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Swindon Borough Council- Help if you're struggling with living costs

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Swindon Borough Council- Help if you're struggling with living costs

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Website with tips and advice put together by Swindon Borough Council and Citizens Advice Swindon

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An estimated £15bn of benefits are believed to go unclaimed each year.

Use a free benefits calculator to find out what you could be entitled to.

Or contact Citizens Advice Swindon (0808 278 7813) for one-to-one help to do this.

If you are turned down for a benefit, seek advice on whether to challenge the decision. Many benefit decisions are overturned, and organisations like Citizens Advice can offer advice about challenges.

Pension Credit (0800 99 1234) provides extra money for living costs and access to other help.

Around a third of eligible pensioners don't claim Pension Credit - often because they don't know they can or that they need to.

Find out if you're eligible and how much you could get using the Pension Credit calculator.

People of State Pension age may be entitled to Pension Credit even though they may have modest savings, or a retirement income or own their own home.

An award of Pension Credit can provide access to a range of other benefits such as help with housing costs, Council Tax, heating bills and, for those aged 75 or over, a free TV licence.

Over one million families are missing out on up to £2,000 a year towards childcare costs - check what help you could get.

Use this calculator to find out how much you could get towards approved childcare, including:

free childcare for children aged between two and four

help with childcare costs if your child is under 16 (or under 17 and disabled)

If Housing Benefit or Universal Credit doesn't cover all your rent, check to see if you can make a claim for a discretionary housing payment.

Swindon residents of working age who claim Universal Credit or Employment and Support Allowance (ESA), may be eligible to apply for Council Tax Support - which could pay up to 80% of your Council Tax bill or 100% if you receive certain disability benefits. If you're on a low income and over state retirement age, you could also be eligible for 100% support.

If you have a disability severe enough that you need someone to help look after you, check to see if you are eligible for Attendance Allowance to help with extra costs.

You could get £69.70 a week in Carer's Allowance if you care for someone at least 35 hours a week and you, the person you care for and the type of care you provide meets the criteria.

Get free and impartial energy saving advice from Warm & Safe Wiltshire (0800 038 5722) to help manage energy costs and keep your home warm.

Contact your energy supplier if you are struggling to pay for energy or think you may get into difficulty - if you already have energy debts, some larger suppliers offer grants to help pay this off.

If you can't get a grant from your supplier, check if you can get a grant from the British Gas Energy Trust. These grants are available to anyone - you don't have to be a British Gas customer.

Contact Citizens Advice Swindon (0808 278 7813) if you're struggling to afford enough food, to discuss options which could include a referral to the food bank in Swindon.

If you're at least ten weeks pregnant or have a child under four years old, you might be able to get free vitamins and Healthy Start vouchers for milk, fruit and vegetables and infant formula milk.

If you or your child receive certain benefits, you can apply for free school meals from Year 3 and above.

Check if your child is eligible for free holiday provision through the Holiday Activities and Food Programme running in the summer and Christmas holidays.

If you're in debt, seek advice early rather than let things spiral out of control. Contact Citizens Advice Swindon (0808 278 7813), StepChange (0800 138 1111), National Debtline (0808 808 4000) or Crosslight Advice (020 7052 0318) for help.

Households earning below £16,480 can apply for a 50% discount on their water bill through Thames Water's WaterHelp scheme or call their Extra Care Services Team on 0800 009 3652.

The council's Emergency Assistance Fund provides emergency assistance to Swindon residents who most need it.

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Help if you’re struggling with living costs | Swindon Borough Council

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16 actions you might be able to take if you’re struggling with money during the crisis in the cost of living.

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Worrying About Money? Advice and support is available in Swindon if you’re struggling to make ends meet

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Local food distribution, charities and projects, plus tips and advice about making the most of what you already have

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Advice and support with finances, benefits and budgeting

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It is not just about food! Find out about other support services and resources here

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How to get involved in addressing the issue of Food Security in Swindon

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Feeding Swindon Partnership You Tube Channel

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Feeding Swindon Partnership You Tube Channel

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Share your videos with friends, family, and the world

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Advice and support with utilities (water, gas and electricity) as well as Digital Connection

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We welcome any organisations and business across Swindon to register a venue as a Welcome Space, so as many venues as possible are available to residents.

As this is a voluntary scheme, there is no expectation for venues to open outside their normal operating hours, or to supply refreshments.

Grants will be made to successful venues from between £100 and £500, with the amount linked to the number of days per week the space is open.

To participate, venues are asked to:

sign up to and facilitate the Welcome Charter

provide the council with copies of their Safeguarding Policy, a Health and Safety Policy and Public Liability Insurance

provide key details about their offer which will be added to this Welcome Space web directory

display Welcome Space posters at their venue

make community information and resources available where possible, to support residents. This will be supplied by the council and partners.

Potential venues can apply by e-mail: costofliving@swindon.gov.uk

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Swindon Borough Council's directories organised by category