Get help if you are struggling to pay for fuel
If you are struggling to pay your electricity or gas bills, or risk being disconnected, we can pay between £30 and £49 to buy emergency fuel or avoid disconnection.
To qualify you must:
- live within the area covered by Manchester City Council and
- be 16 or over and
- have no capital or savings and
- get one of the following benefits:
Universal Credit, Income Support, Income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance, Income-related Employment Support Allowance, or get Guaranteed Pension Credit.
Your household must have:
- a child under five years old or
- someone who has a disability or serious health needs, or
- someone who is over pension age
- someone who is vulnerable.
How you get the payment
We will make the payment by topping up pre-paid meter cards. We will not be able to make more than one payment to any one household, in any 12 month period.
If your application is successful, we'll email you a utilities voucher that you'll need to print out (you can print it out for free at your local library). If you can't do this, you can collect it from our Customer Service Centre.
You can use the voucher anywhere that has a 'Paypoint' terminal and will need to take an official letter or bill that confirms your name and address (find your nearest PayPoint).
You apply for this payment through our 'welfare provision' scheme. You can only apply online, and you will need to know your National Insurance number. See where you can use computers for free.
Please do not select the Household Support Fund option when completing the form. Choosing the Household Support may delay your application and will require you to complete a further more detailed application.
Get advice if you can't get welfare provision
Please read our Welfare Provision Scheme Privacy Notice
Find out more about how we run the Welfare Provision Scheme
Read advice about other ways to cut your energy costs