Help with food, energy and other essentials this winter

Pensioners, people with disabilities and carers could get £120 to help them with the cost of living this winter.

Households struggling to pay for food, energy, other bills and essentials can get support through the Household Support Fund. 

There’s also support for families where children get means-tested free school meals and other households who are struggling. 

The fund is paid for by the Government. Wokingham Borough has been given £525,000 to help residents until the end of March 2025.

Wokingham Borough Council and its Hardship Alliance partners are urging residents who have not been given support before to come forward to get it. 

Especially if they are concerned by changes in their income this winter caused by things like changes to the Winter Fuel Allowance.

Changes for the new round launching

The amount that some people receive will be slightly less than the previous round, but this is because the council is expecting to help more people in these colder months. 

The Hardship Alliance is using some Government funding to put in longer-term support for food and energy costs, which can be used after March 2025 when the funding is expected to stop.

Anyone who received a Household Support Grant in the last round, between April 2024 and the end of September 2024, you will automatically get one this winter.

It will be paid six months after they received their last Household Support Grant payment, so people are being asked not to  contact the council or the charities involved to request earlier payment.

How to apply

Any resident who is struggling can apply for a Household Support Grant.

The Household Support Grant provides support to anyone who is not part of a family where children receive means-tested free school meals.

• Households with pensioners, carers and disabled people can get a grant of £120
• All other households can get a grant of £60

Support is available to households who feel they are struggling with rising costs of living as well as people in receipt of benefits.

Anyone under age 50:

• Call Citizens Advice Wokingham on 0808 278 7958
• Apply on Citizens Advice Wokingham website

Anyone aged 50 or older:

• Call Age UK Berkshire on (0118) 959 4242
• Email Age UK Berkshire

Support for free school meal families

The parents of children who receive means-tested free school meals in term time can apply for a grant of £15 per week for each eligible child during the school holidays via First Days Children’s Charity.

They will get payments automatically just before October half-term, the Christmas two-week holiday and February half-term.

Residents who received vouchers to cover the cost of meals in the school holidays from First Days since April 2023, do not need to apply again. 

Please do not contact First Days to request a higher amount. Only contact with queries about your payment if you have not received it by the first day of October half-term, the Christmas holidays and February half-term.

Working together to make a difference

Amy Garstang, manager at Wokingham United Charities and chair of the Hardship Alliance, said: “We’ve helped thousands of residents in recent years through the Household Support Fund and are ready to do so again this winter.

“If you can’t buy food or pay your bills then we can help you. We continue to work together to support any resident who needs it. Changes to your income mean you may be in this situation needing support for the first time, don’t be afraid to come forward for help.”

Cllr Rachel Bishop-Firth, executive member for resident services, inclusion and fighting poverty, said: “Winter is well on the way, and we know many residents are being impacted by changes to their income and higher cost of living.

“If you need help with essentials this winter, please come forward. No one should be struggling without food or sitting in the cold on bleak days during these colder months. Applying to the Household Support Fund can make a difference for you and your family.”

All the latest cost of living help and advice for the borough can be found on the cost of living help hub. Key advice and links include:

• Check your Pension Credit eligibility if you’re pension age
• Use the Citizens Advice calculator to see how to maximise your income
• Use the Entitled To budget tool to plan your spending
• Get help with bills
• Get help with food

Supported by Government funding

The fund started in 2021, and this is the latest extension to the support.

£421 million of additional funding has been made available to help the most vulnerable across England during winter 2024/25. Wokingham Borough has been given £525,000.

The funding is an extension of the Household Support Fund and has been allocated by the Department for Work and Pensions to Councils in England, who use it to support those in need in their local area.