A scheme that offers households cost of living support, including £500 of supermarket vouchers and energy bill support, has been extended today.

An additional £842 million is available from today to help the most vulnerable households across England.

Councils in England will decide how best to spend their allocation of the fund – now worth £2 billion across its lifetime – by drawing from local knowledge and making direct contact with people in the community.

They will be able to support the most vulnerable households in their local area – helping them with the cost of essentials like groceries, toiletries, and warm clothes, as well as providing further support with energy bills.

The Bolton News:

People can find out how much their area was awarded at gov.uk and are advised to check their council's website or call their office to find out what support is available locally to them through the Household Support Fund.

Mims Davies MP, DWP Minister for Social Mobility, Youth and Progression, said: “This significant extension to the Government’s Household Support Fund is hugely welcome – as it has already helped millions of vulnerable families across England through these financially-testing times and will continue to do so over the next year.

“Last week, I visited one council that is using their allocation to well on a range of issues from food insecurity to tackling bed poverty.

“There, the Household Support Fund has resulted in hundreds of cots and beds being provided to vulnerable households to increase comfort and wellbeing.

“This is just one example of the important locally led schemes providing tailored support help to those that need it most in challenging times.

“This fund is of course just one part of our extensive Cost of Living support package for families that is complementing our efforts to halve inflation – one of the Prime Minister’s top priorities - to reduce prices for us all.”

Devolved administrations have also been allocated funding in parallel as a result of the Barnett Formula to spend at their discretion, bringing the total amount of new funding to almost £1 billion.