Cost of living crisis: 'I lived on tea and coffee for a week'

Most households person been getting £400 from the authorities successful vigor support, paid successful monthly instalments since October.

The past of these ends connected 1 March with mean household vigor bills expected to scope £3,000 a year.

A foundation is asking those who tin spend it to see donating their last rebate outgo to radical successful need.

When 40-year-old Libby Austin-Foley from Cheltenham mislaid her concern the bottommost fell retired of her world.

She had tally her gem and crystal-selling institution for 15 years but footfall was down post-Covid and no-one came into her store truthful she had to close.

Blaming stress, her matrimony fell apart, and she is present much past £55,000 successful debt. After bills she is near with conscionable £20 a week to screen petrol and food.

Libby has aggregate disabilities which forestall her from moving full-time for an employer.

Just earlier Christmas she did not devour for an full week, arsenic she could not spend to bargain food.

"I ended up successful infirmary due to the fact that I wasn't eating. I lived connected beverage and java for a week," she said.

I met Libby connected her 2nd sojourn to Springbank nutrient slope successful Cheltenham.

For £3.50 she bought 2 buying bags afloat of pasta, tinned tomatoes and caller fruit.

"It helps maine past different I'm utilizing recognition cards.

"I'm not putting the heating on, beingness is simply a spot difficult," she said.

Gail Mezzone, 58, from Cheltenham, told maine she had to take betwixt putting her electrical scooter connected and heating her home.

To get retired and astir she relies heavy connected her scooter, but this means she tin lone spend to crook her heating connected for 2 hours a week erstwhile she looks aft her granddaughter.

"I either person my mobility scooter oregon my heating, it's a elemental choice," she said.

She uses the nutrient slope successful Cheltenham to get ingredients and past batch cooks.

She tin marque a roast past for 10 meals and has not turned her oven connected for a year, relying connected her aerial fryer.

At the nutrient bank, she got immoderate acheronian cocoa fudge.

"I tin lone spend essentials - you can't bargain treats if you are connected a budget, I haven't had cocoa since Christmas," she said.

The foundation Warm Cheltenham is present calling connected households who bash not request each of their rebate to donate the wealth truthful it tin enactment different charities wrong the town.

It comes aft Energy Secretary Grant Shapps said helium was "very sympathetic" to the thought that the authorities should halt the emergence successful yearly vigor bills.

At the moment, the authorities is limiting the emblematic household measure to £2,500 a year, positive a £400 wintertime discount, which volition besides extremity from April.

The Treasury declined to comment.