'I live in the dark': How rising bills are shaping daily life
Errol McGuiness says he has changed his daily routine to cope with higher household bills.
‘I live in the dark’: How rising bills are shaping daily life
Errol McGuiness says he has altered his everyday routine to manage higher household bills
As the evenings get colder and household budgets face fresh pressure, 79-year-old grandad Errol McGuiness has put together a routine to help keep costs down.
The pensioner gathers rainwater, spends much of his time in one room and layers up instead of switching the heating on.
"I keep lots of clothes on, but don't tell my daughter," he said.
His most notable money-saving habit happens after dark.
"I live in the dark.
"You don't need a light on to watch telly. You don't need a light on when you go to bed. You know the way to the toilet and the kitchen, so you don't need a light on."
Errol says he has a health condition and admits his daughter often reminds him to turn the heating on.
But he is by no means the only person trying to reduce household spending.
New figures released this week showed inflation climbed to 3.5% in September, its highest point for nearly a year, while rising fuel prices have increased living costs for many households.
Prime Minister Andy Burnham has pledged steps designed to relieve pressure on household finances, including scrapping standing charges from gas bills.
Four years into the cost-of-living crisis, almost two-thirds of low-income families say they struggle to pay for essentials such as food, heating and clothing, according to the Joseph Rowntree Foundation.
Almost half said they had missed meals or cut portion sizes to save money.
Melissa Baydilly says many people seeking help are struggling with the rising cost of essentials
One of them is 83-year-old widower Bryan, who says he now mostly lives in a single room to keep bills down.
"I put a cardigan on and whatever it is you put on to keep yourself warm, shut the door, put the fan heater on to warm the house up," he said.
"When you see the price keep going up, I think,' well, I'm sitting in one room'."
At Affordable Foods in Blurton, Stoke-on-Trent, centre manager Melissa Baydilly says stories like Errol's and Bryan's are becoming more and more common.
The organisation operates a food bank, social supermarket and outreach service supporting people with debt, benefits and employment problems.
"Every supermarket you go into, everything's gone up," she said.
"There isn't a place where you would go now and not say there's at least a 25% to 30% hike on prices."
She thinks pensioners are among those feeling the pressure most sharply.
"I don't believe, in this day and age, our seniors of the city should go to the supermarket, look at the fruit and veg and think, 'I can't have apples and oranges this week, I've got to pick'.
"Should they be doing that in their 60s and 70s, when they've worked all their life?"