Cost of living: Mother shares tips after energy reduction trial

A mother of three has shared her energy-saving tips, after taking part in a scheme to reduce energy consumption at specific times.

Sarah Chambers, took part in all five trials run by Octopus Energy, including Monday's session between 17:00 and 19:00 GMT.

Mrs Chambers said the decision felt like a "social obligation", to ensure mandatory blackouts do not happen.

Over 250,000 people joined the first four sessions, the energy firm said.

Mrs Chambers, 51, has three children, one aged 11 and two aged 13.

Since moving house five years ago to Ogmore-by-Sea, Vale of Glamorgan, using off-peak energy has been a priority for her.

Therefore, taking part in an energy reduction period was something the Chambers family were keen to do.

"We turned off all the lights in the house, and I sat with my youngest and we watched Nativity the movie on a laptop," she told BBC Radio Wales.

"We've done a few of these sessions already and sitting in the dark was actually quite magical, especially as we come up to Christmas."

She said the current cost of living crisis is a "pivotal moment to take more caution about how we consume energy in the future".

Mrs Chambers said to save money, her family has made various decisions to reduce energy consumption before the energy saving trial began.

She said she 'load shifts' which involves only using large electrical items, such as her washing machine and oven, at off-peak times. These times include late at night, when running them is significantly cheaper.

Maximising the efficiency of these appliances is also a key part of Mrs Chambers' daily routine - by making sure her dishwasher and washing machine are completely full before using them.

After posting a TikTok last year, she said this was something she "got a bit of stick" for.

"My daughter had made 12 cupcakes and she wanted to turn the oven on. The answer was no, I said leave them there and we'll put them on when we put your lunch in," she said.

"I was trying to point out at that stage that it is important we don't just use the oven without fully loading it.

"She was okay with it in the end, but people online were quite mean."

Mrs Chambers' mother, Cheryl Evans, from Cardiff, also took part in the trial.

"My mother is in her 70s and she's done all these trials. I think she feels that she's happy to do it and she's doing it for her peers who may not be as able to do it as her," she said.

"For us we explained to the kids - if we volunteer to do this, then it might mean that somebody else doesn't have to - an old person who it would scare half-to-death to sit in the dark."

As she home educates her children, Mrs Chambers is hoping to help them sit an Environmental Management GCSE - a year before their other subjects in 2024.

"It's basically like Geography, with an added element of saving the planet - considering how we impact on it and what as a planet we are doing," she said.

Octopus Energy said it has paid out over £1 million to customers through their first four saving sessions"

It said customers lowered the energy demand on the grid during each of these peak periods by over 100MW and saved on average over £4.

Alex Schoch, from Octopus Energy, said prior to the session on Monday: "This is a massive milestone - across just four hours, we've been able to pay out £1 million to our customers.

"Normally, this money would have gone to businesses or dirty gas power plants to balance energy demand, instead it's helping people lower their energy bills this winter."