Stats to go in the gaps:
£2.5 billion benefits for over 60s each year
Best bet for what to do is: Ring 0800 991234 and talk to an adviser.
Will do more comprehensive suggestions soon. Need break from screen. 
fuel poverty communique
There have been 150,000 excess deaths of elderly people over the last six winters as opposed to summers. A fairly large proportion of these died as a result of living in cold conditions as they either cannot afford to heat their homes (choosing not to put the heater on etc.) or are not aware of the fuel subsidies they are entitled to.
http://www.ageconcern.org.uk/AgeConcern/ftf_winter_deaths.asp
[for the third point)
Excellent idea alegra
i'd love to take credit for it, but actually its just part of our ongoing campaign against fuel poverty 
yes! anarchist groups CAN do useful things! in fact we are going to be distributing 5000 pamphlets that particularly brave and devoted person/s have researched and formatted in our community. we would love if we could have volunteers to help us wih this.
we would also love if other anarchist groups elsewhere used what we have done here and made it applicable to their town/city and provided benefits information to the elderly and those on low income in their communities.
if anyone is stuck for something to do on the 16th and thinks 'oooh, i really could do with a good night out in the cold', then please come over to norwich and support our icy vigil.
Sorry to break up all the positivity about the campaign....just a tiny point which people may will disagree on....I think replace the word 'workers' in second paragraph with 'most of us' or 'most people'.
In my experience the general public don't tend to understand the term worker used in that context (out of the work place).
Feel free to disagree!
OK some comments for the press release:
* Include info about the pamphlet we've produced. Plus an: "If you'd like to help us distribute them phone XXXXXXXXX number". (If Norwich Anarchists phone not working, then I can put my number down or something.
- Include Age Concern details
They're doing lots of good work encouraging and helping people claim benefits
* Facts you may find useful
- In Norwich there are several thousand over 60s entitled to Pension Credit that don't claim it.
On Choi's point: I probably prefer "people" or similar to workers. People don't self-identify like that... "Ordinary people" seems to be the name for worker these days. But I'm not that fussed either way, people know what it means. We may sound a bit like tired old trots using "worker", but we should encourage people to self identify as workers. I'm not sure Years of the swoppies and similar doing fuck all useful and bandying about worker this worker that probably has made people a bit allergic to anything labelled "worker". I don't know...
well, there isnt really a consensus about that, and its quite a big political debate, so maybe we could discuss it at th meeting tomorrow night, and meantime i'll leave it as 'working people'.
to put my own opinion in- just because 'people' have had their class identity destroyed doesnt make them less part of a class, and to start using blairite terminology mutilates our own politics. we havent put that much of our own politics into the pamphlet, but what is political about it shouldnt be diluted so that it means something different entirely. otherwise we might as well start talking about 'hard-working families', and really not meaning what we mean at all; or even worse confusing our own politics.
ps: sounding like a tired old trot never stopped me doing anything! lol...
OK- heres the new version. i dont have either of the potential distro contact numbers, but trust that if you send this to a journo, you'll stick them in. i dont know which resources need to go in at the end. the first 4 i used as stats sources, but we want people to go to the energywatch and help the aged sites, not some govt stats site. so if you think i dont need to put the stats sources in, please go ahead an take them out. i just dont know enough about quotes in press releases to make the call.
TEXT
Working people in Britain, and people who have worked their whole lives before retirement, are today barely able to afford basic living costs. Along with the astronomical rise in accommodation costs in the past years, there has been a constant increase in rates bills. Electricity and gas prices are extremely high. Partly this is due to a longterm and worldwide crisis in fuels, and the destructive underinvestment in sustainable forms of energy. Partly this is due to the drive for profits which dominates any privatised industry or sector. The commercialisation of gas and electricity produces massive wealth for some few tycoons, but also produces fuel poverty and suffering for millions.
The last years electricity and gas prices in Britain have shown no sign of stabilising or diminishing. While companies report record profits, the costs to workers reach record highs. In June Scottish Power announced gas bill rises of 17%, electricity bill rises of 10% - and an increase in pre-tax profit of 47% from 2005. Between January 2004 and January 2007, there has been an over-60% rise in gas prises from Powergen, and nearly 100% rise in Powergen's electricity prices.
There is £2.5 Billion each year of unclaimed benefit available to over-60s in the UK to try to alleviate the most obvious and damaging effects of fuel poverty. To see if you are eligible, and to claim this benefit, please ring 0800 991234 and ask to speak to an advisor. It is an unacceptable disgrace that vulnerable people will die from the cold this winter due to poverty in Britain. There are many ways to organise to end this in our communities. To begin, this winter please use and spread information about the benefits that over-60s can claim to mitigate the worst effects of fuel poverty.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Norwich's End Fuel Poverty Campaign has produced a pamphlet which explains clearly how to make claims for various benefits available to the over-60s. We will have several thousand copies of this pamphlet and would be very pleased if volunteers came forward to help us with mass distribution. If you would be able to help with distribution, please call ___________ . If you receive one of our pamphlets and cannot use it yourself, please pass it along to somebody who can.
Information and Resources
http://www.dti.gov.uk/energy/fuel-poverty/strategy/index.html
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/5107866.stm
http://uk.theoildrum.com/story/2006/8/19/81216/5460
http://www.energywatch.org.uk/
www.helptheaged.org.uk
please read this through and criticise where necessary, i already think it has to have some superlatives cut out. too emo, sigh.
points to include in communique about fuel poverty
(generally three points to get across works best)
1.Pensioners and people on low income in poverty are unable to afford privatised fuel rates
2.Rising leccy and gas bills (include stats from oildrum.com, news.bbc.co.uk)
3.How much fuel benefit unclaimed and how to claim it in Norwich
TEXT
1.Workers, and people who have worked their whole lives before retirement, are today barely able to afford basic living costs. Along with the astronomical rise in accommodation costs in the past years, there has been a constant increase in rates bills. Electricity and gas prices are at incredible highs. Partly this is due to a longterm and worldwide crisis in fuels, and the total underinvestment in sustainable forms of energy. Partly this is due to the drive for profits which dominates any privatised industry or sector. The commercialisation of gas and electricity produces massive wealth for some tycoons, but also produces fuel poverty and suffering for millions.
2.The last several years electricity and gas prices in Britain have shown no sign of slowing. While many companies report record profits, the costs to workers reach record highs. In June Scottish Power announced gas bill rises of 17%, electricity bill rises of 10% - and an increase in pre-tax profit of 47% from 2005. Between January 2004 and January 2007, there has been an over-60% rise in gas prises from Powergen, and nearly 100% rise in Powergen's
electricity prices.
3.There is £__________ of unclaimed benefit available to pensioners in the UK to try to alleviate the most obvious and damaging effects of fuel poverty. To see if you are eligible and to claim this benefit, please go to your local job centre and (.................). It is an unacceptable disgrace that vulnerable people will die from the cold this winter due to poverty in Britain. There are many ways to organise to end this in our communities. To begin, this winter please use and spread information about the benefits that pensioners (low income too???) can claim to mitigate the worst effects of fuel poverty.
(include campaign groups, our contact details, information resources at the end.)
http://www.dti.gov.uk/energy/fuel-poverty/strategy/index.html( govt strategy on fuel poverty)
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/5107866.stm ( scottish power price hikes)
http://uk.theoildrum.com/story/2006/8/19/81216/5460 ( price rises powergen)
http://www.energywatch.org.uk/ ( consumer association)