“Sometimes your head is so full of troubles that you need help”
Source: the Assendorper, June 2023
“Ask for help!” Handyman Wim Schrooten and energy coach Jeroen Visser from Warm Thuis Zwolle can’t say it often enough. For the past year and a half, they have been committed to helping Zwolle residents who could use some help in making their homes more energy efficient. With great pleasure and satisfaction. And they could use a few more jobs.
“People sometimes have a head full of worries. Then you simply cannot muster the motivation to get started,” says Wim, who can be found in the Zwolle neighborhoods four days a week. As an employee of Voor Elkaar Zwolle, he carries out minor interventions, such as installing draft excluders and insulation foil, installing radiator fans and screwing on letterbox brushes. With pleasure. “I usually start with a chat, some banter. Just make contact. Sometimes there is a cup of coffee, sometimes not. Then I walk through the house with the resident to see what needs to be done. I always have enough material in my van, so I can get started right away.”
Before Wim starts the job, Jeroen, energy coach at Warm Thuis Zwolle, takes stock of what needs to be done. He does this using a special Opportunity Card. “I advise Warm Thuis what measures can be taken. This can be something small, which Wim can carry out, but it can also be a major intervention, such as floor or roof insulation or new windows. They bring in a contractor for those jobs.”
Energy poverty is real
Before Wim and Jeroen started working at Warm Thuis, energy poverty was a more or less abstract word for them. Now they know better. Wim: “I come across situations that I didn’t know existed in the Netherlands. A boy who has no contact with anyone and has no money to change that. A refugee family with small children in a run-down rental apartment. An old woman who no longer dares to turn on the stove.”
But Warm Thuis is not only for these people but for everyone who has received energy allowance, Wim and Jeroen emphasize. In principle, they are all eligible for support. Certainly also homeowners. “You have homeowners who have been rejected prematurely or have to survive on a small pension or state pension. Or households that are not very spacious. We help them just as well.”
The men find great satisfaction in their work. “It’s rewarding work,” says Jeroen, who regularly goes out in the evenings as a volunteer energy coach. “You come behind the front door, which is quite special.” Wim agrees. “Sometimes you can do something extra. If I notice that the housing association is in default, I call them on the spot. Whether they want to repair the extractor hood. Whether they know that there is a large crack next to a door or window. They often take action.
What is Warm Home Zwolle?
Warm Thuis Zwolle is a collaboration between various Zwolle organizations, including 50 shades of green Assendorp. It originated in October 2022, when energy prices were so high that many people got into trouble.
Assistance to Zwolle residents is made possible by a one-time contribution from the central government to the municipality. A total of 2,500 eligible households can be helped with major measures. To date, the organization has received more than 250 registrations, of which 114 have been successfully completed.