People urged to apply for up to £2,000 energy bill help this winter
Extra support may be available for households with any supplier through the British Gas Energy Trust.
The Energy Support Fund (ESF), run by the British Gas Energy Trust, provides grants of up to £2,000 to British Gas customers, to help them clear their energy debt. ESF complements the other fund the Trust runs, the Individuals and Families Fund (I&F), which provides up to £1,700 to customers of any energy supplier, if their supplier doesn’t have its own scheme or they can show their application to that scheme was unsuccessful.
Last year, the I&F fund helped 2,051 households across Scotland, England and Wales, write off more than £947,000 of energy debt.
The funds have supported people affected by the impact of the ongoing rise in the cost of living, including a 37-year-old mum living with her two children in a Housing Association property, who received an energy grant of £788.
After being hit by a motorbike in 2023, she suffered serious leg injuries, and her youngest child was also hurt. The accident left her disabled and unable to work, leading to financial hardship.
While she now receives Universal Credit, Child Benefit, housing support, and disability benefits for her and her child, she initially struggled with delayed payments and fell behind on her household bills.
With help from StepChange, she is working to manage her debts and feels able to keep up with future energy costs once her arrears are cleared. The grant of £788 from the British Gas Energy Trust helped her regain financial stability.
Jessica Taplin, CEO of British Gas Energy Trust said: “Many households across Britain continue to struggle with high energy costs alongside other financial challenges, and this means we can once again provide vital support, regardless of which energy supplier they’re with.
“This fund will help those who need it most get back on stable ground and feel confident in keeping their homes and families warm and safe.”
Winter energy bill help
How to apply for help this winter
To apply for the funds, you must live in Scotland, England or Wales, and have received money advice within the last six months.
You must be seeking to clear outstanding debt on a current energy account in your name and place of residence. Full details on eligibility criteria and how to apply, can be found on the British Gas Energy Trust website.
Individuals and Families Fund
The Individuals and Families Fund currently provides energy debt grants to eligible households with up to £1,700 of debt on a pre-payment meter account.
Before applying, you must receive money guidance from a money advice agency or use the online budgeting tool available as part of the application.
The fund is open to British Gas and non-British Gas customers. There are other criteria that must be met, check the website here for full details.
How To Cut Energy Bills
The Scottish Government announced on Monday that services supporting people struggling with debt on their energy bills have been expanded after receiving almost £1 million of additional funding.
Some £944,000 has been allocated equally between:
- Citizens Advice Scotland
- StepChange Debt Charity
- Advice Direct Scotland
This will help organisations to provide money and debt advice to customers, increase capacity through additional training for staff, and enhance engagement with energy suppliers to facilitate fairer and more sustainable debt solutions for customers.
Housing Secretary Màiri McAllan announced the investment at the start of Talk Money Week, which runs from November 3 to 7. This is an annual campaign from the Money and Pensions Service to increase awareness of personal finance issues.
Ms McAllan said: “In an energy rich country like Scotland, nobody should be struggling to pay their energy bills. The UK Government said energy bills were going to come down, but they’ve only gone up and could rise further still.
“That underlines the importance of our investment in services that support those who are struggling the most. Advice agencies like Citizens Advice Scotland, Stepchange and Advice Direct Scotland, play a vital role delivering this support and we will continue to work closely with them to ease the burden of the cost of living and help those who need it.”
Financial help for Scots
The funding is part of a £16.9 million package being invested in free income maximisation and debt advice.
Sharon Bell, Head of StepChange Debt Charity Scotland, said: "Scotland is facing an energy debt crisis and more and more clients are coming to StepChange Debt Charity Scotland with spiralling energy arrears.
“We welcome this additional funding from the Scottish Government which is allowing us to provide vital energy debt advice to more people across Scotland right when it is needed the most."