Cost of living support

Food and wellbeing

• Eating Well for Less NHS Food discount offers (MS PowerPoint,  1MB) 
• Get help with food - contact details for local food banks
• How to reduce the risk of death and ill health associated with living in a cold home
• Free School Meals - Find out if your child is eligible for free school meals
• Holiday Activities and Food Programme
• Household support fund
• NHS Confederation Cost of Living Hub

Energy saving and support schemes

Speak to your energy supplier first for help and support with your energy bills. Many companies have schemes to support their customers.

The DWP has created a short video answering key questions about winter fuel payments

• Energy Saving Trust - save energy, lower your bills and reduce your carbon footprint
• 102 energy saving tips - Uswitch
• Individual and Families Grants Available - British Gas Energy Trust
• Smart Energy GB Grants Programme 

Energy and fuel poverty charity Energy Projects Plus and Macclesfield-based Community Interest Company, Go-Lo are delivering Fuel Poverty help and support across Cheshire East. The free of charge LEAP and Warm and Well schemes offer support for residents facing the current energy cost challenges.

• To find out more email advice@epplus.org or call 0800 043 0151. To refer someone in for support go to Referring Clients to Energy Projects Plus | Energy Projects Plus (epplus.org.uk)
• Help with heating your home - There are a range of grants that we can access for heating repairs, renewable heating and insulation.
• Energy support payments - The Government have launched two schemes to help households with energy bills.
• How to reduce the risk of death and ill health associated with living in a cold home
• Help with heating your home 
• Energy Saving Tips - Money Saving Expert 
• Household Support Fund
• Government energy saving tips to save money

Keeping Warm

Warm PlaCEs are places where people can come together to stay warm, perhaps enjoy a cuppa or a bowl of soup.

• Find out about Warm PlaCEs across Cheshire East including how to become a Warm PlaCE.
• Winter Wellbeing in Cheshire East - Information Guide 
• Age UK Cheshire East Winter Warmth Vouchers For Over 50s - Funded by Cheshire Community Foundation - Are you working with someone in Cheshire East who is over 50 years of age, on a low income and struggling to keep warm? You can refer them to us for Winter Warmth Vouchers of up to £50 that can be spent in any Age UK Cheshire East Charity shops, which are in Macclesfield, Knutsford, Alderley Edge & Poynton. The vouchers can be spent on anything in our shops, including; clothing, blankets, curtains and household items. This year the vouchers are personalised so you just need to contact our enquiries service on: 01625 612958 or enquiries@ageukce.org and we will email the person that you are referring.

Online savings

Many people are able to take make savings by finding information online or by taking advantage of offers available online.

Cheshire East Libraries offer free wi-fi in their buildings, offer access to a range of online sources to their members, and they can offer training to those who need it.

Our libraries have teamed up with the Good Things foundation to offer Free Sim cards and mobile data from Cheshire East libraries

Broadband

Airband is an independent provider of rural broadband services bringing high speed, full fibre  broadband to homes, business and industry in rural and hard-to-reach areas.

Airband are delighted to offer free broadband to village halls on their current airband network. 

Terms and conditions apply and for more information, please contact mark.sealey@airband.co.uk.

Financial wellbeing 

• New Spring 2023 Government Cost of Living Payment Announcement
• Independent Food Aid Network
• Free and impartial help with money, backed by the government | MoneyHelper
• Debt advice | Free debt advice | National Debtline | National Debtline
• StepChange Debt Charity - Free Expert Debt Advice
• Salary-linked employee benefits that improve financial wellbeing provided by Salary Finance 
• G.U.I.D.E Coping with the cost of living squeeze (PDF,  3MB)
• NHS Financial wellbeing offer (MS PowerPoint,  2MB) 
• Household Support Fund
• Emergency Assistance
• Housing Benefit and Council Tax Support
• Pension Credit - Find out if you are eligible for Pension Credit
• Smart Energy GB Grants Programme
• Tax-Free Childcare
• Alternative Fuel Payment Announcement
• Spring Cost Of Living Payment Announcement 
• Referral partner information sheet (PDF, 611KB)
• £150 Disability Cost Of Living Payment - More than six million disabled people in the UK will receive their one-off £150 Disability Cost of Living Payment from 20 June. 
• British Gas Energy Trust Debt Support Grants - Individuals and families can apply for grants to clear domestic gas and electricity debts.Before applying to the Trust you must get money or debt advice first. 
• TV Licensing Simple Payment Plan
• Help to Save extended to April 2025 - The government savings scheme for low-income earners, which offers a 50% bonus payment worth up to £1,200 over 4 years – has been extended to April 2025, HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has confirmed. 

• Free School Meals - Find out if your child is eligible for free school meals
• School uniform

Childcare support

• Free Early Education and childcare
• Tax-Free Childcare 
• Government Announcement - Low income families will be able to access increased childcare support from 28 June 2023. 

Community support 

• Community Support
• Citizens Advice 
• Help in a crisis (cheshireeast.gov.uk)
• Cost Of Living Crisis Appeal Cheshire Community Foundation - By donating to CCF’s Cheshire & Warrington Cost of Living Crisis Appeal you will have the satisfaction of knowing that every penny you give has been used effectively and strategically, making a huge difference to local people who are struggling to make ends meet.  We’re working with charities and frontline organisations to deliver warmth and wellbeing projects to support older people, families, children, care-leavers and many more of our most vulnerable local neighbours. 

Disability Cost Of Living Payment

• Disability Cost Of Living Payment - Six million disabled people in the UK will receive a one-off £150 Disability Cost of Living Payment as part of the government’s Help for Households Support.
• This video explains more about the Disability Cost of Living Payment

Support for Businesses, Charities and Other Organisations  

• Health and Wellbeing Fund - Cheshire East Grant 
• Cost Of Living Community Response - Cheshire East Grant
• Energy Bill Relief Scheme - Help for businesses and other non-domestic customers
• Government plans to help cut energy bills for businesses - New support for households, businesses and public sector organisations facing rising energy bills in Great Britain and Northern Ireland through a new Government Energy Bill Relief Scheme.
• Cost of living Grants Fund - Independent Age - Are looking to provide 25 grants of £40,000 (£1million total) to charities and community organisations to get more money into the pockets of older people and help ensure they do not have to choose between buying food to eat and heating their home this winter. 
• Cost of living Grant to local non-profit Community Groups - Asda Foundation - Grants of between £500 and £2,000 for activities taking place before 28 February 2023. The funding is intended for local not-for-profit community groups who are facing an:
  Increase in rent/utility bills: support to keep community buildings open to the public or increase opening times to help people stay warm (known as ‘warm banks’).
  Increase in food costs: support for people most affected by providing meals, support community cafes, food parcels, delivered meals, soup kitchens.
  Applications will be accepted from September 2022 by Asda Community Champions until the budget cap is reached (estimated to be February 2023).
• Energy Trust Fuel Poverty Grants - British Gas 
• Action Fund - FCC Communities Foundation - The funding can be used for the provision, maintenance or improvement of public amenities including village halls, community centres, public play areas, sport and recreation grounds, nature reserves, public gardens, country parks and woodlands, and museums. All sites must be open and accessible for the general public without limit or restriction.
• The Household Hardship Fund
• Lloyds Bank Foundation - Small Specialist Charity Grant
• Community Cashback Fund - Taken from money seized under the Proceeds of Crime Act (POCA), each of Cheshire’s nine Local Policing Units (LPUs) has been allocated £10,000 from the fund. The aim is for local residents and businesses to work with their neighbourhood policing teams on projects to improve their community.
• Green Match Fund - Designed specifically for charities working on environmental issues. 
• UK Youth Fund - UK Youth, in partnership with Pears Foundation, is offering unrestricted multi-year grants for charitable and not-for-profit youth organisations across the UK with an annual turnover of less than £500,000 to help them cover rising prices and increased costs due to the cost-of-living crisis.
• Alternative Fuel Payment Announcement
• National Lottery Awards for All England - You can apply for funding to deliver a new or existing activity or to support your organisation to change and adapt to new and future challenges.
• The Community Organisations Cost of Living Fund - Funding for organisations that support people and communities under severe pressure because of the increased cost of living.