All the cost of living help coming in 2025 - from free cash payments to discounted bills
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The cost of living in 2025 is set to remain a struggle for millions of families - so will there be any help for households next year?. For the last few years, cost of living support has become the norm after inflation and energy bills skyrocketed. In 2022, official cost of living support was launched, with the government paying eight million households two payments over the year totalling £650. With inflation remaining high going into 2023, a second round of three payments was made.
These ran until February 2024 and totalled £900. Extra cost of living payments were also given to pensioners and those claiming disability benefits. There are no new official cost of living payments scheduled for next year, but there is other support you can get. Some of these schemes are run by household bill suppliers, others by local councils, and some are official government schemes run by arms such as the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP).
In September, Labour extended the Household Support Fund scheme for another six months until March 2025. Introduced by the Tory Government in October 2021, the scheme provides local councils with funding which can be used to offer support to those most struggling with the cost of living.
The amount of money given to each authority depends on the size and population of the area, with larger, more densely populated areas receiving more cash to spend. You can only receive support from your local council, and each area decides how to spend its funding.
This means it can be a postcode lottery on the support you can get. Over the last few years, the help provided by councils has ranged from free cash payments, council tax discounts, and supermarket and energy vouchers. The funding has also been given to food banks, heating hubs, and other local organisations.
