The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) is set to double Cold Weather Payments for individuals on six qualifying benefits this January as the UK faces severe winter conditions. This one-off payment of £25 is triggered for every seven-day period in which local temperatures drop to zero degrees Celsius or below.
Since December 30, payments have been activated on six separate dates: December 30, January 1, 2, 3, 6, and 7, reflecting ongoing freezing conditions across various postcodes. Labour Party pensions minister Torsten Bell emphasized the importance of this support, stating, “As temperatures plunge, cold weather payments will automatically provide direct assistance to vulnerable households.”
The Cold Weather Payment scheme runs annually from November 1 to March 31 and is designed to aid those most affected by freezing weather. Households can receive multiple payments if their area experiences several qualifying periods of cold weather.
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To be eligible, recipients must be on at least one of the following DWP benefits:
- Income Support
- Income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA)
- Income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
- Pension Credit (Guarantee or Savings Credit)
- Universal Credit (with a low income)
- Working Tax Credit
No application is necessary; payments are made automatically to the same bank or building society account used for benefit disbursements. However, recipients of Income Support, income-based JSA, or income-related ESA who have recently had a baby or taken in a child under five must inform Jobcentre Plus to continue receiving payments automatically.
Eligible recipients should expect their Cold Weather Payment within 14 working days after each qualifying cold period.