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Energy bills have hit record levels and are predicted to rise even further this winter. And yet while people struggle to pay those bills, expensive, precious heat is leaking out of the walls, windows and roofs of their homes.

For this episode of The Big Green Money Show Dragon’s Den star Deborah Meaden and Radio 5 Live’s Felicity Hannah looked into how much it would cost and what we need to do as a nation to make the UK’s homes more energy efficient. Here’s five things they learned:

The UK has some of the most poorly insulated houses in Europe.

“It’s really important that we find a way to better insulate our homes”, Stew Horne, head of policy at The Energy Saving Trust told the show.

“It helps people save money on their bills, it helps the energy security of the country at a time when it’s really important and it cuts down on carbon emissions”.

Our homes are responsible for around a fifth of UK emissions, and this means if they’re not made more energy efficient, it will be much harder for the government to reach its target of net zero by 2050.

In June the Climate Change Committee, which advises the government, warned of “a lack of sensible policy” on home insulation.

It said it was “scandalous” that house-builders were still building new homes that will need retro-fitting.

We urgently need more skilled workers to do these jobs, according to Russell Smith, founder and director of the not for profit co-operative RetrofitWorks. “We believe you’re going to need around another 450,000 tradespeople in the UK… that is an enormous undertaking, particularly when you consider there are vacancies in every industry right now.”

But if government gets the policy right, the industry will cope says Hannah Vickers, chief of staff at the construction and consultancy company Mace. “For example on the heat pumps…where there are subsidies at the moment, there’s been an awful lot of effort and investment by businesses to upskill people. We’ve got 4,000 heat pump installers, we need 30,000 by 2030 and that looks entirely feasible to do.”

Retro-fitting a home, to make it warmer and more energy efficient, can be extremely expensive. Russell Smith of RetrofitWorks says costs will vary because every home is different.

It's estimated that to improve the energy efficiency of the UK’s 29 million homes by 2040 would cost an average of £18,000 each.

Stew Horne from the Energy Saving Trust says a government retrofit strategy needs to include not just help for people on the lowest incomes but also those who own their own homes. “There’s got to be low cost finance available for people who get bundled into the box called ‘able to pay’”.

Every expert who spoke to the Big Green Money Show called for a national approach to make retro-fitting our homes easier and cheaper.

In a statement, the government’s department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy said:

“Thanks to government support the number of homes with an energy efficiency rating of C or above is at 46% and rising, up from 14% in 2010. We’re investing £6.6bn this parliament to go even further, delivering savings of £300 on average on energy bills”.

There’s lots more in the show itself, including three top tips to retrofit your home and advice for renters and landlords. Plus Deborah shocks Felicity with her admission about how long she waits to turn the heating on in winter.

You can hear all of this on The Big Green Money Show’s energy crisis special episode, over on 大象传媒 Sounds. Don’t forget to subscribe if you enjoy the show!