Hartlepool coffee shop sees its energy bill QUADRUPLE in three months as it calls on Government for urgent help for businesses

Bosses at LilyAnne’s Coffee Shop, in Victoria Road, were stunned to receive their latest monthly demand for £2,485 – a massive hike compared to around £580 just three months ago.

As a not-for-profit community interest company, all the business’s profits go back to supporting the community through a variety of projects, which it says saves the NHS millions of pounds a year.

But LilyAnne’s says the level of support it can provide to people will be hit by the soaring bills. The latest demand is the equivalent of three of its eight members of staff.

Project development manager Trevor Sherwood said: "Businesses are not subject to the energy cap.

“With the way we run our business it means it impacts the level of support we can offer to the community, while energy suppliers are making billions off the back of business and consumers.

"We know it is impacting everyone at the moment and the focus has rightly been on households, but businesses are paying astronomical amounts.

"The worry is that there is going to be a lot of independent businesses that are not going to be here next year.

"How long can business keep paying these phenomenal amounts?”

He also fears even bigger bills are to come when the coffee shop turns on its heating this winter.

Trevor said others are in the same boat and has been informed that one restaurant in town is charged £9,000 a month for energy.

He is appealing to the Government to act now before is too late.

"I think we need urgent support from the Government to step in and offer a Covid style recovery grant scheme,” said Trevor.

He also suggested help to install measures like solar panels to help reduce bills with any surplus energy being used to offset business rates.

Labour’s prospective MP for Hartlepool, Jonathan Brash, has said he will write to the new Prime Minister within 24 hours of them taking office next week to demand support for struggling small to medium sized businesses and charities.

Darab Rezai, chair of Hartlepool’s licensees association, has also spoken out over the current cost of living pressure on hospitality businesses.