These payments are provided by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) to help with heating costs during severe weather.
What Are Cold Weather Payments?
The Cold Weather Payment scheme offers £25 for each seven-day period when the average temperature in an area is recorded or forecast to be 0°C or below.
The payments apply between November 1, 2024, and March 31, 2025, and are distributed automatically to those receiving eligible benefits.
Eligible households should receive their payment within 14 working days of a cold spell.
There’s no need to apply, but those with a baby or a child under 5 may need to notify Jobcentre Plus to ensure they’re included.
DWP cold weather payments: County Durham & North Yorkshire postcodes
Below are the postcodes in County Durham, North Yorkshire, and areas with DL postcodes where Cold Weather Payments have been triggered recently:
- DL8: Bedale, Hawes, Coverham, Leyburn, Middleham (North Yorkshire)
- DL11: Swaledale, Reeth, Low Row, Arkengarthdale (North Yorkshire)
- DL12: Barnard Castle, Bowes, Middleton-in-Teesdale (County Durham)
- DL13: Stanhope, Frosterley, Wolsingham, Tow Law (County Durham)
To confirm if your postcode qualifies, you can use the DWP’s Cold Weather Payment checker.
Eligibility for cold weather payments
- Pension Credit
- Income Support
- income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA)
- income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
- Universal Credit
- Support for Mortgage Interest
You’ll usually get Cold Weather Payments if you get Universal Credit and:
- you are not employed or ‘gainfully self-employed’
- your partner is not employed or ‘gainfully self-employed’ (if you have a partner)
What you need to do?
You do not need to apply. If you’re eligible to get Cold Weather Payments, you’ll be paid automatically.
When you’ll get paid
If you’re eligible to get Cold Weather Payments, you’ll get £25 for each 7 day period of very cold weather between 1 November 2024 and 31 March 2025.
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After each period of very cold weather in your area, you should get a payment within 14 working days. It’s paid into the same bank or building society account as your benefit payments.
If you do not get your Cold Weather Payments
Tell the Pension Service or Jobcentre Plus if you think you should have got a Cold Weather Payment but you have not.
If you’re getting Universal Credit, sign in to your account and add a note to your journal.
If you do not have an online account, ring the Universal Credit helpline instead. The phone number is on letters about your Universal Credit claim.