British Gas has reopened its hardship fund for non-customers today (July 1) with grants worth up to £1,500 for struggling households. The British Gas Energy Trust for Individual and Families closed in the spring but is now accepting applications once again. To be eligible for help, you need to live in England, Scotland or Wales and be in debt to your energy company (not specific to British Gas). You must also not have more than £1,000 in savings and have received help from a money advice agency. The easiest - and the free way - to do this is through a charity. The main ones who will help you with energy bills are National Energy Action , Home Energy Scotland and Citizens Advice . Are you worried about affording your energy bills this winter? Let us know: [email protected] Finally, to get help through British Gas, you must not have received a grant from its Energy Trust within the last two years. You can see full eligibility criteria and … [Read more...] about British Gas reopens hardship fund TODAY with free energy bill help worth up to £1,500
Saving household energy
Parents dipping into children’s savings to pay soaring bills, poll finds
Parents have resorted to dipping into their children ’s savings to afford to pay for the soaring cost of household bills , a poll has found. According to a survey for The Telegraph , Britons are lifting £8.5m a day from their children as the sprialling rate of inflation - which recently hit a 40-year high - continues to top up already sky-high domestic costs. The poll revealed that families had withdrawn almost £300 on average from their children’s savings so far this year. It found a third of the 2,000 people questioned had raided their children’s funds this year and suggested a total of £1.4bn has been withdrawn so far. Almost a quarter said they had extracted the funds to pay for increasingly expensive food shops, one in four said they had done so to help pay for exorbitant energy bills, while 6 per cent said they used their children’s savings to pay for travel. More than a quarter said they had either reduced the amount they were keeping aside for … [Read more...] about Parents dipping into children’s savings to pay soaring bills, poll finds
Soaring fuel bills add to ‘dire’ cost pressures facing NHS
Hospitals across Britain face rises in power bills running into millions of pounds as the spiralling cost of living crisis hits NHS trusts. As household fuel bills climb to unprecedented levels, the health service also faces soaring charges as a result of the escalating cost pressures. A survey of NHS trusts across England and Scotland shows they are facing rises of up to £29 million in the three financial years to date. Sharp rises in energy costs caused by factors including the end of the pandemic and the war in Ukraine are also hitting the NHS, figures obtained through Freedom of Information Act requests by Metro.co.uk show. In Nottingham, costs for gas, electricity and oil combined rose from £8.8 million in 2020 and 2021 to £15.8 the following year. The budget, and therefore forecast, for the current financial year is £37.9 million. At St George’s Trust in London , which runs one of the largest hospitals in the UK, the bill for gas and electricity is due … [Read more...] about Soaring fuel bills add to ‘dire’ cost pressures facing NHS