Families can get FREE washing machines, fridges and kids' beds or £200 payments this summer – and you can apply now
We reveal below other help you can get covering the cost of white goods
HELPING HAND Families can get FREE washing machines, fridges and kids' beds or £200 payments this summer – and you can apply now
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window)
Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
HARD-UP families can get free washing machines, fridges and kids' beds or £200 towards the cost of energy this summer.
The help comes via the Household Support Fund (HSF) - a giant £742million fund available to councils in England.
Sign up for Scottish Sun
newsletter
Sign up
1
Households can get help covering the cost of white goods
Credit: Getty
Councils have until March 31, 2026, to allocate their share of this fund to residents in need.
Support is usually offered to those on a low income, benefits or classed as vulnerable.
Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council is offering thousands of hard-up households a range of help based on their needs.
Some can get £200 towards the cost of gas and electricity while others can get help paying for food.
Meanwhile, some can get help covering the cost of white goods such as washing machines and fridges, and single beds for children.
Blackburn with Darwen Council wouldn't say how much the average price of a white good someone will receive might be.
However, Which? says the average price of a fridge freezer is £800, so you could save yourself a fair amount by applying.
Households requesting help with white goods must be referred to Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council by a professional.
The council said this referrer might be someone from adult services, charity Age UK or children's services.
You'll need to be of a limited income to apply for help through the fund. The criteria you must meet is:
How to cut energy costs and get help with FOUR key household bills
Single Adult in Work: Your household income must be below £26,057 (before tax and National Insurance)
Two or More Adults in Work: Your household income must be below £38,870 (before tax and National Insurance)
Your household savings must be under £2,000
If you're a pensioner, you can have savings up to £16,000
It's worth noting, if you've received a white goods item in the last 12 months from Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council, you cannot apply for help with white goods this round.
More details about the HSF scheme and how to apply are on Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council's website - www.blackburn.gov.uk/cost-living-support/household-support-fund.
Councillor Phil Riley, leader of Blackburn with Darwen Council, said: "The Household Support Fund is there to support those people who are really struggling with the cost of living.
"In addition to funding for a variety of things, residents can also access financial advice to help them with reducing their household outgoings and improving their income.
"Anyone living in Blackburn with Darwen can apply and although there is some eligibility criteria to meet, we're keen to remind people that the Household Support Fund is open to applications from people who are in work, as well as those who are not."
Household Support Fund explained
Sun Savers Editor Lana Clements explains what you need to know about the Household Support Fund.
If you're battling to afford energy and water bills, food or other essential items and services, the Household Support Fund can act as a vital lifeline.
The financial support is a little-known way for struggling families to get extra help with the cost of living.
Every council in England has been given a share of £421million cash by the government to distribute to local low income households.
Each local authority chooses how to pass on the support. Some offer vouchers whereas others give direct cash payments.
In many instances, the value of support is worth hundreds of pounds to individual families.
Just as the support varies between councils, so does the criteria for qualifying.
Many councils offer the help to households on selected benefits or they may base help on the level of household income.
The key is to get in touch with your local authority to see exactly what support is on offer.
The last round ran until the end of March 2025, but was extended.
The most current round is running between April 2025 and March 2026.
If you live outside the Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council area, it's worth checking if you qualify for help via the HSF where you live.
You might be able to get free grants to cover energy bills or supermarket vouchers to spend on food.
Find out what council area you fall under by visiting www.gov.uk/find-local-council.
How else to get free white goods
It's not just through the Household Support Fund you can get help with the costs of white goods.
Here are some other avenues to get help.
Council schemes
Some councils run schemes to cover the cost of white goods.
For example, Norfolk County Council has a Client Hardship Service (CHS) offering second-hand and new appliances to hard-up households.
To get help you'll need to be aged 16 or older, live in Norfolk and be claiming a means-tested benefit like Universal Credit or Pension Credit.
Meanwhile, Manchester City Council provides those who are resettling or moving out of temporary accommodation with basic furniture and white goods.
Use the government's council locator tool, which we've shown above, to find out if your local authority offers any white good-based support and eligibility criteria.
Many local councils have local assistance funds providing essential furniture and white goods too.
For example, Waltham Forest Council, in London, offers struggling households vouchers to pay for essentials like bedding, household goods and furniture.
You'll need to prove you don't have savings which could be used to cover the cost of these goods and must be aged 16 or over.
North Yorkshire Council also offers households facing financial hardship help.
Under the scheme, households can replace broken appliances free of charge, as well as access help buying food, clothing, beds and bedding.
You'll need to provide proof of why you need extra support.
Grants for those in specific jobs
You might be able to get help covering the cost of white goods if you've worked for a specific company.
One of the biggest schemes out there is the BT Benevolent Fund, which is for anyone who works at BT or has worked there before, including pensioners and dependants.
You can apply for the BT Benevolent Fund on the scheme's website.
Another is the Insurance Charities, which can be accessed by anyone who has worked in the insurance sector for at least five years.
If a parent or primary carer has worked within the fashion and textile industry for at least one year within the past nine years, they can apply for grants to buy white goods through the Fashion and Textile Children's Trust.
This includes working in a supermarket or shop with a clothes range such as Mothercare. The average amount paid is £515.
Lastly, the Veteran's Charity supports those who have worked in the armed forces facing hardship.
The charity can provide small and large white goods to help those battling hardship and distress.
Charity grants
Buttle UK is a charity for children, young people, their families, and carers offering grants worth up to £2,000.
Support packages include money for essential items, including beds and cookers, and help for children's emotional, social, and educational needs.
Meanwhile, Family Fund supports families raising disabled or seriously ill children.
They provide grants for several things, including washing machines, bedding, and furniture.
The grants are paid through specific suppliers and can be used for the total cost of new items or a discount on the cost.
The exact amount given varies in each individual case.
For those in England and Scotland, kitchen goods are supplied by the website AO.
For those in Wales, grants are supplied by Argos, and for those in Northern Ireland, the supplier is Vision Sales.
Charity Glasspool also provides grants to help people buy white goods, bedding, and items for children and babies.
There are no specific eligibility requests for this charity, but it says it expects anyone applying to have already made an application for local welfare schemes.
Do you have a money problem that needs sorting? Get in touch by emailing money-sm@news.co.uk.
Plus, you can join our Sun Money Chats and Tips Facebook group to share your tips and stories
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Herald Scotland
3 hours ago
- The Herald Scotland
How Scotland Excel strives for excellence in prudent procurement
It aims to help local councils source whatever they need to deliver high-quality services within their communities, and it focuses on delivering a range of benefits through its procurement services and carefully designed contracts. These benefits include community benefits, climate mitigation and supply chain risk mitigation. Carr explains that councils face a variety of supply chain risks. These can include local issues with potential suppliers' non-compliance with environmental policies to geopolitical instability with, for example, the war in Ukraine. Simply trying to ensure that, given current budgetary constraints, councils maximise the value they get for every pound they spend, is a challenge in its own right. One of the biggest problems faced by councils today concerns dealing with both escalating labour costs and the difficulty of finding appropriately skilled staff in the first place. 'Our portfolio of contracts stretches from the provision of school meals and school materials to new-build housing and the care sector,' Carr says. 'About two-thirds of the value of what we do is service-related, and the rest is goods-related. With council service contracts, labour costs are a huge consideration. The social care sector for example amounts to around 45 percent of all the procurement activity Scotland Excel manages. And within social care, staffing costs amount to 75% of the total contract costs. So, this is a huge area for us.' (Image: Scotland Excel's Head of Strategic Procurement Hugh Carr) Carr points out that there are a whole host of challenges associated with staffing costs, and Scotland Excel works hard to mitigate these challenges and provide solutions. Brexit, he points out, greatly exacerbated staffing problems in Scotland's care sector. A lot of European nationals returned home and that created all kinds of pressure in filling vacancies. More recently, the increases in National Insurance contribution costs have exacerbated the problem. Trying to contain staffing costs while facilitating value-for-money procurement has become a significant challenge. Similarly, in the construction sector, labour costs can easily amount to 50% of the budget, with councils facing the risk of cost overruns. 'What we look to do here at Scotland Excel is to give councils certainty as to the costs they are going to incur, allowing them to plan the staffing levels that they are going to need to fulfil the services they deliver,' Carr explains. Because Scotland Excel works across 32 local authorities, its team of procurement specialists have a very good idea of what the labour component is likely to be on any particular council service offering. 'In this way, we can enhance and sharpen a council's understanding of labour demands in any area. 'Our market research can give a good degree of certainty as to what the labour costs are likely to be in that service area, be it health care or construction. Obviously, with the difficulties in today's post-Brexit labour market, it is important to drive cost controls and diminish the risks of budget overruns,' he comments. Also, by focusing on market indices, Carr's team can adjust its analysis of past labour trends to show what is likely to happen going forward. There is never 100% certainty, he points out. As always, when using historical data to predict future trends, there is a risk that unexpected events, be they driven by market events or geo-political risks, will impact predictability. But this approach goes a long way to de-risking estimates of labour costs. 'If we can support councils by predicting what is likely to happen, they can adjust their buying patterns to fit with what the market is likely to be doing,' he says. Managing inflation risk is another case in point. 'Two years ago, inflation was at its peak, with food inflation running at 17%. This is very disruptive for councils who have to cater for around one and a half million school meals every week. With predictive analysis, we can show which foodstuffs are likely to increase the most in any period. Pre-planning food purchases and adjusting school meal recipes accordingly can have a very significant impact,' he notes. Right now, food price increases are running at around 4% and are increasing, so this is an area that Scotland Excel is watching closely. Inflation has also played havoc with the construction sector. 'Materials supply is much more stable now than it was two years ago. However, this is a sector that can be rapidly impacted by events,' he notes. If anything leads to a widespread delay in building projects being started, it means that the builders' merchants sit with a lot of stock on their shelves. Building materials manufacturers in turn cut back on their production and prices start to move about. Carr points out that this is one of a number of areas where AI tools are likely to be able to add considerable clarity in the near term. 'We are not quite there yet, but AI is known to be very good at taking a whole host of factors into account when doing predictive analysis. It can really improve on human modelling, so we are monitoring developments in this area.' He says Scotland Excel helps councils to understand the likely impact demographic changes in their areas will have on demand across a range of services. This is particularly impactful in the care sector and in council efforts to generate a sustainable care programme across all areas of the country, including the less densely populated regions.
Scottish Sun
7 hours ago
- Scottish Sun
Families can get FREE washing machines, fridges and kids' beds or £200 payments this summer – and you can apply now
We reveal below other help you can get covering the cost of white goods HELPING HAND Families can get FREE washing machines, fridges and kids' beds or £200 payments this summer – and you can apply now Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) HARD-UP families can get free washing machines, fridges and kids' beds or £200 towards the cost of energy this summer. The help comes via the Household Support Fund (HSF) - a giant £742million fund available to councils in England. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 1 Households can get help covering the cost of white goods Credit: Getty Councils have until March 31, 2026, to allocate their share of this fund to residents in need. Support is usually offered to those on a low income, benefits or classed as vulnerable. Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council is offering thousands of hard-up households a range of help based on their needs. Some can get £200 towards the cost of gas and electricity while others can get help paying for food. Meanwhile, some can get help covering the cost of white goods such as washing machines and fridges, and single beds for children. Blackburn with Darwen Council wouldn't say how much the average price of a white good someone will receive might be. However, Which? says the average price of a fridge freezer is £800, so you could save yourself a fair amount by applying. Households requesting help with white goods must be referred to Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council by a professional. The council said this referrer might be someone from adult services, charity Age UK or children's services. You'll need to be of a limited income to apply for help through the fund. The criteria you must meet is: How to cut energy costs and get help with FOUR key household bills Single Adult in Work: Your household income must be below £26,057 (before tax and National Insurance) Two or More Adults in Work: Your household income must be below £38,870 (before tax and National Insurance) Your household savings must be under £2,000 If you're a pensioner, you can have savings up to £16,000 It's worth noting, if you've received a white goods item in the last 12 months from Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council, you cannot apply for help with white goods this round. More details about the HSF scheme and how to apply are on Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council's website - Councillor Phil Riley, leader of Blackburn with Darwen Council, said: "The Household Support Fund is there to support those people who are really struggling with the cost of living. "In addition to funding for a variety of things, residents can also access financial advice to help them with reducing their household outgoings and improving their income. "Anyone living in Blackburn with Darwen can apply and although there is some eligibility criteria to meet, we're keen to remind people that the Household Support Fund is open to applications from people who are in work, as well as those who are not." Household Support Fund explained Sun Savers Editor Lana Clements explains what you need to know about the Household Support Fund. If you're battling to afford energy and water bills, food or other essential items and services, the Household Support Fund can act as a vital lifeline. The financial support is a little-known way for struggling families to get extra help with the cost of living. Every council in England has been given a share of £421million cash by the government to distribute to local low income households. Each local authority chooses how to pass on the support. Some offer vouchers whereas others give direct cash payments. In many instances, the value of support is worth hundreds of pounds to individual families. Just as the support varies between councils, so does the criteria for qualifying. Many councils offer the help to households on selected benefits or they may base help on the level of household income. The key is to get in touch with your local authority to see exactly what support is on offer. The last round ran until the end of March 2025, but was extended. The most current round is running between April 2025 and March 2026. If you live outside the Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council area, it's worth checking if you qualify for help via the HSF where you live. You might be able to get free grants to cover energy bills or supermarket vouchers to spend on food. Find out what council area you fall under by visiting How else to get free white goods It's not just through the Household Support Fund you can get help with the costs of white goods. Here are some other avenues to get help. Council schemes Some councils run schemes to cover the cost of white goods. For example, Norfolk County Council has a Client Hardship Service (CHS) offering second-hand and new appliances to hard-up households. To get help you'll need to be aged 16 or older, live in Norfolk and be claiming a means-tested benefit like Universal Credit or Pension Credit. Meanwhile, Manchester City Council provides those who are resettling or moving out of temporary accommodation with basic furniture and white goods. Use the government's council locator tool, which we've shown above, to find out if your local authority offers any white good-based support and eligibility criteria. Many local councils have local assistance funds providing essential furniture and white goods too. For example, Waltham Forest Council, in London, offers struggling households vouchers to pay for essentials like bedding, household goods and furniture. You'll need to prove you don't have savings which could be used to cover the cost of these goods and must be aged 16 or over. North Yorkshire Council also offers households facing financial hardship help. Under the scheme, households can replace broken appliances free of charge, as well as access help buying food, clothing, beds and bedding. You'll need to provide proof of why you need extra support. Grants for those in specific jobs You might be able to get help covering the cost of white goods if you've worked for a specific company. One of the biggest schemes out there is the BT Benevolent Fund, which is for anyone who works at BT or has worked there before, including pensioners and dependants. You can apply for the BT Benevolent Fund on the scheme's website. Another is the Insurance Charities, which can be accessed by anyone who has worked in the insurance sector for at least five years. If a parent or primary carer has worked within the fashion and textile industry for at least one year within the past nine years, they can apply for grants to buy white goods through the Fashion and Textile Children's Trust. This includes working in a supermarket or shop with a clothes range such as Mothercare. The average amount paid is £515. Lastly, the Veteran's Charity supports those who have worked in the armed forces facing hardship. The charity can provide small and large white goods to help those battling hardship and distress. Charity grants Buttle UK is a charity for children, young people, their families, and carers offering grants worth up to £2,000. Support packages include money for essential items, including beds and cookers, and help for children's emotional, social, and educational needs. Meanwhile, Family Fund supports families raising disabled or seriously ill children. They provide grants for several things, including washing machines, bedding, and furniture. The grants are paid through specific suppliers and can be used for the total cost of new items or a discount on the cost. The exact amount given varies in each individual case. For those in England and Scotland, kitchen goods are supplied by the website AO. For those in Wales, grants are supplied by Argos, and for those in Northern Ireland, the supplier is Vision Sales. Charity Glasspool also provides grants to help people buy white goods, bedding, and items for children and babies. There are no specific eligibility requests for this charity, but it says it expects anyone applying to have already made an application for local welfare schemes. Do you have a money problem that needs sorting? Get in touch by emailing money-sm@ Plus, you can join our Sun Money Chats and Tips Facebook group to share your tips and stories
Daily Mirror
9 hours ago
- Daily Mirror
Full list of PIP changes that do not need to be reported to DWP
While PIP claimants have to report certain things, or risk DWP payments being stopped, some changes do not need to be flagged Personal Independence Payment (PIP) is a benefit designed for people aged between 16 and below State Pension age who need extra help with daily activities or mobility due to a long-term illness, disability, or mental or physical health condition. Successful PIP claims are now worth between £29.20 and £187.45 weekly, or £116.80 to £749.80 every four weeks. The support is intended to help offset the additional expenses linked to living with a disability, long-term illness, or mental or physical health condition. While many claimants might be familiar with the list of circumstance changes that must be reported to the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) to maintain steady payments, there are several that don't need to be declared, as reported by the Daily Record. Changes you do not need to report to DWP PIP is not a means-tested benefit and can be paid whether the claimant is working or not, so there is no need to inform the DWP if you: Start a new job Stop claiming other benefits Are made redundant Take retirement Leave a job Change roles at work - unless the amount of help you need has changed Changes you must report to DWP Guidance on the website states you must contact the PIP enquiry line if: The help you need or your condition changes Your personal details change - for example, your name, address or doctor You go abroad (for more than four weeks) Your condition has worsened and you're not expected to live more than six months You are imprisoned or held in detention You go into hospital or a care home advice continues: "You could be taken to court or have to pay a penalty if you give wrong information or do not report a change in your circumstances." How to report a change of circumstances to DWP To report any changes, ensure that you have your National Insurance number, bank account details, and your GP's name and address handy before contacting the DWP to confirm your identity.
