Universal Credit: List of 30 freebies and benefits which claimants could be eligible for | Personal Finance | Finance

Free or discounted gym membership

Some councils also offer discounted gym memberships to people who claim benefits, but how much discount the claimant receives depends on their local council.

To apply, claimants must go through their local leisure centre – if they offer it – to find out. People can check where their local council might be using the Government’s locator tool, here.

Help with job costs

The Flexible Support Fund (FSF) is available to Britons who receive help from a job centre to help with the costs of getting a job.

The money is issued on top of other benefits and can be used for things like childcare, travel, and work tools, so long as they help the person to get a job.

Amounts distributed vary from case to case and whether the person qualifies is based on the discretion of the advisor, but claimants can contact their local Jobcentre for more information.

Warm Home Discount scheme

This is a one-off discount of £140 off electricity bills for the winter months between October and March, and there are two ways to qualify.

According to the Government website, people can be eligible if they receive the Guaranteed Credit element of Pension Credit. They may also be eligible if they’re on a low income and meet their energy supplier’s criteria for the scheme.

People can find out if they qualify by contacting their energy supplier as soon as possible. Those eligible via Guarantee Credit should contact the Warm Home Discount helpline on 0800 731 0214 if they don’t receive a letter.

Cold Weather Payment

Thousands of Britons could be entitled to the Cold Weather Payment, which is paid out automatically based on a person’s benefits and the temperature in their area.

The payment is made if the average temperature in the person’s area is recorded as, or forecast to be, zero degrees or below for seven consecutive days.

The scheme runs from November 1, 2022 to March 31, 2023 and people get paid £25 for each seven-day period of cold weather.

To be eligible, people may be receiving Pension Credit, Income Support, Jobseeker’s Allowance, Employment and Support Allowance, Universal Credit, or Support for Mortgage Interest (SMI) loan.