Thermal or heavy blinds and curtains can help trap heat and reduce draughts. Close them at night to reduce heating bills.

Smart meters help you track your energy use in pounds and pence. They can help educate you and your family to reduce your energy bills.

Use the sun to reduce your heating bills. Leave internal doors open to rooms which trap the sun so the heat can spread to other areas.

About a quarter of all our clean, drinkable water at home is flushed down the toilet. Place a sealed bottle of water or brick in your cistern to reduce this amount.

Giving your plants’ roots a good soaking once or twice a week in dry weather is much better than lightly watering them every day because most of that water just evaporates away. However, new plants do need regular watering until they are established.

Keeping extract fans and vents clean and clear from obstruction reduces energy use and makes then work more efficiently.

Get into the habit of turning lights off when you leave a room. A family could save between £50 and £90 a year just by remembering to flick a switch, if they don’t already do this.

Boiling food on the hob? Only use the water you need to save energy.

Every degree you turn your home thermostat down could save you around £80 to £85 a year on your heating bill.

A dripping tap can waste at least 5,500 litres of water a year. If this is hot water you’re also wasting the energy used to heat it. Get leaking taps fixed promptly.