Here to help

Households will get £400 of support with their energy bills through an expansion of the Energy Bills Support Scheme.

Energy suppliers will deliver this support to households with a domestic electricity meter over six months from October. Direct Debit and credit customers will have the money credited to their account, while customers with pre-payment meters will have the money applied to their meter or paid via a voucher.

The vouchers issued have an expiry date of 90 days so you need to redeem them before the date they run out or you won't get your money.

Do you need to apply for the £400 Government Energy bills support scheme?

If you don’t have a direct relationship with your energy supplier and you haven’t received the £400 energy discount automatically, you could now be eligible to apply for support. Over 900,000 more households, across Great Britain and Northern Ireland, will receive government support to help with their energy bills.

You may be eligible for this support if your main home is:

- a residential park home

- on a boat on a permanent residential mooring

- on a permanent Gypsy and Traveller site

- part of a heat network without an electricity meter

- in social or private rented accommodation which has a business energy connection or a communal electricity supply

- off the mains electricity or gas grid

- in a care home or assisted living facility and you pay for some or all of your care

- in a separate domestic home within a non-domestic property (such as a farmhouse or a flat above a shop)

You can check if you’re eligible to apply by visiting the government website.

You will need to supply an email address and phone number (if you have one) as well as your bank account details. Please note you will not be asked for your PIN or CVV number as part of this process and you should only give your details through the official website or if you call 0808 175 3287.

If you need help to apply

If you cannot apply online or need help with your application, contact the Government’s helpline team.

Email: alternativefunding@ebss.beis.gov.uk

Telephone: 0808 175 3287, Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm. Find out about call charges

Care Homes, please download and share our leaflet with your residents

Please download and share our leaflet with any residents or their relatives  who may be eligible for the £400 Energy Bill Support Scheme Payment.

EBSS Leaflet for care homes (PDF File, 539kb)

This support will apply directly for households in England, Scotland, and Wales.

This support is in addition to the £150 Council Tax rebate for households.

Read more about the Energy Bills Support Scheme - GOV.UK.

Apply for energy bill support if you do not get it automatically

More than 8 million households on means tested benefits will receive a payment of £650 this year, made in two instalments. This includes all households receiving the following benefits:

- Universal Credit

- Income-based Jobseekers Allowance

- Income-related Employment and Support Allowance

- Income Support

- Working Tax Credit

- Child Tax Credit

- Pension Credit

DWP will make the payment in two lump sums – the first from July, the second in the autumn. Payments from HMRC for those on tax credits only will follow shortly after each to avoid duplicate payments.

For recipients of DWP benefits: To get the first Cost of Living Payment, you must have been entitled to a payment (or later found to be entitled to a payment) of either:

1. Universal Credit for an assessment period that ended in the period of 26 April 2022 to 25 May 2022
2. income-based JSA, income-related ESA, Income Support or State Pension Credit for any day in the period of 26 April 2022 to 25 May 2022

For recipients of tax credits: To get the first payment, you must have received a payment, or an annual award of at least £26, of tax credits on any day in the period 26 April 2022 to 25 May 2022.

HMRC and DWP will provide further guidance, and the government will set out the qualifying dates for the second instalment, in due course.

This payment will be tax-free, will not count towards the benefit cap, and will not have any impact on existing benefit awards.

The government will make these payments directly to households across the UK.

More information can be found: Cost of living payment - GOV.UK

Frequently Asked Questions on Cost of Living Payment (PDF File, 479kb)

Pensioners are disproportionately impacted by higher energy costs, and many low-income pensioner households do not claim the means tested benefits they are entitled to.

So pensioner households will receive an extra £300 this year to help them cover the rising cost of energy this winter.

This additional one-off payment will go to the over 8 million pensioner households across the UK who receive the Winter Fuel Payment and will be paid on top of any other one-off support a pensioner household is entitled to, for example where they are on pension credit or receive disability benefits. Eligible households currently receive between £200 - £300, so the payment will represent at least double the support for this winter.

The Winter Fuel Payment (including the extra Pensioner Cost of Living Payment) is not taxable and does not affect eligibility for other benefits.

All pensioner households will get the one-off Pensioner Cost of Living Payment as a top-up to their annual Winter Fuel Payment in November/December. For most pensioner households, this will be paid by direct debit.

People will be eligible for this payment if they are over State Pension age (aged 66 or above) between 19 – 25 September 2022. There are certain circumstances where an individual above State Pension age does not qualify for the Winter Fuel Payment - see Winter Fuel Payment - GOV.UK

The government will make these payments directly to households across the UK.

Read more on the Cost of Living Payment - GOV.UK.

Around six million people across the UK who receive the following disability benefits will automatically receive a one-off payment of £150 from 20 September:

- Disability Living Allowance

- Personal Independence Payment

- Attendance Allowance

- Armed Forces Independence Payment

- Constant Attendance Allowance

- War Pension Mobility Supplement

People with disabilities may face a wide range of additional costs, such as specialist equipment, specialist food, and increased transport costs, and this payment will help with these costs as they are likely to have increased. Claimants must have received a payment (or later receive a payment) of, one of these qualifying benefits for as of 25th May 2022 to get the payment.

For the many disability benefit recipients who receive means tested benefits, this £150 will come on top of the £650 they will receive separately.

These payments will be exempt from tax, will not count towards the benefit cap, and will not have any impact on existing benefit awards.

The government will make these payments directly to eligible people across the UK and most will be received by the beginning of October 2022. 

Read more on the Cost of Living Payment - GOV.UK.

In 2022 the Royal British Legion noted a 20% rise in requests for support and found that some of our Armed Forces community were of greater vulnerability to rising costs. And so, the Cost of Living Grants programme was designed provide assistance to people who need help in a quick and easy way.

Applicable recipients include serving and ex-serving personnel, the wider Armed Forces community of families, dependents and carers.

We encourage anyone who is struggling with increasing costs to apply, as flexibility is in place to consider support for those who do not meet the defined means testing. Any member of the Armed Forces community wanting to access the grants can find out more and apply directly at rbl.org.uk/costofliving or call 0808 802 8080.

To support people who need additional help, the Government is providing an extra £500 million of local support, via the Household Support Fund, which will be extended from this October to March 2023.

The Household Support Fund helps those in most need with payments towards the rising cost of food, energy, and water bills.

For residents in Newark and Sherwood, the Household Support Fund is being administered by Nottinghamshire County Council and further information can be found on its website: Household Support Fund - Nottinghamshire County Council.

Residents who are most in need are being provided with vouchers towards food and energy bills, and for holiday food vouchers for those on free school meals.