STAFF at npower's head office in Worcester are expecting company bosses to quite literally give them the cold shoulder on Wednesday as part of a training programme to educate them about the dangers of the winter months.

Wintry Wednesday, as it will be called, will involve staff turning up for work in their woollies to cope with the fact that the office will purposely have no heating.

Staff will also be encouraged to visit and hold meetings in an on-site Cold Room - a purpose-built modular building housing a dining and living room - designed to mirror the cold, dark and damp conditions often found in a vulnerable customer's home.

Making employees experience the cold first hand is part of a new training programme called Spreading Warmth, which has been developed to identify and assist customers who need help.

The energy supplier hopes that educating its staff about the dangers and the effects of the cold, they will find it easier to recognise and understand customers who are at risk of, or suffering from, fuel poverty.

David Threlfall, chief executive of npower retail, said: "We want customers, especially those most in need of our help and support, to find it easy to deal with us.

"Spreading Warmth brings together all the social initiatives, services and energy products we offer customers and aims to connect those most in need, with what they need the most.

"Therefore, we're keen for our staff to experience exactly what a cold home feels like.

"The cold room will have a maximum temperature of just 16C. This may not sound cold, but it is 10 degrees colder than a normal comfortable room temperature and is what vulnerable customers often have to endure at home."

"It is also cold enough to reduce a person's resistance to respiratory diseases."

According to national figures published in 2003, two million homes in the UK were said to be suffering from fuel poverty, with 146,000 of them living in the West Midlands.

However, it is estimated the national figure now stands at more than three million homes, as it is predicted that for every 10 per cent increase in prices, an extra 500,000 homes fall into fuel poverty.

Launched today, the Spreading Warmth initiative has already received the backing of National Energy Action (NEA) and energy regulator OFGEM.