What is Cornwall Together?

Cornwall Together is a ground breaking collective purchasing scheme that enables people in Cornwall to group together to negotiate better prices for their energy bills.

It aims to save Cornish households and businesses hundreds of pounds and reap huge social rewards for the County. It is estimated it could save Cornish households up to 20% on their energy bills – £240million – taking a significant step towards tackling fuel poverty and health inequality.

Cornwall Together was conceived by the Eden Project, and pioneered by the NHS, Cornwall Council, Community Buying Unlimited and Community Energy Plus. They have been joined on the journey by the community energy platform, energyshare, who are now helping to deliver the project, supported by uSwitch.

To join Cornwall Together, people need to visit the www.cornwalltogther.com  website, energy bill in hand and register their details. Once enough people have registered, a ‘reverse auction’ is held with gas and electricity companies to see who can offer the best deal. People will then be offered two options to switch their energy supplier for a better deal. One option will include energy from a more sustainable energy source. You don’t have to switch, but Cornwall Together aims to save people hundreds of pounds on their energy bills and encourage people to consider more sustainable energy sources. Heating Oil will follow a different process but aims to achieve similar savings.

Cornwall Together has a strong social purpose. Ten per cent of the money generated will go into a fund to benefit Cornish communities. Cornwall Together will also actively target hard-to-reach sections of the community by partnering closely with Cornwall’s leading organisations and employers like the NHS, St Austell Brewery, Community Energy Plus and Unison. Cornwall Together will also work closely with Cornish media to ensure strong local newspaper, TV and radio support and generate offline awareness.

Cornwall Together is the first time a County in the UK has joined together in this way to negotiate for cheaper energy prices. If successful, the plan is to roll the scheme out across the County as UKTogether.

Cornwall Together’s ambition to deliver huge social benefits.

Sir Tim Smit, Chief Executive, Development and Co-founder of the Eden Project, said: “Cornwall Together is born from a spirit of community. Saving money is important but the programme is also about bringing the people and businesses of Cornwall together.  We hope to create more resilient communities and a deeper sense of togetherness as we negotiate as a powerful unit.”

To join Cornwall Together go to:

www.cornwalltogether.com   call 0800 XXTBCXX