In what looks set to be the UK’s ultimate urban swim festival, British Gas and British Swimming are teaming up this summer for the biggest celebration of swimming the country has ever seen.

The British Gas Big Dip will be heading to London and Manchester and aims to encourage more people to enjoy the benefits of spending time in the swimming pool.

The event will feature a 25m outdoor pool and a beach, giving families the perfect opportunity to indulge in some fun in the sun, whilst participating in a range of activities, ranging from giant slides and aqua fit to water confidence sessions and aqua zumba. Sessions to support adults and children who want to learn how to swim will also be available, and England’s volleyball team will be on hand to provide beginner and skills training and running kids and club competitions.

The British Gas Big Dip London takes place on Clapham Common from June 18th to July 17th.

The British Gas Big Dip Manchester will be held in Spinningfields from July 30th to August 29th.

Tickets for the British Gas Big Dip cost just £3 per adult, which includes free admittance for up to two children aged 12 and under, making it a cheap fun-filled event for all the family.

For more information about the event visit http://bigdip.co.uk

The chairman of Centrica, the parent company of British Gas, has said that it is all but inevitable that British Gas customers will see their energy bills go up this coming winter.

Richard Carr’s not un-surprising admission comes just days after Scottish Power announced their plans to hike their gas and electricity prices by 19% and 10% respectively.

Although British Gas, the UK’s largest energy supplier, refuses to comment on how much its own energy prices will go up by, Carr cites the Government’s green energy policies for future rises.

Says Carr: “Ofgem has said that it would see over the next decade a dual fee bill going up by £500 a year for a typical consumer and that’s related to decarbonisation rather than market forces.”

Carr’s comments echo those of ScottishPower’s UK retail director Raymond Jack, who has partly blamed “the cost of meeting government environmental and social programmes and the cost of distributing electricity on the national grid” for providers charging more for gas and electricity.

But consumer groups have hit back, saying it’s a lack of accountability in the market which allows energy providers to charge what they like:

“Suppliers say they have no choice when costs go up, but no-one else really knows if energy prices are fair,” says Audrey Gallacher, head of energy at Consumer Focus.

With the inevitable rise in gas and electric bills a foregone conclusion in the market, Which?, the product-testing and campaigning charity has also weighed into the debate, advising consumers not to take price increases lying down. From switching to a fixed energy tariff and changing energy providers, there are a variety of measures consumers can implement in order to get the best deal and save money.

The boss of British Gas has warned that energy bill rises are ‘inevitable’ – and the Government’s green policies are to blame.

Chairman of Centrica, Sir Roger Carr, advised that further gas and electricity increases could not be avoided as the UK Government continues to push through its ‘decarbonisation’ agenda. Centrica is the parent company of British Gas, which supplies energy to millions of homes throughout the UK.

Carr noted: “Ofgem [the UK's energy regulator and price watchdog] has said that it would see over the next decade a dual fee bill going up by £500 a year for a typical consumer and that’s related to decarbonisation rather than market forces”.

The Chairman’s comments are unlikely to sit well with those who voted for the ‘greenest ever’ Government, which has, so far at least, failed to reach its carbon emission targets. The coalition also has been criticised for opting to reduce funding for many energy saving schemes and initiatives, leaving voters unsure as to why they are being asked to pay more for less.

Energy Secretary Chris Huhne advised customers to ‘vote with their feet’ by urging people to switch suppliers. Mr Huhne said: “Consumers don’t have to take price increases lying down. If an energy company hits you with a price increase, you can hit them back where it hurts – by shopping around”.

Perhaps Mr Huhne is unaware that the toothless Ofgem has been unsuccessful in ensuring that the UK’s big six suppliers offer competitive prices to consumers; indeed, when one energy firm raises its prices, the remaining five are not far behind.

The Consumer Focus’ Adam Scorer reiterated the point by stating: “You can incite customers to switch all you want but there is nowhere for them to go. It is too difficult for operators outside the ‘big six’ to enter the market and only Chris Huhne or the regulator Ofgem can refer them to the Competition Commission, which so far he has failed to do”.

Householders in the UK can help to reduce their energy bills by employing various energy saving measures throughout the home. Replacing old central heating boilers, installing cavity wall insulation and fitting solar PV panels to the home can help to save or generate energy.

The way we think about energy in the UK is changing. Although currently only about 2% of people are on green tariffs, to try and encourage interest in renewable energy, British Gas has announced the introduction of their new green energyshare tariff.

Energyshare has been designed to help you save energy and money – and perhaps even go one step further by generating your own energy – and the tariff offers renewable electricity at the same price as a British Gas standard tariff.

The energyshare tariff also provides funding to community renewable projects, which are then voted for by energyshare members. The tariff has been designed to increase demand for renewable power, as well as boosting community projects, such as solar panels and local wind farms

The energyshare renewable energy project sees British Gas joining forces with River Cottage. Together they aim to raise £15m over the next five years to help support community renewable energy projects. British Gas has already contributed £500,000 into the energyshare fund. But that’s just the start because British Gas plans to distribute a further £3m to community renewable energy projects through the energyshare fund over the next 3 years.

Benefits of signing up to the energyshare tariff include:

• British renewable electricity at the same price as British Gas’ Standard tariff.
• Your choice of a free product to help you save more energy and money in your home.
• For every year a customer remains on the tariff, British Gas will donate £10 into the energyshare fund to support renewable energy community projects.
• The chance to vote on how money in the fund is spent.
• The energyshare tariff is accredited under the Green Energy Supply Certification Scheme so you can be confident that it will make a real, measurable environmental difference.

British Gas, one of the UK’s leading energy suppliers, has relaunched its boiler scrappage scheme.

Homeowners in England, Wales and Scotland will be able to make use of the scheme, which enables households to replace energy inefficient boilers with a new Worcester Bosch appliance. Rated ‘A’ for efficiency, the Worcester Bosch central heating boiler can save households substantial money on heating bills each year.

Unfortunately, the cost of installing a new boiler dissuades many homeowners from replacing old appliances, which may be costing tens if not hundreds of pounds per year in excess energy bills. The British Gas boiler scrappage scheme aims to solve this problem by offering customers a discount off any new Worcester boiler when they trade in their old boiler. By arranging a quote before 30th June 2011, you’ll be able to get a £400 discount off any model from their Worcester range, or £200 off other boiler models.

Referring to a similar scheme run previously by the UK and Scottish governments, a spokesperson for British Gas said: “The government scheme proved very popular, but a cap on the number of available vouchers meant that thousands of households across the country missed out”.

The spokesperson added that the British Gas scheme would “ensure that some of the 3.5m households estimated to still be heated by inefficient boilers have another opportunity to benefit”.

The extent to which an old boiler can affect heating bills is not all that clear, as various factors must be considered, but it is commonly accepted that up to 25 per cent of a household’s annual energy consumption is wasted.

Charlie Brown of British Gas explained: “An inefficient boiler is one of the biggest sources of wasted energy and money in the home. It’s really important to ensure that your boiler is in a good condition and working efficiently during the warmer months so that there are no nasty surprises when temperatures drop”.

The cost benefits of replacing energy inefficient boilers remains a matter of controversy. Whilst British Gas offers £400 towards the cost of a replacement boiler, customers tend to pay out far more – thousands of pounds in some cases – on new installations. If an energy inefficient boiler costs a household an additional £100 per year, a replacement under the boiler scrappage scheme might not save money for many years, by which time the new condensing boiler might just require its own replacement.

A new green energy tariff has been launched by British Gas. Centrica, the parent company of British Gas has announced the introduction of the energyshare tariff, which promises to “match” the electricity consumed by tariff members with supplies of renewable energy.

The tariff has been designed to increase demand for renewable power, as well as boosting community projects, such as solar panel installations and local wind farms. In a statement, Centrica said the energyshare tariff exceeds the requirements of Ofgem’s Green Energy Supply guidelines, which sets out what green tariffs should comprise, how they should be marketed and the evidence required to back-up claims.

British Gas’ own electricity mix consists of 88% natural gas and coal, so customers registered on the energyshare tariff will be matched with their renewable energy supply, which currently accounts for 7% of its total mix. However the tariff will suffer the same problem as all green tariffs, since energy companies cannot guarantee customers exclusive use of renewable energy because all energy is mixed together in the National Grid.

The new tariff, which will cost the same as the company’s normal domestic tariff, is also aiming to raise £15m over the next five years to help support community renewable energy projects. Through the EnergyShare scheme, British Gas will pay £10 into the fund for every year a customer remains on the tariff.

British Gas has already contributed £500,000 into the fund. To raise the remaining capital, some 290,000 customers will need to be signed up for energyshare per year.

GoodEnergy, which supplies customers with 100% green energy and supports community renewables projects, said in a statement that they welcomed the competition:

“It’s great to see British Gas jumping on the bandwagon, and we welcome any initiatives to encourage more community renewables; after all with only seven per cent renewables in its fuel mix, British Gas has a long way to go,” said chief executive Juliet Davenport.

As with death and taxes, ever-increasing energy bills would seem to be one of the few certainties of life. Following a statement by Centrica, the parent company of British Gas, fears are mounting that the next round of rising energy bills is just around the corner.

Centrica stated that the wholesale cost of gas and electricity has increased by 25 per cent, prompting the firm to consider whether it will raise tariffs for customers – a move that the company has made many times before at this time of the year.

The owner of British Gas added that its turnover for the current year is expected to fall as a result of a warmer April and increased uptake of energy-saving products, such as smart meters and energy efficient central heating boilers. Without explicitly stating that British Gas will increase domestic tariffs, Centrica appears to have laid the foundations for yet another fuel bill rise.

Although increasing tariffs in line with wholesale fuel costs is not in itself unusual, Ofgem recently noted that Britain’s leading energy providers were not passing on savings to customers when wholesale costs happened to fall. The Director of Consumer Policy at uSwitch.com, Ann Robinson, has pleaded with energy firms to delay a decision to increase tariffs.

Ms Robinson said: “Clearly they are preparing the ground for a second round of price increases and consumers should definitely see this as a warning shot across the bows. That said, I would urge suppliers to hold fire for as long as they can.

“The price of oil has now fallen and the pressure suppliers are feeling could yet ease – given this I would urge them to keep a steady finger on the trigger and to protect consumers for as long as possible. It would be a shame for households to feel the pain of another round of price hikes if it later turns out to have been unnecessary”.

Last year, British Gas increased energy prices by 7 per cent. Following an unseasonably cold winter, the firm reported record profits of £742 million. With millions of Britons facing fuel poverty, yet another price rise would seem grotesque in the circumstances.

With stories of carbon monoxide poisoning hitting the media hard in recent weeks British Gas has stepped up its work to raise awareness about the dangers of the ‘silent killer’.

Energy UK’s carbon monoxide awareness campaign Be Alarmed! is being backed by the energy supplier British Gas to make more people aware of the dangers of carbon monoxide.

Carbon monoxide is produced when fuels containing carbon (like gas, oil, coal and wood) burn without enough air. And as it’s odourless, tasteless and invisible, it’s difficult to detect.

In order to keep safe, homeowners, businesses etc are being reminded of how important it is to keep heating appliances regularly maintained by a professional. It is also advised to have an audible CO alarm in properties as this can detect even the smallest amount of carbon monoxide before the levels become dangerous.

In fact, it was just such an alarm that saved singer Charlotte Church and her young family from a carbon monoxide danger earlier this month. The singer had an alarm installed in her home on her grandfather’s advice after suffering headaches and almost as soon as the work was done, the reason for her headaches became clear – a faulty boiler.

Steve Giblin, director of health, safety and environment for British Gas, said: “Raising awareness of carbon monoxide and highlighting the importance of ensuring appliances are regularly maintained is one of the ways we look after our customers’ worlds.

“That’s why it’s important to remember that when it comes to maintenance, it’s better to be safe than sorry and install an audible carbon monoxide alarm.”

Research by Be Alarmed! shows almost two thirds (65 per cent) of people in the UK could be at risk from carbon monoxide because they do not have an audible carbon monoxide alarm.

For more information on the campaign, visit www.co-bealarmed.co.uk

The British Gas Home Energy Report has found that homes in the UK which have taken on measures such as loft and cavity wall insulation save over £300 each year.

The report was commissioned to help uncover the energy habits of British Gas customers. In light of the findings, the energy provider is advising households to install even basic energy efficiency measures.

British Gas says that £1 in every £4 spent heating our homes is wasted due to poor insulation.

According to the company, many customers are aware of how to make their homes more efficient, but know less about the savings they could make.

The Energy Report shows that British Gas customers who adopted simple energy efficiency measures, such as insulation and energy efficient boilers, saved an average of £322 each year. They also saw a 44 per cent fall in their gas use between 2006 and 2010 but some homes took no action at all.

The study was carried out by the Centre for Economic and Business Research, which analysed 40 million British Gas customer meter reads over a four year period.

British Gas has now launched a major new programme to insulate – for free – the homes of its dual fuel customers.

Dual fuel customers will get a free home insulation survey, and then a choice of either loft insulation or cavity wall insulation at no cost.

Gearoid Lane, managing director of British Gas New Markets, explained: “We want to help as many of our customers as possible reap the benefits of more energy efficient homes. That’s why we’re launching a national programme to give our dual fuel customers access to free cavity wall or loft insulation.

“Rising global energy prices needn’t mean higher bills for households. This report shows that many homes are already reducing their energy consumption and cutting bills, but we want all British Gas homes to enjoy the same benefit.”

Customers should register their interest at www.britishgas.co.uk/freeinsulation.

A partnership has been struck between British Gas and Sainsbury’s to help promote electricity and gas packages.

The full details of the deal are not yet known, but Sainsbury’s will be working with British Gas to offer its customers an array of products and services, including insulation, solar panels, boiler repairs and home energy assessments.

British Gas already provides a number of maintenance and repairs services for its customers as part of the British Gas HomeCare product. Something which may have attracted Sainsbury’s to work with them.

The retail giant will be ending its current deal with EDF Energy in February in exchange for the new agreement with British Gas, which will commence next month.

A statement published on the Sainsbury’s Energy website reads: “With effect from February 8, 2011 the partnership between Sainsbury’s Energy and EDF Energy will come to an end, after which all existing Sainsbury’s Energy customers will continue to be customers of EDF Energy.”

Specific details will be made public on February 9, as part of an official announcement by Sainsbury’s chief executive Justin King.