Support for low income households or tenants

Use our simple Benefit Calculator to find out if you might be entitled to receive benefits. Enter information such as your salary, number of children and pension contributions, and the calculator will tell you how much money you could receive each week:

Benefit Calculator

The government's Household Support Fund will help vulnerable households with the rising cost of energy bills and food. Grants will be awarded to eligible residents, by the council, from the fund.

Household Support Fund - eligibility criteria and more information

The Healthy Homes scheme can provide money to help with the cost of repairing or replacing your household's heating system. The scheme is available for both owner occupiers, and private tenants who are responsible for repairing the property's heating system.

You may be eligible for a Healthy Homes payment if someone in your household has a long-term health condition which is made worse by the cold or damp, and you are in receipt of any of the following benefits:

• pension credit (guarantee)
• Income Support
• Employment and Support Allowance (income related)
• Universal Credit
• Working Tax or Child Tax Credit with a total household income less than £30,000.

Healthy Homes - more information and how to apply

If you use oil as the main heating fuel for your home, you may be eligible for support from Humber & Wolds Rural Action (HWRA) toward the increasing cost. To see if you are eligible, and for details on how to apply, visit:

Humber & Wolds Rural Action website

Please note: after you have applied, HWRA will contact you to discuss how they might be able to help. They run this offer via the YORSwitch bulk oil buying scheme. HWRA will award grants to help towards the cost of heating oil to eligible East Riding residents. This will include free membership to the YORSwitch scheme for the first year (normally £20 per year).

If you need help to pay your Council Tax, whatever your age and circumstances, you should find out if you can apply for Council Tax support:

Council Tax support - who it's for and how to apply

Claim Council Tax support as part of a new Universal Credit claim

If you are making a new claim for Universal Credit, you can claim Council Tax support at the same time. You must indicate on your Universal Credit claim that you pay Council Tax. This will ensure that the council automatically receives your Council Tax support claim.

If your Universal Credit claim is refused, you will have to make a separate claim for Council Tax support.

If you are eligible, there are many discounts and exemptions that can help reduce your Council Tax payments.

Council Tax discounts, exemptions, and reductions - more information

Change your payments

If you cannot afford to pay your Council Tax bill monthly, you could pay weekly, every 2 weeks or spread your monthly payments over the full year:

Email: counciltax@eastriding.gov.uk

Housing Benefit can help you pay your rent if you're unemployed, on a low income, or claiming benefits. However, this is being replaced by Universal Credit and only certain people can make new claims for Housing Benefit:

Housing Benefit - more information, eligibility, and how to claim

If you aren't eligible, but are of working age, you should apply for Universal Credit instead.

Need help?

Our YOUR money team can help you find out if you're eligible and how to apply.

If you are currently claiming Housing Benefit, or the housing element of Universal Credit, and you still have some rent to pay, we might be able to offer you a discretionary housing payment (DHP). This is a short-term payment from the council to help cover some housing costs.

Discretionary housing payment and how to apply

The council's emergency assistance scheme can help residents with the cost of food, gas and electricity, and other essential items:

Emergency assistance scheme - information and how to apply

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) determines who can get Universal Credit. The monthly payments are to help with your living costs. If you are in receipt of Universal Credit you may also be able to apply for additional financial assistance from us. This may include Council Tax support or a discretionary housing payment, for example.

Universal Credit - eligibility and how to apply

Jobseeker's Allowance is for people who are actively looking for a job but haven't yet found work. You have to attend weekly appointments with your job centre advisor and show that you are looking and applying for work. Jobseeker's Allowance is paid into your account every fortnight:

Jobseeker's Allowance - more information and how to apply on GOV.UK

You can apply for Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) if you have a disability or health condition that affects how much you can work.

ESA gives you:

• money to help with living costs if you're unable to work
• support to get back into work if you're able to

You can apply if you're employed, self-employed or unemployed.

Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) - more information and how to apply on GOV.UK

You cannot make a new claim for Income Support. All new claims will be for Universal Credit which has replaced this and other benefits.

Food banks work with the local authority and other services, such as Citizens Advice, health services, or community charities, to provide food parcels for those most in need, in exchange for vouchers. Vouchers are issued after a referral from one of the services. Each food parcel contains a minimum of 3 days' worth of tinned and dried food.

Your local Children's Centre, acting as a referral service, can help you access a food bank service:

Find your local Children's Centre

You can find your nearest food bank using the East Riding Food Poverty Alliance (ERFPA) map:

Find your nearest food bank on the ERFPA website