The Warm Home Discount is a one-off £150 discount applied to your electricity bill or prepayment meter between early October 2023 and 31st March 2024. You will qualify automatically if you are either:

• In receipt of Guaranteed Pension Credit (otherwise known as the ‘Core Group’)
• On a low income and have high energy costs (‘Core Group 2’)

If you are eligible, (or you are required to provide more information) you will receive a letter between October and February 2024 informing you. You no longer need to make an application to your supplier.

Eligibility criteria for Core Group 2:

• The qualifying means-tested benefits are:
• Housing Benefit
• income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
• income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA)
• Income Support
• the ‘Savings Credit’ part of Pension Credit
• Universal Credit

You could also qualify if your household income falls below a certain threshold and you get either:

• Child Tax Credit
• Working Tax Credit

Your energy cost score

Your property must have a high energy cost score to be eligible for the scheme.
This is not based on the actual energy costs in your energy bill. It’s calculated based on your property’s type, age and floor area.
If you think you are eligible but do not do not receive the letter by January 2024 you can contact the helpline on 0800 030 9322 or write to them at:

110552 Warm Home Discount Scheme
PO Box 26965
Glasgow
G1 9BW.

(you must do this before 29 February 2024).

Available to you if you are of pensionable age, have a disability, have young children, hearing or visual impairment or have a short- or long-term health issue. Suppliers can provide extra support such as large print documents, provide meter readers if you are unable to access them and work with the network distributers to prioritise your property if there is a power cut or gas issue. If you are on the register some suppliers will also have a separate telephone line if you need to contact them.  Next time you contact your supplier tell them about your circumstances and they will add you to the Priority Service Register. 

All the big energy firms have charitable trusts and funds that can help if you're in debt and struggling to repay. They offer schemes and grants to help with your energy costs and energy debt 

• British Gas Energy Trust (open to customers of all suppliers)  
• EDF Energy Support Fund 

• EON Energy Trust Fund 
• EON Next Energy Fund 
• Ovo Energy Fund 
• Octo Assist Fund 
• Scottish Power Hardship fund  

Anyone can apply to them if they are in financial hardship and struggling to pay back arrears on their gas and electric. Once the application is complete it is reviewed by the trust board and if successful the applicant may be awarded part on full payment towards their arrears. All applications are based on an individual basis. 

If you are interested and require support to apply for a trust fund, please contact us to arrange a home visit on 0161 474 4062 or email [email protected] 

If there's someone aged 66 or older in the home, you could get up to £300 with the winter fuel payment 

Every household with someone born on or before 26 September 1955 is entitled to help towards their winter energy costs. Under the Government's winter fuel payment scheme, provided you lived in the UK for at least one day between 20 and 26 September 2021, then regardless of income, you can grab a one-of, tax-free winter fuel payment of between £100 and £300. 

It should have been paid automatically by the end of December. If not, check full eligibility on the government website or contact the Winter fuel payment centre on 0800 731 0160. 

If you're a Stockport resident, you can apply for Support Funds to: 

• help you when you're at your most vulnerable 
• provide you with a safety net in an emergency, when there's an immediate threat to your health or safety 

• support you to live independently in your own home 
• link you to other services that will help and support you 
• make sure that support is joined up 
• give more flexibility about how we meet the needs of Stockport residents 

Stockport Council will assess your application and work with you to support your needs. Visit their website for more information and the application form 

Additional support 

If you’re struggling financially and want some free, independent and confidential advice around helping you manage your money, you can contact any of the following: 

• Stockport Homes Money Advice Team on 0161 217 6016 or email [email protected] 
• StepChange Debt Charity on free phone 0800 138 1111 or visit www.stepchange.org 
• National Debtline on free phone 0808 808 4000 or visit www.nationaldebtline.org  

• Citizens Advice Consumer Service on 03454 04 05 06 or visit www.citizensadvice.org.uk/energy 

• From 1^st October to 31^st December 2023 the Energy Price Cap will be reduced by 7% to £1923 per year for a typical dual-fuel usage household.
• For electricity only customers on Economy 7 meters the level will decrease to £1298
• The cap is applied to customers on a default energy tariff including those who pay by direct debit, standard credit, prepayment meter, or who have an Economy 7 meter
• The cap is a limit on the rate suppliers are allowed to charge per unit of gas or electricity. It is not a cap on your total energy bills amount - you will still pay for whatever amount of energy your household uses

More information can be found at www.ofgem.gov.uk/information-consumers

Cost of Living Payments

• The next £300 cost-of-living instalment will be paid to eligible low-income households between 31st October and 19th November
• An extra £300 will be paid to eligible pensioner households during winter (dates TBC)
• The amounts will be paid directly to bank accounts without the need to make a claim.

More information can be found at www.gov.uk/guidance/cost-of-living-payment

Contacting your energy provider is often the quickest route to getting extra emergency credit – especially if you are already off supply or at risk of going off supply. Most providers have a policy to offer an amount of discretionary credit that is usually enough to last you until you are next in a position to top-up. If you are a smart prepayment meter then there may be a facility on your suppliers’ smartphone app to request extra credit remotely.

Each supplier operates a customer service helpline and often an online webchat facility that can be accessed via their website. Sometimes they can be contacted via social media platforms such as Twitter and Facebook. Below is a list of the main energy suppliers’ contact phone numbers and links to their online help and support:

Boost – 0330 102 7517 - https://www.boostpower.co.uk/customer-support-package

British Gas – 0333 202 9802  https://www.britishgas.co.uk/help-and-support/breakdowns/if-you-dont-have-gas-or-electricity-but-have-a-pay-as-you-go-meter

EDF – 0333 200 5100 - https://www.edfenergy.com/help-support/pay-as-you-go

E Energy – 0333 103 9575 - https://www.e.org/help

Eon Next – 0808 501 5200 - https://www.eonnext.com/help/spayg

Octopus Energy – 0808 164 1088 - https://octopus.energy/help-and-faqs/

OVO/SSE – 0330 303 5063 - https://help.ovoenergy.com/categories?c=pay_as_you_go

Scottish Power – 0345 270 0700 - https://www.scottishpower.co.uk/getintouch

Shell Energy – 0330 094 5800 - https://help.shellenergy.co.uk/hc/en-us/sections/360002309917-Understanding-Prepayment-meters

SSE (see OVO)

Utilita – 0345 207 2000 - https://utilita.co.uk/help

Utility Warehouse – 0333 777 0777 - https://help.uw.co.uk/category/energy