Eligible households are being awarded one-off £250 payments (Image: Getty)
Households in one part of the UK that aren’t on Universal Credit are being handed one-off cost of living payments worth £250.
The payments are to help struggling households in East Riding with essential daily living costs, including buying food, paying energy bills and other essentials. The free cash comes as part of the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) Household Support Fund, and while this specific scheme applies in East Riding, more local councils are giving out cost-of-living support in other parts of the UK too. The DWP has distributed a funding pot worth £742 million to local councils across England, each of which has received a share as part of this year’s scheme.
The cash is to help support households with essential living costs over the winter months, including energy bills and food, and is allocated from now until March 31, 2026. It is at the discretion of local councils to independently decide how to share it, so depending on where you live, there may be different criteria to qualify for the support.
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In East Yorkshire, the East Riding of Yorkshire Council is inviting struggling households to apply for one-off £250 cost of living payments before the scheme ends on March 31, 2026.
To be eligible for the payment, you must be an East Riding resident and live within the East Riding of Yorkshire Council’s council tax boundary, be responsible for council tax, rent, or both and be working but not receiving any means-tested benefits, including Universal Credit.
You must also have a gross income less than £28,000 per year if you’re single, or less than £33,000 per year for other households (including Lone Parents).
Additionally, you must be in financial difficulty and unable to meet your living and essential costs and have savings of less than £1,000 to qualify for the payment.
The East Riding of Yorkshire Council said: “If you do not have sufficient income to meet your essential daily living costs, you can make an application for a one-off Household Support Fund payment of £250. This is to support you with food, energy bills and other essentials you may need.
« To be eligible, you must meet all of the following criteria:
- be an East Riding resident and live within the East Riding of Yorkshire Council’s council tax boundary
- be responsible for council tax, rent, or both
- be working but not receiving any means-tested benefits. If you receive Universal Credit, you will not be eligible for a payment.
- have a gross income*:
- less than £28,000 per year for single households
- less than £33,000 per year for other households (including Lone Parents). »
The council added: “We will prioritise applications from people whose financial circumstances are impacted having additional costs such as energy bills, and those in receipt of a disability benefit with severe health conditions that are impacted by the cold such as:
- chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
- severe asthma, cardiovascular disease
- sickle cell anaemia. »
Households hat have already received a payment from the Household Support Fund or the council’s Emergency Assistance Scheme since April 1, 2025, won’t be eligible for another payment through this scheme.
As Household Support Fund cash is distributed independently by local councils in England, cost of living support that is available will vary by location, with different vouchers or grants up for grabs up and down the country depending on where you live.
The DWP says there may also be differences in who the money is given to and if or how you need to apply for the support, as some local councils opt to share the money out through local charities and community groups, while some limit household applications to one per year.
For example, households in Staffordshire can get a one off £300 utility payment made direct to their utility provider via the scheme, residents in Calderdale can get a maximum of two payments of £85, amounting to £170 worth of support in total, and residents of State Pension age in North Lincolnshire are being offered free air fryers, slow cookers and kettles.
In the East Midlands, households in Nottingham can apply for £100 vouchers to spend in supermarkets, and in South Yorkshire, Doncaster Council is giving eligible households up to £300 towards food costs, while other households can qualify for a £100 payment to go towards energy bills.
In the East of England, Cambridgeshire County Council is issuing £110 to eligible households in the form of direct payments or supermarket vouchers, and residents in Manchester receiving Council Tax support and a disability benefit can get payments of up to £130 to help with living costs.
