What help can I get with the cost of living?
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In short: Support includes the Household Support Fund through your council, the £150 Warm Home Discount, Cold Weather and Winter Fuel Payments, Council Tax Reduction, and charitable grants. Check your benefit entitlement first — many people miss out on what they're owed.
Start by checking you are claiming everything you are entitled to: Universal Credit, Pension Credit, Council Tax Reduction and Child Benefit are widely under-claimed. An independent benefits calculator takes a few minutes and often finds money people did not know they could get.
Targeted help with bills includes the Household Support Fund (discretionary help with food and energy, administered by your local council), the Warm Home Discount (£150 off your electricity bill for eligible households), Cold Weather Payments (£25 a week during very cold spells for those on qualifying benefits) and the Winter Fuel Payment for eligible pensioners.
Beyond government schemes, energy suppliers run hardship grants, water companies offer social tariffs and the WaterSure scheme, and charitable grants are available through organisations like Turn2us. If you are struggling with debt, free advice from Citizens Advice, StepChange or National Debtline can stop the situation getting worse.
Primary source: gov.uk/cost-of-living