The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) will be handing out more money to households in need next month to help with rising costs this winter. The cash will include the final instalment of the Cost of Living Payment, which is worth £299, as well as additional support with energy bills, such as Cold Weather Payments and the Warm Home Discount.

This may see some eligible households receive more than £1,000 next month when totalled together.

Here’s a full list of what you can expect:

Cost of Living Payment – £299

The final £299 Cost of Living Payment instalment will be distributed between February 6 and February 22 for most people.

The full list of benefit recipients who qualify are those who are eligible and receive at least one of the following:

• Universal Credit
• income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance
• income-related Employment and Support Allowance
• Income Support
• Working Tax Credit
• Child Tax Credit
• Pension Credit.

To be eligible, people need to have been entitled to a payment for a qualifying benefit between November 13, 2023, to December 12, 2023.

The DWP and HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) will send the payment automatically, so eligible people do not need to apply or take any action to receive it.

The payment reference for bank accounts will be the recipient’s National Insurance Number followed by DWP COL. The HMRC payment reference will be HMRC COLS.

Cold Weather Payment – £25

Certain households are given money during a cold snap to help with heating bills. This is offered through the Cold Weather Payment scheme and households don’t need to apply for it.

The DWP makes a payment if the average temperature in an eligible household’s area is recorded as, or forecast to be, zero degrees or below for seven consecutive days.

The scheme runs from November 1, 2023, to March 31, 2024, and people get paid £25 for each seven days of cold weather.

To be eligible, people may be receiving the following benefits:

• Pension Credit
• Income Support
• income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance
• income-related Employment and Support Allowance
• Universal Credit
• Support for Mortgage Interest.

There are certain requirements with each benefit that would deem a person eligible to receive payment, such as also having a disability or pensioner premium, or if they’re living with a child under five.

To find out the full list of requirements with each benefit, visit the Government website. Households can check if a payment is due in their area using the DWP’s Cold Weather Payment postcode checker.

Warm Home Discount – £150

The Warm Home Discount is a one-off payment worth up to £150 and is deducted straight from energy bills. This is also distributed by the DWP and most people will have it applied automatically.

Payments started in October and continue to March and most people should have received a letter confirming so by early January. However, if someone believes they are eligible and haven’t received a letter, they will need to contact the Warm Home Discount Scheme by February 29.

To qualify for the Warm Home Discount, customers must have an account with one of 25 participating electricity suppliers and claim either:

• The Guarantee Credit portion of Pension Credit

or, if they have high energy costs:

• A different ‘qualifying benefit’ such as the Savings Credit portion of Pension Credit, Universal Credit or Housing Benefit.

For the full list of energy providers participating in the scheme, click here.

People can still receive the support if they have a pre-payment meter. According to the DWP, it may come in the form of a top-up voucher instead.

Winter Fuel Discount – £600

Pensioners can get up to £600 worth of support for energy bills through the Winter Fuel Discount.

The payment usually ranges between £150 and £300, but the £300 Pensioner Cost of Living Payment has boosted the sum again this year to be worth up to £600.

People can get a Winter Fuel Payment if they were born before September 25, 1957.

Most people may have received the sum already automatically. However, those who think they may be eligible but have still not received a payment are advised to contact the Winter Fuel Payment Centre.

The money will appear in bank statements with the payment reference starting with the customer’s National Insurance number followed by ‘DWP WFP’ for people in Great Britain, or ‘DFC WFP’ for people in Northern Ireland.