THOUSANDS of families are able to get up to £115 in FREE cash from their local council to help cover the cost of their bills over the next few months.
The extra boost is to help families who may have had to make the choice between heating and eating over winter months in the past – but the three separate cash installments should mean they don’t have to make that decision.
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Two payments will be made including one payment of £50 per child by the end of January, and one payment of £50 by the end of March.
That’s for parents of preschool kids who are struggling with grocery bills and more.
On top of that, the iminent February half term break means another £15 per school-age kid, who would have otherwise been benefiting from free school meals over the week-long holiday.
They’re being offered by Royal Borough of Greenwich council as part of a wider Household Support fund offered by the government.
The £500million scheme has been divvied up between local councils in an effort to help those struggling to get by in the harshest months of the year financially.
Heating costs alone have been skyrocketing in recent months, and they are expected to jump by another £600 before long too.
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But parents looking to feed hungry mouths have been struggling too, as the overall cost of living has exploded as well.
To get the £100 cash boost you’ll need to be confirmed eligible by children’s centres and early-years childcare providers in the area.
You’ll be contacted by text message or email from the council if that’s the case, letting you know how you will receive the payment.
But if you fit the bill, only you don’t live in the Greenwich borough, there’s no need to fret.
A whole host of other councils are offering similar support.
They each were given the funding back in October to dish out help to families most in need of it.
Hillingdon Council offered similar help to Greenwich as it gave out £15 vouchers per child, per week over a period of one month.
That means if you have two kids, you could £120 in total to help with food costs – and you could also get £100 to help with your energy bills on top of this too.
This month and next, Durham council will be offering eligible families £60 worth of food vouchers too.
Plus the residents of Richmond can get up to a whopping £600 in cash or supermarket vouchers to cover the cost of all essentials including food, energy and clothing.
If you’re interested in looking into help for yourself, you should ask your local council about what help is available in your area, and the eligibility requirements – you can find out who yours is via the gov.uk website.
But while each set of help and criteria differs between the areas, with all there’s a limited pot of cash, and that could run out if there’s high demand.
Some places also have earlier deadlines for applying, and in others the scheme has already closed, so It’s worth checking what you can get sooner rather than later.
Martin Lewis warns energy bills will rise by £600 a year in April
