; all playing a crucial role while often facing significant challenges themselves, including balancing care with work and family life, financial strain, and health issues.

SSEN and Carers UK are working together to help lighten the load for these carers through three key areas:

  • Identification and Support: Assisting SSEN customers with caring responsibilities to self-identify as carers and access the support they need.
  • Priority Services Register (PSR): Encourage unpaid carers and Carers UK members to sign up for SSEN’s PSR, which offers additional support during power outages and emergencies.
  • Winter Preparedness: Help unpaid carers to prepare for winter through home emergency and resilience plans, and ways to reduce energy costs.

To enable this, SSEN will work with Carers UK’s Carers Services Team to deliver specialist training to SSEN colleagues; increasing their awareness and understanding of unpaid caring, that will help them to identify customers contacting SSEN for unrelated matters, but who could benefit from additional assistance.

Carers UK will also host two online sessions on winter preparedness, with contributions from the SSEN Customer Vulnerability Team, that will provide practical advice and signpost those attending to SSEN’s Priority Services Register (PSR) and other resources.

SSEN’s Partnerships and Vulnerability Engagement Manager, Susan Duncan said:

“We are delighted to partner with Carers UK to support the incredible work of unpaid carers. 

“By working together, we can ensure that carers receive the acknowledgement and support they deserve, particularly during challenging times, storms and ahead of winter, building confidence in our services.”

Helen Walker, Chief Executive at Carers UK, said: 

“This partnership with SSEN is a welcome step towards improving the lives of unpaid carers. Despite the fact that three in five people will be carers at some point in their lives, it can take two years on average for someone to identify themselves as a carer and as a result they can miss out on vital support.

"We look forward to collaborating on initiatives that will provide essential resources and advice to carers in SSEN’s north of Scotland and central southern England distribution areas.”

For more information about the partnership and upcoming initiatives, please visit SSEN’s website - www.ssen.co.uk/power-cuts-emergencies/priority-services/ and Carers UK’s website - www.carersuk.org/

Priority Services Register

People are eligible to be on the Priority Services Register (PSR) if they are in the following groups:

  • Are aged over 60
  • Live with children under five
  • Have a disability
  • Have a chronic illness
  • Are deaf or hard of hearing
  • Are blind or partially-sighted
  • Use medical equipment or aids which are reliant on electricity

The level of support available to people who have signed up depends on their circumstances and the severity of the condition they are living with – the assistance SSEN can provide is then assessed on a case-by-case basis and can be escalated according to the situation. But everyone who is on the register is eligible for the following support during the rare occurrences when the power supply is lost temporarily:

  • A dedicated 24-hour priority services phone number
  • Priority updates during a power cut
  • The option of nominating someone for SSEN to contact on their behalf
  • Information in the format most suited, for example Braille or audio CD
  • A security password to keep everyone safe

If you, a family member or person you care for needs extra support in a power cut or with day-to-day communication relating to energy needs, please register for SSEN’s free Priority Services Register (PSR).

SSEN can then provide you with regular updates, safety advice, dedicated 24-hour helpline and communication in a format that meets your needs. For example, SSEN can engage with you in large print, Braille, alternative languages or British Sign Language.

Everyone has different needs and SSEN is keen to cater to your individual requirements. For more information, please visit ssen.co.uk/priorityservices or call freephone 0800 294 3259 to find out how you, a family member or friend could benefit from free support during a power cut.