More than 700 households across the borough have signed up to an energy-switching scheme aimed at reducing their electricity and gas prices.

The idea of the People Power campaign, which was backed by Hyndburn council, is that by coming together as one collective there are significant savings to be made through energy providers buying customers in bulk. Campaign bosses say an estimated 71 per cent of those who registered could slash an average of £111 off their annual bills.

Figures for Lancashire are still being analysed and distributed, but People Power chiefs say signs are ‘positive’. Deputy council leader Clare Pritchard say they were ‘thrilled’ with the numbers of people who signed up to the scheme.

She said: “We look forward to see what prices residents can get after the auction and saving the people of Hyndburn a significant amount of money with energy costs rising year on year.”

Lancashire was the second highest registered county nationwide with 12,000 people, putting it in a strong purchasing position.

Hyndburn received more registrations than Blackburn with Darwen at 554, Ribble Valley at 660 and Rossendale with 276, however less than Burnley with 1,057.

Residents who registered before the April 8 deadline have now had their bills reviewed and will be contacted by the winning provider with an offer which they can either accept or refuse.

The UK-wide auction attracted a total of 160,000 registrations.

The campaign comes after the Observer revealed earlier this year how more than one in five homes – approximately 7,417 households – are in fuel poverty compared to the national average of 16.4 per cent.