It looks like it’s going to be a challenging few months. What with inflation pushing up prices and energy costs, even though they are capped, still much higher than they have been, it’s a worrying time.
You need to know that there is help available as well as useful advice.
If you are struggling to pay the bills and thinking that you are going to have to choose between heating your home or feeding yourself or one of your pets. Don’t suffer in silence, talk to someone or contact one of the helplines.
Heating & Energy Costs: The Suffolk Community Foundation’s Surviving Winter Appeal hopes to raise at least £300,000 this year to distribute to households in Suffolk that need help heating their homes and keeping warm as well as eating properly this winter. The Ipswich Citizens Advice Bureau is distributing the grants. You can ring them on 01473 298634 (answerphone) or email survivingwinter@ipswichcab.org.uk. You can download the application form from www.citizensadviceipswich.org.uk/surviving-winter. If you want to talk to someone from Citizens Advice you can call them on 0808 278 7868, Monday to Friday, 9am till 5pm.
Suffolk’s Warm Homes & Healthy People Scheme: You can get grants and advice to improve your heating and insulate your home to make it easier and cheaper to heat. There are free home surveys, free insulation and grants for servicing and repairing boilers as well as grants to replace existing boilers with energy efficient systems including air-source heat pumps and solar panels. Everyone can get free advice.
You can get one of the grants whether you are you are a landlord, or renting or own the property, if your home has an energy rating of D, E, F or G and provided the gross income of everyone living in the property is under £30,000 a year.
The scheme for Suffolk is being run by East Suffolk Councill. Phone 03456 037 686. email whhp@eastsuffolk.gov.uk or visit www.warmhomessuffolk.org/about,
Cost of Living Support and Information: Suffolk Infolink has a list of organisations in Suffolk that can help in all sorts of ways, Food, Energy Costs, Housing Advice and finding Warm Spaces (locally including Eye and Stradbroke Library). There is information on their website https://infolink.suffolk.gov.uk.
Donate to the Surviving Winter Appeal: And finally, if you are fortunate enough to not need support or help this winter, please consider donating to the Suffolk Community Foundation’s Surviving Winter Appeal, they need as many people as possible to donate whatever they can. Website www.suffolkcf.org.uk. Donate online at www.justgiving.com/campaign/costofliving or by phone on 01473 602602 or at any branch of the Suffolk Building Society and don’t forget to include Gift-Aid if you are eligible.
Surviving Winter Appeal help leaflet
Surviving Winter Appeal donor leaflet