Exact temperature Cold Weather Payments triggered – £25 extra each week

Eligible households may receive £25 Cold Weather Payments when temperatures in their area are recorded or forecast to stay below 0°C for seven consecutive days. The support helps with energy costs during winter, and payments are made automatically to people receiving qualifying benefits.

The qualifying period runs from 1 November to 31 March, with payments available for each qualifying seven-day spell. Eligible benefits include Pension Credit, Income Support, income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance and Universal Credit; people in care homes are generally excluded. Temperatures recently reached -6.6°C in south Wales, and a yellow cold health alert was issued for the north west and West Midlands. People in Scotland may instead qualify for a £62 Winter Heating Payment.