Foodbank use and homelessness are set to rise, charities have warned as ‘awful April’ pushes up the cost of crucial bills, including energy and water, for millions of households across the country.
People across the country are struggling to afford the bare essentials and with so many costs rising at once, from gas to council tax, has led to fresh calls for ministers to help limit the impact.
From Tuesday, the annual average energy bill will go up by £111 a year, or £9.25 a month, to £1,849, after Ofgem raised the energy cap.
Water bills are also set to soar by an average of 26 per cent, or £123 a year, in England and Wales, while council tax will rise by £108 a year on average, after ministers confirmed they would be allowed to increase by at most 5 per cent.
Matt Downie, chief executive at Crisis, the housing charity, warned it was becoming “even harder for people on low incomes to afford the basic essentials. This is leaving them dangerously exposed, forced into debt and in real danger of being pushed into homelessness as the cost of living crisis continues to bite.”
Rachel Reeves’ decision to freeze housing benefits from Tuesday in last October’s Budget would also “push people deeper into poverty and homelessness,” he added.
Helen Barnard, director of policy at the charity the Trussell Trust, which provides food banks across the country said the problem was a “perfect storm”.
“We know people are forced to turn to food banks when their income isn’t enough to cover the cost of essentials we all need to get by – such as energy bills, food and toiletries,” she said.
“From today, a range of household bills are going up by more than inflation while social security support rises by just 1.7 per cent, which will hit people living on the lowest incomes the hardest.”
Joanna Elson, the chief executive of the Independent Age charity, said her organisation has spoken to many older people living on a low income who are very worried about rising energy, water and council tax bills.
She warned: “Many simply cannot afford the increases. This is resulting in people being forced to make dangerous cutbacks, including not using the heating or skipping meals.”
Caroline Abraham, charity director at Age UK, added: “Higher living costs are hitting every household, but we know that older people living on low or modest fixed incomes will find the increases especially hard. We’re still hearing from thousands of older people struggling to afford the basics as everything keeps going up.”
The Treasury has been approached for comment.