When it's freezing and you can't put the heating on and breakfast is porridge made with water...

[UndertheCedartree]

AIBU to wish so hard the uplift was never taken away? We were doing so well with that extra amount! But now that has gone and utilities have gone up we are left with little for food and heat.

Sorry, this is just a vent! Nothing anyone can do but I'm just feeling a bit upset this morning.

The Too Good to Go app is worth checking too. I had some great bags of food through that when I lost my job last year.

How old is your teen? Would they be old enough to claim carers allowance as a carer for you, with you getting pip? That's about 64 extra a week

Not sure if you ever have the money but if you have £1 for a bag of the frozen berries from supermarkets, mix with oats and water and leave in the fridge for 24 hours and it makes fruity overnight oats. Bit different and sweeter and you only need a few berries from the pack per portion.

@Carpetsareforflying - he's 14 so I assume not but is autistic himself.

@Courtier

Not sure if you ever have the money but if you have £1 for a bag of the frozen berries from supermarkets, mix with oats and water and leave in the fridge for 24 hours and it makes fruity overnight oats. Bit different and sweeter and you only need a few berries from the pack per portion.

Thank you - sounds lovely.

I have had to reduce my heating spend md bought electric blankets for £10 in dun elm over the summer . As soon as the kitchen cools down after cooking imho up to bed - it costs 4p an hour to run the blanket and saves me having to hear the house up in the evening. My electric and gas use have gone down a lot . I appreciate it takes an outlay so may not be of any use . You sound lovely op

I am so sorry. I wish I had answers for you, but there are loads of great tips on here. I just didn't want to read and run.

If your ds is autistic then he maybe eligible for DLA himself, you would have to apply for it on his behalf. If you have a MENCAP in your area, they an help you with completing the form.

www.gov.uk/government/publications/disability-living-allowance-for-children-claim-form

www.mencap.org.uk/advice-and-support/benefits-people-learning-disability

Oh and check if you are entitled to a charitable grant towards heating.

Turn2Us have a page showing you how to look for them.

Longer term, if you've got a garden, put it to good use growing food. Salad - lettuce etc is easy to grow and seeds can be bought cheaply. Garlic is also very easy and can be used to flavour food - we haven't bought garlic in 5 years. If you've got some space, things like pumpkins and courgettes are prolific and again very easy. Wikos and the DIY stores tend to sell off seeds very cheaply at this time of year.
If you've allotments nearby, they often have a surplus table where people leave their excess veg.

Make Lunch is an initiative run by many churches to provide free meals in the school holidays. Have a google and see if there's one nearby. Our church also do regular food packages for all those who use the service.

@Xmassprout

Have you heard of an app called OLIO? It's worth looking into if you haven't. There is no guarantee of stuff going local, but it's worth a try

The stuff shared near me look great, it's an app where people share food or household items they don't want.

It has an environmental, anti-wastefulness vibe to it, you don't have to be "in need" to claim the food and other stuff, you just need to want to put it to good use! A bit like Freecycle but for food.

olioex.com/

I've recently started using Airtime Rewards which gives 'rewards' from places like Tesco /Asda / Wilko / Boots / halfords etc to offset your phone bill for certain providers.

Not a huge saving -but free money if you shop there anyway.
It's not every month, but since I started using it in the summer I'm slowly accumulating it and I should be on track to cover a phone bill of ours in December, meaning we're planning on redistributing that money to food.

www.airtimerewards.co.uk/

each user gets a promo code with a bonus for referral - so if you want I can share mine (dunno if this is ok on the thread) and it sets up accounts with a couple of quid to get you going. DM / lemme know

[quote peridito]Apparently dry pasta when pre soaked in cold water for 2 hours then takes only 2 mins to cook in boiling water .

www.exploratorium.edu/food/recipes/low-energy-spaghetti

www.exploratorium.edu/food/soaking-pasta[/quote]
brilliant!

I have zero idea but is an electric blanket low to use? I preheat mine and put PJs under there. I admit I am fortunate to be able to use it.

OP, I don't think you have said where you are based. If you're in Scotland, I'd recommend inquiring about the Warmer Homes Scotland programme once you find some head space: www.homeenergyscotland.org/find-funding-grants-and-loans/warmer-homes-scotland/.

The scheme doesn't help pay your heating bills, but you may qualify for other measures such as free insulation or draught proofing, which will help keep your heating bills down in the long term.

There is a similar scheme in England & Wales as well. There it's managed by the energy suppliers, so if you live in England or Wales then contact your energy supplier to check if you'd qualify.

Lidl do crates of fruit and veg for £1.50, they advertise as being available daily but they go very quickly I’ve only ever seen them early in the day. I normally shop at 8am on Fridays and there are loads to chose from. Most weeks there is a good selection Of crates available and The amount would easily do a family for aTleast a week. Or would Be good for soup making. If you speak to the staff, they will be able to let you know the best day and time to call in.

Do you rent OP? If so and you have a shortfall between your rent and your housing element of UC, you can apply to your local council for some extra financial help called Discretionary Housing Payments. You can also apply for help towards your Council Tax from the same scheme (usually done at the same time).

You should also contact your water supplier and apply for the social tariff which is a special tariff for households on the low incomes. Your monthly bill could drop to as little as £5 per month. If you have water arrears, you can apply to their Restart scheme. These programmes are excellent.

Your local council will have recently received central funding from the government for households in financial distress. Go online and apply. It's there to be used.

If you are making payments to non priority creditors....stop...get money advice from a reputable not for profit organisation such as the CAB and consider your debt options with a professional debt adviser.

I've had personal experiences very much like yours and it becomes a full time preoccupation. It's horrific and unless you have experienced it, noone can truly understand how crippling it is. I now work for a debt advice service as I feel so passionate about inequality. It sucks. Sending hugs

I’m in a better place now but have clear memories of trying to sleep when stuff with cold and ice forming on the inside of the window. For keeping warm at night my best tips are wear a hat & socks, blankets up at the window and sleep inside a sleeping bag, under the duvet (think you may be able to get them on free cycle or in charity shops). I used to sit in a sleeping bag too when doing homework or eating dinner etc. They are cosy, especially with HWB tucked inside.

They picked the worst possible time to remove the uplift. Right before winter kicks in when people will be spending more on heating and electricity.
If they absolutely had to do it then they could have at least waited until Spring when it gets warmer.

Definitely agree with olio
I have a guy who is homeless that comes to collect food. I never see him but I leave a flask out for him and run a charger outside. He collects the food and charges his phone and leaves the empty flask
If you do use too good to go, I find morrisons give the most veg/fruit heavy stuff, and greggs are generous

Also I'm not suggesting getting into debt but if you struggle over a couple of weeks, there is an app called zilch
If you pay all at once you get 5% back in rewards you can use or you can split payments and use in store or online - some shops charge £2 so check for this!
Iceland and Aldi is free and I know Asda is £1 if you split the payments
See screenshot - and you can use it for as little as you need so you could split a £20 food shop

Prolific is a survey platform, not a marketing thing, genuine academic research from all over the world. I’ve earned £100ish on it from Sept, and it doesn’t take long. Quite interesting too!

I'm sorry but WTAF is all this? Is the UK a third world country now?

What hads the government cut so far that people can't even afford milk for their porridge?

As of Wednesday, the £20 per week uplift - a temporary measure brought in to help people on lower incomes during the coronavirus pandemic - has officially been withdrawn. Almost 40% of UC claimants are in work.Oct. 6, 2021

^
I guess it's this. First page of Google. Bloody tories

You can replace the oats with dried corn flakes or rice puffs from an Indian cash and carry if you fancy a change. The same places often also sell bags of gram flour cheaply - these can be used to make ‘vegan omelettes’ with just water and a microwave & are high in protein.