Households in Upper Teesdale are preparing for winter with the cost of heating oil “more than double” what it was compared to this time last year.
With no mains gas supply in Middleton-in-Teesdale, most homes in the area rely on heating oil to keep warm, meaning residents can face bills of more than £1,000 at a time to fill their tanks.
Recent figures suggest households across rural areas including Teesdale, Weardale, Northumberland and parts of North Yorkshire are currently paying around £600 for a 500-litre delivery of heating oil, equivalent to about £1.19 per litre.
In October 2025, domestic heating oil prices were around 52p per litre.
The rise is creating concern in communities where many residents have little choice but to rely on oil-fired heating systems.
Upper Teesdale Agricultural Support Services (UTASS), based in Middleton-in-Teesdale, run a heating oil buying group aimed at helping residents secure lower prices.
By combining orders from households across the area and placing monthly bulk purchases, the scheme can reduce costs by around 3p per litre.
The organisation says the group has become an important way of helping people manage household budgets during periods of high energy costs.
Emma Spry, the manager at UTASS, says the scheme helps with residents’ “cash flow”.
“To get a discount on oil you need to be buying more than 1000 litres at a time, with our scheme the minimum order is 500 litres so this can help to spread the cost a bit for people,” Spry said.
UTASS itself relies on heating oil to warm its offices.
