TIME is running out for potentially thousands to redeem their cost of living vouchers worth £75.
The vouchers were provided as part of the Household Support Fund (HSF), a government scheme to help with the cost of living.
Households in Lancashire living in the Pendle Borough Council area were able to access vouchers worth £75 to help with food, bills and other expenditure.
A total of 2,600 vouchers were issued by post in June but some have still not been redeemed.
Those who haven’t cashed in their voucher have to do so by the end of today or will lose out on the free cash.
Anyone who meets the following criteria should have received a letter to redeem the £75 voucher:
To get the support, you will need the letter and a form of identification to take to the Post Office.
If you’re unable to collect the cash for yourself, you can get someone else to do it for you, as long as you give them all the documents.
For those living in the rest of the UK, you may be eligible to gain funds from the support scheme too.
The HSF offers help to struggling households and has been extended several times since it was introduced by the Government in 2021.
The money comes from a pot worth £421 million by the Department for Work and Pensions, and it has now been extended for the sixth time, until April 2025.
Funding is given to local councils to distribute, so the support available varies across the country.
What you can get depends on where you live but the money could be paid out as a direct cash transfer or shopping vouchers.
The fund is usually given out based on your financial circumstances and what benefits you receive.
The current round of funding is due to end on 30 September, but applications may still being accepted by some local authorities.
Each area will then open up the scheme again in October, with the new funding in place until April 2025.
In many areas applications can be made under both the current scheme and future rounds.
However, what you’re able to access depends on whereabouts you live, and the money will either be given to you as a direct cash transfer, shopping vouchers or in another form.
To find out what you may be eligible for, visit your local council’s website.
If you’re unsure of the name of your council, find out using the Government’s council locator tool.
Councils across England will decide who to distribute their share of the HSF to which means whether you will qualify depends on where you live.
However, in most cases you will be eligible if you are on benefits, classed as vulnerable or have limited savings.
You may not be able to get help for the new round if you have previously received support from the HSF.
If you are eligible, you may be contacted by your local council telling you what the next steps are to receiving any help.
You may also have to actively apply via your local authority’s website.
Most councils probably won’t have decided their eligibility criteria yet as the Government has only just announced the HSF extension.
Councils also get to decide how much they offer to each household and when to open their share of the fund.
