The council says the payment will be allocated to households on low incomes that aren’t receiving any means-tested benefits, such as Universal Credit. Single households must have a gross income less than £28,000 per year to qualify, while other households must have a gross income less than £33,000 per year.

Eligible households must apply for the £250 payment online and the council will prioritise applications from those who are struggling with additional costs, such as energy bills, and those getting a disability benefit with severe health conditions that are impacted by the cold.

Households must also be in financial difficulty and unable to meet essential living costs, and have savings of less than £1,000 to qualify for the support.

The council said: “If you do not have sufficient income to meet your essential daily living costs, you can make an application for a one-off Household Support Fund payment of £250. This is to support you with food, energy bills and other essentials you may need.

“To be eligible, you must meet all of the following criteria:

• be an East Riding resident and live within the East Riding of Yorkshire Council’s council tax boundary
• be responsible for council tax, rent, or both
• be working but not receiving any means-tested benefits.If you receive Universal Credit, you will not be eligible for a payment.
• have a gross income (e.g. is the sum of all wages, salaries, profits, interest payments, rents, and other forms of earnings, before any deductions or taxes):
  • less than £28,000 per year for single households
  • less than £33,000 per year for other households (including Lone Parents).

“Please note: Payments of Personal Independence Payment (PIP), Disability Living Allowance (DLA), or Attendance Allowance (AA) will not be included in your income calculation.”

Once the application form has been completed, households will be given a reference number which must then be quoted when sending the council email evidence of your income and bank accounts. This must be sent to hsf@eastriding.gov.uk.

As Household Support Fund cash is distributed independently by local councils in England, the cost of living support that’s available varies by location, with different vouchers or grants up for grabs across the country. Payments may also be issued at different times depending on where you live, so it’s possible for some to receive the support in time for Christmas, while others may have a longer wait.

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) says there may also be differences in who the money is given to and if or how you need to apply for the support, as some local councils opt to share the money out through local charities and community groups, while some limit household applications to one per year.

For example, households in Staffordshire can get a one off £300 utility payment made direct to their utility provider via the scheme, while residents in Calderdale can get a maximum of two payments of £85, amounting to £170 worth of support in total.

North Yorkshire Council is issuing £190 cost of living payments to eligible households from October 8 to spend across nine different supermarkets, including Asda, Morrisons, Sainsbury’s, Tesco and M&S.

In West Yorkshire, Leeds City Council is issuing payments of up to £120 to eligible low income households in Leeds and Doncaster Council is giving eligible households up to £300 towards food costs, while other households can qualify for a £100 payment to go towards energy bills.

Elsewhere, households in Nottingham can get energy vouchers worth £98 and supermarket vouchers worth £75, amounting to £173 worth of support, and residents in Manchester receiving Council Tax support and a disability benefit can get £130.