Underfloor heating is more effective than using radiator systems, one specialist has insisted.

Derrick Wilkinson, director of Gr33n, emphasised that heat pumps operate more effectively if an ambient temperature is present across the year.

"If you've got a heat pump it's a constant temperature, so works much better with underfloor heating, which can run at a constant temperature," Mr Wilkinson went on to say.

He added that air and ground source heat pumps can provide significant energy savings, especially because it runs solely on electricity, meaning that people can save money that would have otherwise been spent on oil.

Elsewhere, the Sheffield Star has reported that families in the city have seen their heating bills increase rapidly.

Some of the bills have jumped by up to 75 per cent, amounting to £400 more than what they were paying in 2011.

The increased costs have impacted those who utilise the district heating system