SUE Stevenson knows only too well the benefits of switching energy providers.
Ten years ago, she switched from British Gas to an Age Concern E.on package and saw her bills drop dramatically.
Now, 66-year-old Mrs Stevenson's combined gas and electricity bills come to only about £30 a month.
"It was a much better deal for me," she said. "I noticed the difference straight away."
Drawing on her own experience, Mrs Stevenson, of Seaton Crescent, Aspley, is urging people to take part in a new £67,000 council scheme to get people switching energy companies.
Nottingham City Council and Nottingham City Homes are launching the Nottingham Energy Tariff next month.
It will feature a website to calculate the best energy deals based on current energy spending per household.
And unlike some other comparison sites, the council says it will allow people with up to £500 energy-bill debts and people on pre-paid card readers to also switch providers.
The council will also be training staff to provide face-to-face advice in libraries, housing offices and contact centres.
Councillor Alan Clark, portfolio holder for energy and sustainability, said 21,000 people were currently in "fuel poverty" in the city – and 60 per cent of residents had never switched energy companies.
"Broadly, if you switch suppliers, you tend to save £200 a year and it's getting that ethos of switching," he said.
"It's trying to place the city council at the heart of helping people understand their energy bills.
"And if they decide it's not worth it for them to switch, well it's still got them thinking about their energy usage."
The campaign has received £52,000 from the Department of Energy and Climate Change, with the remaining £15,000 coming from the city council.
However, people who live elsewhere in Notts – outside of the city boundaries – can still use the website.
Visitors to the site will be given two switching options – an instant switch, which can be done online immediately, or a "collective switch".
The latter means that groups of residents would join a new provider, which would entail a further discount.
Mrs Stevenson said: "I think anything that can help people nowadays is a good thing, because people aren't eating, they can't afford to heat rooms and look after themselves."
The website address has not yet been confirmed but it will be published, along with other contact details for the project, in the Nottingham Post as soon as it is available.
It is expected to go live next month.