Financial support on offer to North Yorkshire households after rises in energy bills

The Government’s Energy Bills Support Scheme Alternative Funding (EBSS AF) is offering a £400 payment to households which did not receive the original help to pay for the cost of energy, such as those without their own electricity meter or without a direct relationship to an electricity supplier.

This includes people who live in care homes or park homes and tenants who pay for energy through a landlord on a commercial supply.

It also covers homes on a private electricity network, off-grid households and farmhouses used for domestic purposes.

Households that do not use mains gas and use an alternative fuel such as oil, biomass or bottled gas may also be eligible for an additional £200 Alternative Fuel Payment.

Councillor David Chance, Executive Member for Corporate Services, said: “We are urging residents to check if they’re eligible for this latest much-needed offer of financial help amid the cost-of-living crisis.

“The alternative funding package aims to help households which were not eligible for the original support scheme, and it only takes a few minutes to complete the online form.

“This is just one of the initiatives the county council is promoting including Warm and Well North Yorkshire and the council tax reduction scheme.

"They all aim to help or advise if you are struggling to pay for essentials.”

Electricity prices in the United Kingdom rose by 66.7 per cent and gas prices by 129.4 per cent in the 12 months to January this year, according to the Office of National Statistics.

This was one of the main factors for the major increases in inflation, which has reached the highest levels for more than 40 years.

Residents who are eligible will need to fill out a short online form which can be found by searching ‘Apply for energy bill support if you do not get it automatically’ into the search bar on GOV.UK or an online search engine.

The deadline for applications for both sets of funding is May 31.

The support is being delivered by local authorities and successful applicants will start receiving payments from April 11.