People are being urged to check if they can claim heating support this year as the cost of living crisis continues.
Living costs including food and shopping essentials, energy bills all continue to rise, with many people trying to cut back on how much heating they use in a bid lower their bills at the end of the month.
Whilst some support schemes have ended or are no longer available as well as the £400 payment no longer decreasing bills from March, there are benefits people across Glasgow can still claim to help them ease any financial stresses.
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So what can Glaswegians still claim to help them with their heating costs? Here are some payments you could currently claim.
Child Winter Heating Assistance
What is Child Winter Heating Assistance?
Child Winter Heating Assistance is a benefit from the Scottish Government first paid in 2020. It’s designed to help disabled children, young people and their families with increased heating costs over winter. The payments began in November of last year so people should have had payments by now. If not, it is best to get in touch with Social Security Scotland.
How often is Child Winter Heating Assistance paid and how much do you get?
It’s paid once a year. The payment for winter 2022-2023 is £214.10.
Who is eligible for Child Winter Heating Assistance?
Children and young people in Scotland can get the assistance if they're under 19 years old and get one of the following 'qualifying benefits':
- The highest rate of the care component of Child Disability Payment
- The highest rate of the care component of Disability Living Allowance for children
- The enhanced daily living component of Personal Independence Payment
- The enhanced rate of the daily living component of Adult Disability Payment
If there is more than one child or young person who qualifies in the household, they each get a payment.
If a child or young person gets a qualifying benefit but did not live in Scotland between 19 September and 25 September 2022, they might still qualify if they:
- Live in certain European Economic Area (EEA) countries or Switzerland
- Can show they have a genuine and sufficient link to Scotland
How is Child Winter Heating Assistance paid?
Eligible children and young people living in Scotland do not need to apply as they will get their payment automatically.
Child Winter Heating Assistance will usually be paid into the same bank account as their:
- Child Disability Payment
- Disability Living Allowance for children
- Personal Independence Payment
- Adult Disability Payment
You'll get a letter from Social Security Scotland before they make the payment.
Winter Heating Payment
What is Winter Heating Payment?
Winter Heating Payment is a yearly payment of £50 that’s paid automatically to help people on low income benefits who may have extra heating needs. It is paid by Social Security Scotland.
Who is eligible for the Winter Heating Payment?
The Winter Heating Payment replaces the Cold Weather Payment from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) as part of Scottish devolution and has the same eligibility requirements.
Unlike the Cold Weather Payment, Winter Heating Payment thankfully does not depend on how cold the temperature gets.
Social Security Scotland and DWP are working together to transfer this benefit. Most eligible clients will receive this payment automatically.
Your eligibility for Winter Heating Payment is assessed by Social Security Scotland. They look at:
- What benefits you’re receiving
- Your circumstances from 7 November to 13 November 2022 – this is the 'qualifying week'
Winter Heating Payment is for people in Scotland who:
- Get a particular benefit – this is the ‘qualifying benefit’
- Get the qualifying benefit on at least one day between Monday 7 November to Sunday 13 November 2022 – this is the ‘qualifying week’
- Meet one other specific requirement of their qualifying benefit
You can read more about how Winter Heating Payment works.
To get Winter Heating Payment you must have received one of the following benefits during the qualifying week between November 7 to November 13 2022
- Universal Credit
- Pension Credit
- Income Support
- Income based Jobseeker's Allowance
- Income Related Employment Support Allowance
- Support for Mortgage Interest
Qualifying benefits and requirements
Like the above payment, this is also paid automatically if you are entitled to it.
Universal Credit and you're not in employment
You’ll usually get Winter Heating Payment if you’re not employed or self-employed and also have one of the following:
- A limited capability for work element
- A limited capability for work element with a work related activity element
- A child or young person disability element
A child under five years old
Universal Credit and you're employed
You’ll usually get Winter Heating Payment if you’re employed or self-employed and get a child or young person disability element.
Pension Credit
You’ll usually get Winter Heating Payment if you receive Pension Credit.
Income based Jobseeker's Allowance or Income Support
You’ll usually get Winter Heating Payment if you get Income based Jobseeker's Allowance or Income Support and have any of the following
- A disability premium
- A severe disability premium
- A pensioner premium
- The disability element of Child Tax Credit
A child under five years old
Or receive child disability premium within:
- Income Support
- Income Based Job Seeker's Allowance
Income Related Employment Support Allowance
You’ll usually get Winter Heating Payment if you receive Income Related Employment Support Allowance and have any of the following:
- Placed in a support group or a work related activity group
- A severe or enhanced disability premium
- A pensioner premium
- The disability element of Child Tax Credit
A child under five years old
Support for Mortgage Interest
You’ll usually get Winter Heating Payment if you receive Support for Mortgage Interest and have any of the following:
- A disability premium
- A pensioner premium
- A child disability premium
- The disability element of Child Tax Credit
- A child under five years old
How is the Winter Heating Payment paid and how much do you receive?
Payments for winter 2022 are expected to be made from February 2023. You’ll receive a letter from Social Security Scotland before they make the payment.
You can identify the payment by the reference code on your bank statement. The code will include 'WHP'. This stands for Winter Heating Payment.
£400 one-off energy payment
At the end of the month, applications will open to all eligible households. However, for those under the Glasgow City Council authority area, they can apply early. You can visit our page on how to apply by visiting our latest article.
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