Households given £125 supermarket vouchers in December | Personal Finance | Finance
Households in one part of the UK are being given up to £125 of supermarket vouchers to help with the cost of living. Households can get between £50 and £125, depending on whether they are a single household or have children under the age of 19, and applications are open between now and March 2026. So if you’re struggling with the cost of Christmas you can apply now and could get the money in time for the big day.
Although this specific scheme applies in Derby, this money is being supplied by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) as part of the Household Support Fund and other councils are giving out supermarket vouchers in other parts of the UK too. The DWP scheme gives local councils across England a share of a funding pot worth £742 million and helps vulnerable homes pay for essential living costs over the winter months, including energy bills, food and other essentials.
The funding is allocated from now until March 31, 2026, and local councils independently decide how to share the cash, so depending on where you live, there may be different criteria to qualify for the support.
In Derbyshire, Derby City Council has been allocated £3.920 million worth of funding from the DWP to help struggling households with the cost of living.
The council said the funds will be distributed directly to those most in need up until March 31, 2026, including in the form of supermarket vouchers.
Explaining the criteria to get the vouchers, the council said: “The food voucher scheme supports eligible households in financial crisis with supermarket food vouchers towards the cost of living.
“The winter online food voucher application is now open and will remain open until March 2026 or until all the £420,000 allocated funding is awarded. Only one award will be made for each eligible household. Voucher values:
- £50 for a single adult household.
- £75 for a multiple-adult household.
- £125 for a household with children under the age of 19.”
Households who need support with food costs this winter can apply for the supermarket food vouchers online via the council website.
As Household Support Fund cash is distributed independently by local councils in England, the cost of living support that’s available varies by location, with different vouchers or grants up for grabs across the country. Payments may also be issued at different times depending on where you live, so it’s possible for some to receive the support in time for Christmas, while others may have a longer wait.
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) says there may also be differences in who the money is given to and if or how you need to apply for the support, as some local councils opt to share the money out through local charities and community groups, while some limit household applications to one per year.
For example, households in Staffordshire can get a one off £300 utility payment made direct to their utility provider via the scheme, while residents in Calderdale can get a maximum of two payments of £85, amounting to £170 worth of support in total.
North Yorkshire Council is issuing £190 cost of living payments to eligible households from October 8 to spend across nine different supermarkets, including Asda, Morrisons, Sainsbury’s, Tesco and M&S.
In West Yorkshire, Leeds City Council is issuing payments of up to £120 to eligible low income households in Leeds and Doncaster Council is giving eligible households up to £300 towards food costs, while other households can qualify for a £100 payment to go towards energy bills.
Elsewhere, households in Nottingham can get energy vouchers worth £98 and supermarket vouchers worth £75, amounting to £173 worth of support, and residents in Manchester receiving Council Tax support and a disability benefit can get £130.
