There is no new cost of living special payment. The Department for Work and Pensions says it is not planning any more Cost of Living Payments, and its guidance covers only those made from 2022 to 2024. Help in England now comes through local councils and a pair of winter payments instead.
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What the old scheme paid
GOV.UK lists five payments for people on low income benefits or tax credits: £326, £324, £301, £300 and £299. A couple on a joint claim got one payment, not two. People on qualifying disability benefits could also get two payments of £150.
Nobody had to apply. The DWP paid eligible people automatically, the same way it paid their usual benefit. That is why GOV.UK warns that a message asking you to apply for a payment might be a scam.
Where emergency help sits now
In England, your local council is the place to ask. Citizens Advice says councils run Crisis Payments from the Crisis and Resilience Fund, which used to be called the Household Support Fund. The money can go towards energy and water bills, or towards essentials such as clothes or an oven.
Each council runs its own scheme, so what you can get depends on where you live. You do not need to be on benefits to ask, and if you are, a council award will not reduce them.
Citizens Advice also points to two other routes. A short-term benefit advance can bring a first payment forward while you wait for a claim, though you repay it later. Your energy supplier may offer a fuel voucher or a grant if you cannot pay or top up a prepayment meter.
The winter payments that remain
The government’s Cost of Living Help site says Cold Weather Payment returns this winter. It pays £25 for each seven-day spell at or below zero degrees Celsius between 1 November 2026 and 31 March 2027, to people on certain benefits or Support for Mortgage Interest.
Winter Fuel Payment is worth up to £300 for winter 2026 to 2027 if you were born before 28 June 1960. Most people who qualify get it without applying.
What ministers offer instead of cash
The same site lists cuts to everyday costs rather than lump sums. Rail fares in England are frozen for 2026, and the £3 bus fare cap in England runs until April 2027. The two-child limit on Universal Credit ends in April, which the government estimates will lift 450,000 children out of poverty.
If you are not sure what you qualify for, Citizens Advice suggests checking your benefits first, because a claim can open the door to other help with bills and transport.
