PROTECT your home against autumn downpours and winter draughts.

Fixing a broken tile or blocked gutter now is much cheaper than paying for a costly fix further down the line.

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And, as energy bills rose again this week, taking steps to keep the heat in your home could save you a fortune.

These ten essential winter checks could save you hundreds of pounds.

Check gutters for blockages

LEAVES and moss can block your gutters leading to damp problems.

According to Checkatrade, a professional gutter clean for a semi-detached house costs from £100 to £150, while a problem with penetrating damp could cost £1,000 to sort out, fix the plaster and re-decorate.

To clear gutters yourself, set up a ladder, attaching your bucket to an S hook, from £3 at B&Q, to leave your hands free.

Using gloves, scoop debris from the gutter into your bucket before rinsing through with a hosepipe.

Turn on your heating

Joanna O’Loan, knowledge manager at the Energy Saving Trust, suggests doing an MOT on your heating now.

She says: “Give it a trial run, so you can sort out any glitches before the first real cold snap — that’s when plumbers will be rushed off their feet.”

If your radiators have cold spots, you can bleed them yourself. Find a step-by-step guide at uswitch.com.

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Learn your heating controls

“ONE of the biggest mistakes people make is not understanding their heating controls,” says Joanna.

She explains that the boiler programmer, thermostat and radiator valves need to work together.

Set your heating on the programmer to come on only when you need it.

Set the thermostat temperature to between 18 and 21 degrees and adjust your radiators according to which rooms you use the most.

You can buy radiator valves for under £10 and fit them to radiators.

Joanna says: “Turn the radiators right down in rooms you don’t use but don’t turn them off completely as this could make any damp issue worse.

“If you have a wireless thermostat, put it in a room you use a lot, like a living room.”

Become a draught detective

DON’T let warm air disappear through cracks around doors and windows.

You could save around £40 a year on your heating bill by draught-proofing windows and doors, according to the Energy Saving Trust.

Professional draught-proofing could cost around £250 for the whole home.

That could be money well spent, but there are measures you can take yourself.

The cheapest solution is self-adhesive foam strips, but metal or plastic strips with brushes attached are likely to last longer.

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Insulate your loft

A QUARTER of heat is lost through the roof in an uninsulated home.

It can cost around £950 to add the right insulation to a semi, but that could save you around £200 a year on your energy bill.

Joanna says: “A lot of people have already insulated their loft but not to the required level.”

If you live in a home built between 1930 and 1980, look in to cavity wall insulation, costing £1,000 to £4,000.

Help for improvements may be available through the ECO scheme for low-income households, and the Great British Insulation Scheme for homes with an EPC rating D to G, and within Council Tax bands A-D in England and A-E in Scotland and Wales.

Sweep the chimney

YOU should have a chimney swept at least every year.

A professional clean is essential to reduce the risk of harmful fumes, soot and prevent chimney fires.

It will cost around £65, but will cut the danger of a house fire.

According to Checkatrade, the average cost of restoring a house after a fire is nearly £36,000.

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Check your roof tiles

AS well as letting rain in, loose roof tiles can fly off in stormy ­weather and cause serious damage.

Fix before the winter winds arrive.

The average roof tile replacement cost is £170 for up to five broken tiles.

Service your boiler

GETTING your boiler checked annually by a Gas Safe plumber (gassaferegister.co.uk) can help you avoid expensive boiler repairs.

The plumber can help your boiler run more efficiently, so you can save on energy bills.

They may bleed your radiators for no extra cost, as well as advising on balancing heating controls.

A boiler service comes in at around £100.

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Fix broken fences

STORMS may arrive with cheery names but the damage they leave is far from friendly.

Wobbly fences are often the first casualty of a strong autumn gust.

For repair tips and videos, go to the B&Q website at DIY.com.

Check for help

THOSE who are more vulnerable should add their details to the Priority Services Register at thepsr.co.uk.

Free to join, it helps utility companies, including energy suppliers and water companies, look after customers with extra needs.

Also check that you are getting all the help you are entitled to with bills.

Contact turn2us.org.uk or citizensadvice.org.uk.

A CONVENIENCE store chain with more than 1,000 branches nationwide will start stocking items from retailer Tesco.

One Stop, which is owned by parent company Tesco Group, will start lining its aisles with products from the popular supermarket.

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The new products will be introduced in phases from later this month and roll out into next year.

These will include an expanded range of “healthier and affordable” options.

“This is an incredibly exciting time for us,” One Stop managing director Stephanie Wood said.

“The Tesco Core Own Brand range will not only elevate customer experience with high-quality, trusted products, but it will also enable our franchisees to offer a broader and more competitive range to their local communities.”

Tesco’s Core Own Brand range will also be available on all four of One Stop’s delivery platform partners – Deliveroo, Just Eat, Uber Eats and Snappy Shopper.

PULLING THE PLUG

It comes after Tesco announced it would be closing its High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire superstore between October 2024 and autumn 2025.

The store will remain closed while landlord Buckinghamshire Council reconfigures the site. 

Tesco will open a temporary Express store in the Eden Shopping Centre while the branch is closed.

A Tesco spokesperson said: “Our superstore will reopen in Autumn 2025 with a refreshed look and feel which we’re excited to share with customers.”

Tesco is pursuing a strategy of expansion with plans to open 70 more stores across the UK over the next year.

The cost-of-living crisis has meant households have less money in their pockets and so are cutting back on their spending.

As a result, high street shops have seen lower footfall and less money landing in the tills since the pandemic.

That, coupled with ongoing restructuring plans and high rents, has forced many chains to close.

Figures from the Centre for Retail Research revealed almost 10,500 UK shops closed for the final time in 2023.

The 12-month period also saw over 119,000 jobs lost across the sector.

According to the centre’s most recent data, 1,846 stores closed and 23,982 retail jobs were lost during the first six months of 2024.

GL-EWW

Tesco also issued an urgent recall urging consumers not to buy certain mince pies because they could contain glue.

The product affected is the six pack of Tesco Finest 6 All Butter Pastry Mince Pies.

Packets with the following best before dates should not be eaten: October 4, October 26, November 2, and November 10.

The Food Standards Agency put the alert up on Thursday warning customers that the baked goods may contain pieces of dried glue from the packaging, making them “unsafe to eat”.

The agency advises customers who have bought the product not to eat it but to return it to any store for a full refund – no receipt is required.

If customers run into any further issues they have been urged to call the Tesco Customer Service line on 0800 50 5555.

The supermarket has reassured customers that no other products have been affected by this issue.

A spokesperson for Tesco said the recall was a “precautionary measure”.

They added:“The quality of our products is our number one priority and we immediately began an investigation with our supplier to understand what happened. We’re sorry for the inconvenience”.

TESCO has been accused of failing right-handed shoppers after new trolleys appear to be designed for lefties.

Customers say putting the slot for a portable barcode scanner on the left makes trolleys impractical and awkward to use for righties.

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One shopper fumed: “Please put the handheld thing back on the right.

“Or at least make a mixture of trolleys available.

“Years of it being on the right and 90 per cent are right-handed and this change is just awfully impractical.”

Another added: “It drives me nuts.”

A third moaned: “It’s so awkward when right-handed.”

One groaned: “Appreciate the new trolleys, but why the F are the holders for the scanners on the wrong side?”

But left-handed gift shop owner Stel Coombe, 60, from Saltburn, North Yorks, said: “I’m glad to see we lefties finally have a tiny corner of the world for ourselves thanks to the humble Tesco shopping trolley.

“However, because we have superior hand eye co-ordination and we’ve evolved to adapt, I’m sure we wouldn’t mind the scanners being to the right.”

North Londoner Jess Shaw, 48, owner of team-building firm Pact Creative Training, added: “I’ve always struggled to use scissors, peelers and other utensils designed for right-handers.

“When I was a kid, I even used to go to a shop that sold things for left-handed people.

“I don’t know why they’ve put the scanners on the left of trolleys but it’s nice that something works well for us for a change — even if it was a mistake.”

Prof Chris McManus, author of Right Hand, Left Hand, said: “Historically, many items have been biased so that they are easier for right-handers to use.

“Designers have though been very successful in recent years at making objects ambidextrous so anyone can use them, and that is surely the ideal.”

Tesco was contacted for comment.

It is understood the store is considering the feedback.

A SAVVY customer has shared how they managed to shave hundreds off their home insurance bill by using a nifty Martin Lewis hack.

The saver named Fiona told readers of Martin’s MoneySavingExpert about how she pocketed the hefty £423.

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“I received a renewal notice which shot up by a few hundred quid to £866 (for a standard four-bed),” she said.

“Your newsletter landed, I used your tips and which comparison websites to use, and 40 minutes later I found the exact same cover for £443!

“A huge saving of £423, woohoo!

“Thank you so much!”

Fiona was following the money-saving whizz’s advice to “combine comparison sites for 100s of quotes in minutes – don’t assume they’re all the same.”

It continues: “Never just auto-renew – there’s no guarantee your existing insurer will give you the cheapest or best cover.

“It’s always worth a check elsewhere. Comparison sites zip your info to dozens of insurers and brokers at once.

“Yet don’t just use one as a) they can cover different insurers, and b) they often have different prices for the same firm.”

It comes as home insurance premiums soared this earlier this year in a blow for households.

Premiums increased by 19% between the first three months of 2023 and the same time period this year, according to the Association of British Insurers (ABI).

The body, which represents industry, said the average combined buildings and contents premium was £375 at the start of the year.

What is home insurance?

Home insurance is designed to cover you in the event of fire, flood, or theft or loss of any item inside it.

It’s not a legal requirement, unlike car insurance, but it can be useful if something goes awry.

There are two types of home insurance policy – contents and buildings.

Buildings insurance covers the cost of repairing any damage to the structure of your property which might have been caused by a fire or flooding.

The “building” includes elements like your roof, walls and floors as well as permanent fixtures such as windows or fitted kitchens.

Contents insurance says what it does on the tin – it covers you in case the contents of your home are damaged, lost or stolen.

How else to save money on home insurance

There’s a few other ways you can save money on your home insurance…

Ceri McMillan, insurance expert at Go Compare previously told The Sun renewing your policy 27 days ahead of it expiring could save you £60.

And at the very least, don’t wait for your policy to auto-renew as you’ll likely pay more than if you shop around for a cheaper deal.

If you’ve got the money up front, it’s worth paying for your premium in one lump sum as well.

Ceri previously told The Sun you can save around 10% on your premium using the trick.

The ABI said the average home insurance premium was £341 in 2023, which means you could save around £34.

Combining contents and buildings policies rather than paying for them separately could save you £100 a year as well, according to Confused.com.

Installing a burglar alarm can help drive down your premium price as well, albeit after the initial up front cost.

Consumer group Which? says you can get an alarm for around £100, and install it yourself to save extra cash.

You can buy either buildings or contents policies separately, or combined so you are covered across all scenarios.

Not all home insurance policies cover the same things though, so it’s worth shopping around.

You can use price comparison websites like Compare the Market, GoCompare and Uswitch.

A MAJOR cinema chain will shut its doors for good tomorrow, devastating locals.

Cineworld‘s site in Glasgow Parkhead is set to permanently shutter on October 6.

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In a Facebook post Cineworld said: “After years of providing movie lovers with a place to feel more, we have made the difficult decision to close Cineworld Glasgow Parkhead.

“Thank you to all of you movie-loving customers for choosing us over the years. We hope you continue to enjoy watching movies at our local cinemas”

Locals were quick to chime in and share their heartbreak at the popular cinema’s closure.

“I am so saddened by this news, I love this cinema, I go at least once a week and find all the staff very nice and helpful,” said one.

Another said: “Gutted I’ve been going to this cinema since I was young.”

While a third described the news as “brutal”.

Cineworld confirmed this week it would close five locations across the UK.

Bosses at the troubled entertainment group have been pushing for the closures since July, but the move needed to be approved by the courts first.

The reduction in its portfolio forms part of a major restructuring plan to keep the company’s head above water.

Just this week, a judge gave the go-ahead for £16million to be injected into Cineworld’s four companies which form the business.

The cash came from the business’s parent company, with an extra £35million to also be made available.

Its four companies. Cine-UK Ltd, Cineworld Cinemas Ltd, Cineworld Cinema Properties Ltd and Cineworld Estates Ltd, will also negotiate leases for each of their 101 sites across the UK.

The five sites will shut for good on these exact dates:

• Glasgow Parkhead (closing October 6)
• Bedford (closing October 6)
• Swindon Regent Circus (closing October 6)
• Loughborough (closing October 13)
• Yate (closing October 13)

It comes as the chain is also said to be renegotiating rent agreements for around 50 of its sites.

Struggling businesses often do this to help lower their operating costs and help retain more of their brick-and-mortar estate.

However, landlords don’t need to accept what’s put forward in these discussions

This means that up to 50 additional Cineworld complexes could also be at risk of closure if the chain and its landlords cannot reach an agreement.

What else has happened at Cineworld?

This development follows a long period of trouble at Cineworld.

Just last year the business emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the US.

Filing for a Chapter 11 bankruptcy means a company intends to reorganise its debts and assets while remaining in business.

The company’s shares plunged almost 99% in the five years to 2023, as it was hit particularly hard by the pandemic and the enforced closure of its cinema sites.

Shortly after, Cineworld’s UK arm collapsed into administration on July 31.

The cinema chain was delisted from the London Stock Exchange a day later.

When a company enters administration in the UK, all control is passed to an appointed administrator, who must be a licensed insolvency practitioner.

A lot of major cinema chains have struggled following the pandemic, as customers got used to streaming films from home. 

Big blockbusters such as the Barbie Movie and Oppenheimer drove punters back to the movie theatre last year, but it has not been enough to keep some venues afloat. 

BRITISH Gas offers a variety of help to its customers, which is worth being aware of if you are struggling this winter.

The UK’s biggest energy supplier was founded back in 1812 and has over eight million customers.

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The company has been running a number of schemes to help its customers who are struggling financially.

It comes as millions will see their energy bill rise by £149 this winter after Ofgem‘s new price cap came into force earlier this month.

Households previously paid £1,568 a year but the figure is now set to rise by nearly £150 to £1,717.

The government has also axed its £300 Winter Fuel Payment for over 10million pensioners who are not on means-tested benefits.

Free cash to help with energy bills

British Gas has a fund open to pre-payment meter and credit customers who have found themselves in debt worth up to £1,700.

The Individual and Families Fund was first set up in 2021 to help households struggling with energy debt.

This scheme’s support is available to British Gas and non-British Gas customers.

However, if your provider is Ovo Energy, E.ON Next, EDF Energy, Scottish Power, Octopus Energy or Utilita it asks your go to them for assistance first.

There are certain criteria that you need to meet to be considered for the Individual and Families Fund, including:

• Pre-payment meter customers must have between £50 and £1,700 of energy debt
• Credit customers must have between £250 and £1,700 of energy debt
• You live in England, Scotland, or Wales
• You have not received a grant from the British Gas Energy Trust within the last 2 years
• You must be seeking a grant to clear an outstanding debt on a current or open gas, electricity or dual fuel energy account
• The account must be in your name and relate to your main residence
• You have received help from a money advice agency within the last six months

Customers with energy debts worth more than £1,700 will not be eligible for support through the fund.

You can check out your eligibility for the scheme here.

Match debt repayments

Earlier this year, British Gas also launched a £15million “You Pay: We Pay” initiative.

This scheme works by matching 100% of a customer’s energy debt repayments to help them clear their arrears faster.

For example, if a customer pays £100, British Gas will pay off £100, too, effectively wiping half the amount owed and getting them back on track sooner.

The scheme opened in June and June and eligible customers will be contacted directly – they won’t need to apply.

A detailed assessment will be made to determine if customers qualify for the scheme but broadly, they must:

• Be in or facing fuel poverty
• Must have obtained or will obtain debt advice 
• Have been a British Gas customer for at least six months
• Pre-agree a payment amount following the assessment

You must be a British Gas customer for at least six months to be considered.

Help with energy bills worth £150

British Gas is giving eligible customers £150 worth of extra cash through the government’s Warm Home Discount scheme.

The payment is issued to those on the lowest incomes and is designed to cover the additional heating costs over the colder months.

Households in England and Wales don’t have to apply to get the cash and receive it automatically.

However, some Scottish households do have to apply for the discount.

Eligible households get the cash credited to their electricity bill between October and March 2024.

To qualify for the Warm Home Discount, you need to claim either the guaranteed credit element of pension credit or a different means-tested benefit, including:

If you weren’t claiming any of the above benefits on August 11, 2024, you won’t be eligible for the payment.

What other support is available?

You do not need to be a customer at British Gas to get help with your energy bills this winter.

 EDF has a customer support fund which on average wipes £1,250 off customers’ bills. 

It is available to vulnerable customers experiencing hardship. 

To apply, visit EDF’s website and make sure you have details of your account number (find it on your energy bills or EDF emails) and the current debt balance on all EDF accounts you have.

Meanwhile, Octopus Energy offers a range of support, including cash from its Octopus Energy Assist Fund.

It could also include loaning a thermal imagery camera to find heat leaks in your home, which you can fix to reduce energy usage and your bill.

It also conducts home energy visits to discuss how households can reduce their usage and gives out free electric blankets.

You might also be able to get help with essential costs from your local council through a programme called the Household Support Fund (HSF).

The funding is designed to help people who are vulnerable or can’t afford to pay for necessities like energy bills, water bills, and food.

Some councils offer food vouchers to families during the school holidays, as well through the scheme.

Eligibility criteria vary by council, so you need to check your local authority’s website to see what’s available and how to apply.