Households across North Yorkshire are being urged to check if they are eligible to apply for financial support towards their energy bills amid the cost-of-living crisis.

The Government’s Energy Bills Support Scheme Alternative Funding is offering a £400 payment for households which did not receive the original help to pay for the cost of energy, such as those without their own electricity meter or without a direct relationship to an electricity supplier.

This includes people who live in care homes or park homes, and tenants who pay for energy through a landlord on a commercial supply.

It also covers homes on a private electricity network, off-grid households and farmhouses used for domestic purposes.  

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Households that do not use mains gas and use an alternative fuel such as oil, biomass and bottled gas may also be eligible for an additional £200 Alternative Fuel Payment.

The deadline for applications for both sets of funding is May 31.

Residents who are eligible will need to fill out a short online form which can be found by searching ‘Apply for energy bill support if you do not get it automatically’ into the search bar on GOV.UK or an online search engine.

The support is being delivered by local authorities and successful applicants will start receiving payments from April 11.

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North Yorkshire's executive member for corporate services, Cllr David Chance said: “We are urging residents to check if they’re eligible for this latest much-needed offer of financial help amid the cost-of-living crisis.

“The alternative funding package aims to help households which were not eligible for the original support scheme, and it only takes a few minutes to complete the online form.

“This is just one of the initiatives the county council is promoting including Warm and Well North Yorkshire and the council tax reduction scheme. They all aim to help or advise if you are struggling to pay for essentials.”

More cost of living support can be found here.