Fuel Banks For County Durham Families
We have all heard about food banks but now fuel banks are going to be trialled in County Durham.
We have all heard about food banks but now fuel banks are going to be trialled in County Durham.
Some families could be given vouchers, worth £49, to help them pay their electricity and gas bills.
County Durham is one of the areas trialling the fuel bank scheme.
The vouchers are credit to put in a pre-payment metre, and enable families to have lights and heating for up to two weeks.
nPower are running the three month pilot, and after that are hoping to roll it out across the country with the aim of helping up to 13,000 households in the first year.
Mum-of-two Danielle Hodgson from Bishop Auckland needed help after her benefits got cut: “I couldn’t provide for my kids, and it was horrible knowing I couldn’t heat the house and give them food.”
Jenny Saunders, Chief Executive of National Energy Action, said: “We often talk about the choice between heating or eating to describe the challenges people of low incomes face in balancing their household budgets.
“We will be helping some of the most vulnerable in our society to have both food and heat at a time of crisis.”