Discover whether you could be saving on what you pay for your gudwara gas and electricity. See the best deals from UK suppliers with Business Energy Comparison.
Jewish people place great significance on synagogues as places of worship. However, during this cost-of-living crisis, synagogues have also been helping the community by providing food parcels and household items to families in need.
Unfortunately, synagogues and many other places of worship in the UK, are being affected by the energy crisis at the moment, and it is becoming more and more difficult for many synagogues to keep up with their energy costs.
Thankfully, in this article, we’ll provide you with some tips on how to save energy at your synagogue, as well as finding an energy supplier with better deals by using Business Energy Comparison.
The Chesed Department of the United Synagogue has been helping struggling families with cash grants for their energy costs by putting together an energy fund.
This shows that the United Synagogue and its affiliate synagogues are well-supported by their members and do not need all that much financial support for energy, as these organisations are reaching out to help others in real difficulty.
However, you might be wondering how synagogues that aren’t affiliated with the United Synagogue are being supported during this energy crisis.
Thankfully, the UK government has been supporting both businesses and charitable organisations large and small with their gas and electricity bills since October 2022.
This started with the Energy Bill Relief Scheme, which provided businesses with a maximum discount of £91 per MWh for gas and £345 per MWh for electricity. This scheme allowed businesses to stay afloat despite rising energy costs, but it came to an end on 31 March 2023.
Energy costs did not decrease by all that much during this period, which is why the UK government then introduced the Energy Bills Discount Scheme. The scheme currently offers businesses a maximum discount of £107 per MWh for gas, and £302 per MWh for electricity.
But, there are even more ways to reduce a synagogue’s energy costs, and we’ll go into more detail on these methods in the sections below.
Synagogues around the UK have been embracing solar power for years at this point. This is because it’s a renewable energy source that helps protect the environment, and also helps to reduce energy costs.
Synagogues don’t tend to use exorbitant amounts of energy, which is why solar power is an excellent option for these organisations. These places of worship mainly only use energy for heating, cooling, and devices like projectors and speakers. While some synagogues do cook meals on the premises for those in need, the majority of them prefer to hand out food parcels.
This is why it is easy for synagogues to install solar panels and go off-grid almost entirely. Once installed, solar panels will cover the costs of both purchase and installation within a few years, as they will reduce energy costs dramatically.
In some cases, if your solar power system produces more power than what is needed at your synagogue, you can sell it back to the grid. This can be a great extra source of income for a synagogue that can be used to help more families that are in a bad financial situation and upgrade the facilities.
However, if your synagogue does not have the funds to install solar panels and a solar PV system, you should consider a solar thermal system instead. Solar thermal systems are only designed to provide central heating and hot water and are much cheaper as a result.
Places of worship like synagogues need to be well-lit, as services are normally held in large rooms with high ceilings. If your synagogue is in an older building and makes use of incandescent light bulbs, then you can save some energy by switching to a more energy-efficient option.
Both compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulbs, and LED light bulbs are far more efficient than incandescent bulbs, and by replacing every bulb in your church with one of these options, you can save an impressive amount of money on energy.
Motion sensor lights are also great for areas that aren’t frequented, as they will only switch on when someone enters the room.
Rabbis aren’t the only ones who spend a significant amount of time at synagogues. There are many volunteers that frequent these places of worship, and training them to be more mindful about how they use energy can help a synagogue reduce its energy usage.
Here are some simple ways you can teach synagogue staff to reduce their energy usage:
While these tips may seem obvious, many people are not aware of how they use energy unless they are reminded.
If you aren’t sure what you can do to reduce energy usage at your synagogue, you should consider calling in an energy auditor. They will come and assess the building, and determine if you have any outdated appliances that are using too much energy.
Additionally, they can also help determine if there are any electrical faults that could be causing you to use more energy than normal.
The vast majority of your energy usage will likely go towards your central heating during the winter and your air conditioners during the summer. If your synagogue is in an older building, then it may already be fitted with a conventional boiler.
Synagogues don’t have much need for hot water, so combi boilers will work just fine for these places of worship. Combi boilers are much more efficient as they only turn on when someone turns the thermostat up or turns a hot tap on. A more energy-efficient boiler will, therefore, save you plenty of money on energy in the winter.
Older air conditioners are also much less efficient and use more energy to keep things cool. Newer air conditioners can be up to 20% more efficient than older air conditioners and will help reduce your energy usage in the hotter months.
If your synagogue doesn’t already have a smart meter installed, you can contact the relevant authorities and get one put in for free. Smart meters provide energy suppliers with much more accurate data about your energy usage so that they can bill you correctly.
You can also use this data to determine when your synagogue is using the most energy, which can help you figure out where you need to cut back.
Depending on the type of contract your synagogue is on, and who your supplier is, it is possible to save up to 45% on your monthly energy rates by switching to a new energy supplier.
Your synagogue won’t just be able to save on energy costs by switching to a different energy supplier. Water suppliers in the UK also offer different rates, and by finding and switching to a new supplier with Business Energy Comparison,
The best way to determine whether your synagogue is being overcharged for utilities is by comparing your energy costs with other similar-sized places of worship in your area.
This will help you determine whether you are paying too much per unit of energy and whether you are using a lot more energy than other similar organisations in your area.
Energy suppliers in the UK all offer different rates for energy, and, more often than not, it is possible to find a better deal on energy. Finding a new energy supplier can be a difficult task, though, as you will need to go through each energy company and receive quotes for your synagogue.
Business Energy Comparison makes things much easier, though, as our team of energy brokers and consultants can provide you with a list of quotes from top energy suppliers in minutes for free.
If you work at a synagogue and are worried about the rising costs of energy, then you don’t need to fret too much. At Business Energy Comparison we can help you find a supplier that will give you a better deal on your energy bills, and if you follow our tips above, you should be able to reduce your usage.
All businesses within the UK are eligible to receive support via the Energy Bill Discount Scheme regardless of the sector they operate in, or how much energy they use.
Yes, it is a good time to fix your energy prices, as you can still expect to see some small increases in the cost of energy by 2024.
Business Energy Comparison
Corby Innovation Hub,
Bangrave Road
Corby, NN17 1NN
0800 007 4001
Trading name of Utility Bidder
