Inspiring change together

Did you know that you might be able to get help with paying your TV Licence through the Simple Payment Plan?

With a referral, you can choose from either a fortnightly or monthly payment plan that spreads the cost of a TV Licence over 12 months. This means you make smaller payments more frequently, helping you to manage your money. Payments work out at around £3 per week, so it is the most affordable way to pay for a TV Licence.

Any not-for-profit organisation or local authority debt advice team providing free, confidential, and independent money advice can refer you to join the TV Licensing Simple Payment Plan.

If you would like to speak to someone about your finances, and ask about a referral, you can call the Citizens Advice debt helpline on 0800 240 4420.

Other TV Licence concessions

There are other TV licence concessions which you might be eligible for.

If you are aged 75 or over, and receive Pension Credit, you can apply for a free TV Licence.

If you are blind or severely sight impaired, you can apply for a 50 per cent concession for a TV Licence online.

Worrying about money can make it difficult to prioritise your mental health and wellbeing, but there is support available to help you take care of yourself.

Mental health charity Mind offer lots of guidance to make managing your money easier.

• Put all your letters, bank statements, payslips, bills and in one place so they are easy to find.
• Set a reminder on your phone, at a set time each week or month, to check your bank balance so you know what you’re spending and how much you have left.
• You could set a regular time to think about any tasks you need to do around money, such as paying your bills, and plan a relaxing activity for after you’ve finished.
• If possible, use cash instead of cards. Take out only the amount of money you can afford to spend, for example for a weekly shop.
• Create a budget. Start by making a list of all the essentials you need to spend money on every month, like rent, energy bills, phone bills and food shops. You could try using bank accounts which allow you to put money aside in separate pots.
• If you’re struggling to pay off your debts, get free debt advice from Citizens Advice. You could also ask for a break from paying interest on your debts under a government scheme called breathing space. If you are eligible, you’ll need to speak to a debt advisor to be considered.

Call Citizens Advice Cheshire West on 0808 2787 806.

If you are struggling financially, the stress this causes can make it harder to reach out for help. Mind has some advice on how to manage this anxiety and manage your money.

• Set a time for when you're going to open a bill or letter. You don't have to open them all at once - you can take it step by step.
• Or, you can ask someone you trust to open your letters and bills for you. They can let you know which of them are important.
• You could let your bank know that you have a mental health problem to see if there are any adjustments they can make.
• If you feel uncomfortable talking on the phone, use services which allow you to manage your account online, or let you speak to someone using web chat.
• Make notes beforehand on everything you want to ask about. You could write down all the things you want to say in advance.
• Afterwards, keep a note of everything you talked about. You can also ask the person on the phone to send you a summary.

If you need support, you can contact Mind's helpline.

• Tel: 0300 123 3393
• Email: info@mind.org.uk

If you would like to access face-to-face support, Mind have an office at 1a Dene Drive, Winsford, CW7 1AX. To check opening times and arrange a visit:

• Tel: 01606 863 305

Many people are struggling with the rising cost of living. If you're one of those people, then the Household Support Fund may be able to help you.

Recently extended by the Government until 31 March 2024, the Household Support Fund is there to support households in the most need, especially with energy costs, food, water bills and other related essential items. The fund is available to a broad range of low-income households across the borough including families with children of all ages, pensioners, unpaid carers, care leavers, and people with disabilities.

It's worth noting that you don't need to be getting benefits to receive help from the Household Support Fund and if you are receiving benefits the additional funding to help with the cost of living will not affect your benefits.

To find out more about the Household Support Fund and to check if you're eligible to apply, visit:

There is also information and guidance about food provision, money advice and mental health and wellbeing support on the Council's cost of living page:

Money Matters

There is a dedicated Money Matters section which can show you support for bills, budgeting, debt, benefits, and more. For example, if you live in rural Cheshire and are worried about affording hot meals for yourself or your family, you could visit Malpas Community Kitchen on a Wednesday lunchtime and enjoy a hot meal for free, no referral needed.

If you are struggling to pay your bills as the cost of living rises, you may be eligible for benefits that you are not yet claiming. Live Well can direct you to this A-Z list of welfare benefits and grants, made by Turn2Us.

You might need a new fridge or washing machine but not be able to afford a large sum right now. On Live Well, you can see a whole list of organisations that provide white goods and furniture at affordable prices. Changing Lives Together offer new and reused furniture for low prices, as well as many other services like distributing food that would otherwise have gone to waste, connecting socially isolated members of the community, and providing a community bus service to help residents get around.

Watch this short video which shows you how to find the information you're looking for on Live Well Cheshire West.

If you know anyone who is not online, Live Well can be accessed at any local Cheshire West and Chester Council library. Staff at the library can help people get online and find services to improve their computer skills.

Free broadband if you're a jobseeker

If you're looking for work, you can go to your local Jobcentre and request a voucher to get free broadband from TalkTalk. The voucher allows you to get six months of TalkTalk's Fibre 35 broadband service with no contract or credit check required. There is no cancellation fee at the end of the six months.

Struggling to pay your bills?

If you're struggling to pay your mobile phone bill, there are steps you can take to make it more affordable. It's important to keep up with your payments if you can. This isn’t just so you don't lose your connection, but also because it could affect your credit score if you don’t.

If you need help, contact your provider as soon as possible to explain the situation. Many providers have support in place to help you, such as changing your bill date, setting up an affordable repayment plan, moving to a different tariff, or lowering your spending cap.

If you are still worried about paying your bills and need debt advice, you can find free debt advice near you. Check out the MoneyHelper locator for online, telephone, and face-to-face debt advice at no charge.

Save money by switching packages

If you're on a mobile phone contract, you might be able to move to a cheaper pay-as-you go tariff or sim-only deal. MoneyHelper have created a guide on how to shop around to find the cheapest phone and broadband packages that work for you.

Before you switch packages, make sure to check if you have to pay a fee to end your current contract early. There's a useful guide on cancelling a phone, TV, internet, or mobile contract on the Citizens Advice website.

Do you own a combi boiler? By turning down your boiler flow temperature to 60 degrees Celsius or below, you could save £112 a year. It is best to seek professional advice before adjusting your boiler. You can ask to have it done with your boiler's annual service.

Turning down your boiler flow temperature could also reduce your household's annual carbon emissions by 173kg. This equates to 429 miles driven by the average vehicle.

Many combi boilers in the UK burn more gas, generate more carbon emissions and cost more in energy bills than they need to. Nesta, a charity working on innovations for social good, states that the average household has their boiler flow temperature set at 80 degrees. However, they found that by reducing this to 60 degrees it can cut gas use by around 12 per cent and in tests only made the warm-up time around 10 minutes longer.

Since October 2022, when Nesta launched the Money Saving Boiler Challenge, over 180,000 people have adjusted their boiler flow temperature, saving a total £20m on energy bills and 31,000 tonnes of carbon emissions.

Getting your combi boiler flow temperature adjusted is easy, free, and one of the best ways to cut energy bills. Find out more on Nesta's website, but please take care when adjusting boiler settings - consult a professional first.

More money saving tips from Nesta

1. Turn down the temperature on your radiators to the mid-point on the dial. By reducing the setting on radiators outside the living room, such as in bedrooms and non-living areas, your household could save £68 a year.
2. Turn down the hot water temperature on combi boilers to 42°C. Turning down the hot water temperature for taps and showers on a combi boiler could save a typical household £26, or 2 per cent off their gas bill, per year.
3. Reduce your hot water cylinder temperature to 60°C. Homes that have heating systems with a separate hot water cylinder can turn down the temperature of the cylinder itself so that you aren’t heating water unnecessarily. Setting your hot water cylinder to 60°C could cut 2 per cent off a household's gas use, or £26 off a typical gas bill, each year.

You can find more energy saving tips on the Money Saving Expert website:

The Council understands that rising prices are still impacting residents across the borough. Many families will be struggling to afford the essentials, let alone extra activities or a lengthy uniform list. However, there is lots of support out there to help you provide food, uniforms and more for your family.

Free school meals

There are lots of families in the borough who are eligible for the free school meals scheme but are not yet benefitting from it. If you sign up now, your child can get a free meal in school, and it will help you access other support that's available.

What are the benefits of free school meals?

• You could save more than £450 a year per child
• It saves time making packed lunches
• Your child gets a healthy tasty, cooked meal
• Children achieve more when they’ve had a cooked lunch
• Schools get extra funding to help children with their education (pupil premium - up to £1,320 a year per child)

The meals are optional but signing up gives you access to other support including the Holiday Activities and Food (HAF) fund. Some HAF benefits have included free meals and free activities such as swimming, crafts, sports, dance, and gardening in the Easter, summer and Christmas holidays.

Most recently, the Council has used the Household Support Fund to provide households with children in receipt of free school meals, vouchers for food during the school holidays.

The staff in schools do not receive information about individual circumstances so it will not set your child apart from their friends. If you sign up for free school meals but don't have the meals, you will still be helping your school receive all the funding they can to provide additional support and resources such as tutoring, music lessons, extracurricular clubs, and school trips.

If you have any questions or concerns, please speak to your school.

Healthy Start

Did you know that if you're more than 10 weeks pregnant or have a child under 4, you might be eligible for support to buy healthy foods like milk or fruit, and get free vitamins, through the Healthy Start scheme? You must be claiming certain benefits to qualify. Or, if you're pregnant and under 18, you can claim even if you don't receive any benefits.

Uniforms

Lots of local schools have started uniform recycling, where families can donate uniforms they no longer need. This way, you can get your child's uniform for free and help the environment. Contact your school to see if they offer uniform recycling.

There are also lots of local organisations that recycle good quality uniforms and give them away for free.

IIf you live in Neston, you can collect recycle pre-loved uniforms for Neston High and primary schools from Parkgate and Neston URC, Moorside Lane, Parkgate, CH64 6UZ on Mondays between 1.30pm and 3.30pm.

If you live in the Chester and Blacon area, KidsBank Chester can help you access free school uniforms, as well as toys, baby supplies, books, bedding, and more. You can request a referral from your midwife, health visitor, social worker or other front-line professional.

In Winsford, there is the Winsford Uniform Exchange which can be found upstairs above the Winsford Community Grocery, in the old job centre building on the High Street, on Tuesdays between 10am and 12noon and Thursdays between 5pm and 7.30pm. Check their Facebook for updates.

Read the article on Motherwell Cheshire to find out about their Community Share Hub, where you can get clothes and other essentials for your family in Winsford and Northwich.