All the cost of living help available and how to get the payment

The rising cost of living is continuing to stretch budgets across the UK this winter, with warnings of more to come.

Energy bills are soaring, rents are increasing and inflation has hit record highs for several months in a row, all of which means living standards are forecast to tumble at their fastest pace since the 1950s as wages fail to keep up with rocketing prices.

Poorer households are expected to be hardest-hit by the downturn, while eldery people have reported having to choose between heating or food.

But new prime minister Liz Truss has moved quickly to freeze Ofgem’s cap at £2,500 for two years but has yet to promise any further direct payments to citizens.

And despite having stated her opposition to “handouts” during a leadership campaign interview with The Financial Times, Ms Truss and her new chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng may yet find themselves forced to offer further help, given that Cornwall Insights analysts have warned that the extent of the energy crisis is such that Ofgem’s cap might have pushed beyond the £6,000-mark by April 2023 had the government not acted.

The duo have kept in place the package of measures former chancellor Rishi Sunak unveiled available earlier this year to ease the financial burden on households, a guide to which follows.

Prior to his dramatic recent resignation in June, Mr Sunak twiced extended the lifespan of the Household Support Fund, originally only intended to run from October 2021 to March 2022, so that it will now be available until March 2023, granting local authorities a total of £1.5 billion to hand out over 18 months among residents they deem to be most in need of financial help.

Precisely how much individuals receive could vary between households depending on their circumstances as the calculation is left up to councils’ discretion, although £200 is the headline rate.

The process of applying begins through your local council’s website, which you can find here by entering your postcode.

Search “Household Support Fund” on your local authority’s site for more details about how funds are allocated and distributed in your area to see whether you are eligible for a grant and, if so, how much.

The now ex-chancellor said has said that every household will receive a £400 energy bill discount as a cushion for soaring prices.

This will replace a planned £200 universial loan that was announced in February. It is now being doubled and turned into a grant, with customers no longer having to pay the money back.

Households will get the £400 energy discount from October. It will be paid directly to households across the UK.

This was another measure announced by Mr Sunak to try and ease the cost of living crisis for the poorest in the UK.

The grant applies to more than eight million households on benefits on Universal Credit, Tax Credits, Pension Credit, and legacy benefits.

There is no need to apply for it. Instead, the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) will pay the money straight into the bank accounts of those eligible.

It will be paid in two instalments. The first will be in July and the second later in the autumn.

Mr Sunak also announced a new one-off grant for pensioners.

Individuals will be eligible if they are over the state pension age – 66 years old or above – between 19 and 25 September this year.

Again, pensioners do not need to apply to receive the payment. It will be paid directly to them in November or December alongside the Winter Fuel Payment.

They usually receive £200 to £300 to cover energy costs in winter, so this means they will get double the usual support.

This was another cost of living payment revealed by the former chancellor.

The grant will be paid to eligible individuals receiving disability benefits. These are:

As with all the new cost of living grants, there is no need to apply and the grant will be paid directly to those eligible.

This payment will be made in September.

The additional payments to low-income households, pensioners and those in receipt of disability benefits aim to give extra help to those considered the most vulnerable to the rising cost of living.