Winter Preparedness
I thought I would reach out and introduce myself. I am Chelsie Bickford the Customer Community Advisor (CCA) for the Oxfordshire area. Myself and my team offer support to our customers during power outages and are here to help when they need us the most.
We are the friendly faces that come to knock on the doors of our customers and especially keeping an eye on our PSR customers during power outages to check if they need any support and try to help out as best we can. We can lend power banks to charge phones, glow sticks to help light up homes and in certain cases, we can assist with trying to source generators for our extremely vulnerable customers who may be on oxygen machines, or terminally ill etc. Our generators aren't 100% guaranteed and very limited but we always try our best. Bearing in mind we have 3,092,275 customers to look after in the South.
As the nights are now rapidly drawing in, I thought I would tell you a bit more about how we can help our communities be prepared for exceptional weather events this winter.
Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN) are the distribution network operator in your area. Therefore, regardless of who you choose to supply your electricity, SSEN are responsible for the powerlines and underground cables. We are who you would need in the event of a power cut in your area.
We would like to ensure that communities are prepared how to be more resilient during the winter months and power outages if they experience one.
Scottish & Southern Electricity networks can help support your more vulnerable residents during prolonged power cuts with our Priority Services Register. Our customers can sign up for our PSR register if they have any of the following:
• Are deaf or hard of hearing
• Have a disability
• Live with children under five
• Are blind or partially sighted
• Have a chronic illness
• Use medical equipment/aids reliant on electricity
• Are over 60
• Temporarily need extra support
Of course, everyone has different needs so feel free to contact our Priority Service team on 0800 294 3259 to discuss your requirements.
If anyone in your community experiences a power cut they must report this to us on our emergency phone number 105.
We also have an amazing app called Powertrack which you can report a power cut on and receive live updates. You can access
Powertrack from a desktop or download the app on a smartphone. Here is the link if you wish to take a look: https://powertrack.ssen.co.uk/powertrack
Here is some useful information on how we can help:
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