Millions of households to get up to £1000 before Christmas – Check if you’re eligible

Up to £1,485 is available to UK households.

Before long, it'll be time for almost every household up-and-down the country to put their on their heating, a decision that will inevitably see bills rack up. Especially following news that the energy price cap has gone up again, by 4% to £1,723 per year.

Fortunately, the government's Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) have put in place a number of schemes to support households that may be struggling through the winter months.

Across a number of schemes, if eligible for all, households could receive as much as £1,400 in support over the winter.

What schemes can households apply for?

DWP Christmas Bonus - This is worth £10 and is paid into bank statements during the first week of December under the reference 'DWP XB'. It is available to anyone who receives "an eligible benefit during the official qualifying week in December."

Cold Weather Payment - This scheme is weather and area dependent, which impacts the amount you're to receive. Eligible households receive a £25 payment for each and every seven-day period when the average temperature in their area reaches 0 °C or lower. The government automatically issues the payment to people on benefits such as Universal Credit or Pension Credit. For this one you can simply click here and enter your postcode to see if your area is covered.

Warm House Discount - This is a one-time £150 discount applied to the account used to pay for electricity. Vouchers are available to those who use prepayment meters. For those living in England and Wales, the discount is applied automatically if you met the eligibility criteria on the qualifying date, which was back in August 23, 2026.

Even if you did not sign up before August, it is still possible to receive this support before Christmas, as the scheme re-opened in October, and discounts are applied to bills between November 2026 and March 31, 2027. Rather than having to apply, eligible households are matched using government data and automatically handed the discount.

Winter Fuel Payment - Although the universal payment was scrapped in 2024, eligible pensioners can still receive the means tested version of the scheme, worth between £200 - £300. The payment is worth £200 for households with someone aged between State Pension age and 79, and £300 for households with someone aged 80 or older. Again those who are eligible are contacted automatically.

Crisis and Resilience Fund (CRF) - This is the payment that will see households receive the greatest proportion of support, with payments able to reach as much as £1000 for a single household. This is a new scheme, introduced to replace the Household Support Fund earlier this year, and it will see as much as  £842 million distributed from central government to local authorities, to give to households around the country.

It offers assistance across a huge range of issues like food, electricity, clothing, and repairs to broken home appliances.

Again the amount you receive depends entirely on the local authority responsible for your area, so it is best to check their website for details on available funds and eligibility.

Payments range depending on the service required, so support replacing white goods could amount to the purchase of an appliance around £250, while more long term support such as accessing the fund to cover a rent shortfall could range from a few hundred pounds to over £1,000.

There is no set or guaranteed amount for the scheme so it is best to check with the necessary local authority.