Charity hears from older people in disadvantaged communities who face impossible health choices between heating and eating.

Today, Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves, is called on to reverse changes to winter fuel payment eligibility which are already causing worse health among older people in the most disadvantaged areas in the UK. A new report by People’s Health Trust finds that some of the most vulnerable older people in Great Britain face ‘impossible choices’ around heating or eating and are worried about how to survive the winter as a result of the government’s decision. The health equity charity is calling on the Chancellor to cancel the proposed changes. Any new proposals to change the winter fuel payment must have undergone a thorough equalities impact assessment

Dozens of grassroots and community organisations supporting people in the most disadvantaged areas of Great Britain told People’s Health Trust of the ‘catastrophic’ and immediate impact of the decision to means test winter fuel payments, including higher levels of stress, anxiety and worse mental health at the uncertainty of whether they will be eligible.

Fuel poverty is a threat to people’s health. Cold temperatures significantly increase the risk of strokes and heart attacks. It is estimated that circulatory diseases cause between 40 and 50 per cent of excess winter deaths in England. It is also estimated that 33 per cent of excess winter deaths are attributable to respiratory diseases. Poor mental health is also likely to increase or be caused by living in a house that is too cold.

Disabled pensioners are also likely to be adversely affected – seven in ten will miss out on the winter fuel payment according to Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) figures - as well as people who have unavoidably high energy needs because of illness or chronic pain. The Trust heard that people with chronic health problems simply can’t afford to cut back on heating and face cutting back further on other essentials.

People’s Health Trust’s report highlights that those who are more isolated, people with language barriers, racially minoritised communities, those living with mental health conditions and dementia, and those who are digitally excluded will be among the older people most affected by the changes, furthering widening health inequalities.

The report also highlights the ‘impossible choices’ faced by older people as a result of the potential cut to their income. Community groups told the Trust that “in order to pay for the bills people are likely to heat their homes less, cut on essential shopping, even eat less.”

The government’s changes to eligibility for winter fuel payments will significantly reduce the number of older people who receive support. It is estimated that 10 million fewer people will qualify for the winter fuel payments compared to last year. According to charity Age UK, around 2.5 million older people who badly need the money will not receive it, leading to potentially catastrophic health outcomes.

People’s Health Trust is calling on Rachel Reeves MP, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, to reverse changes to eligibility for the winter fuel payment. Such a change could keep millions of vulnerable people in disadvantaged areas from falling into fuel poverty and experiencing worse health and early death.

People’s Health Trust’s Chief Executive John Hume said:

“Too many older people experiencing disadvantage are already living with energy debt and fuel poverty, forcing them into unacceptable decisions about switching on the heating for an hour or buying food. These are decisions no one should have to make, with implications that seriously impact their health and shorten their lives. We have heard from communities that older people simply don’t know how they’re going to survive the winter without the Winter Fuel Payment.

“For many people two or three hundred pounds may not seem like a lot of money – for older people living in poverty, it can quite literally be a lifeline. It is completely unacceptable that up to 2.5 million older people should be subjected to avoidable cold and food poverty which will lead to further health inequalities. The policy will place even greater pressure on the NHS and voluntary and community services over an already-pressured winter. It is imperative that the UK and Scottish Governments reverse this decision and learn early that any policy change needs to thoroughly consider the consequences for the health of the poorest in society.”

People’s Health Trust has been supporting people living in communities experiencing disadvantage and marginalisation across Great Britain for over a decade. We want to stop people dying too young. Our work focuses on supporting communities at a grassroots level to find vital and timely solutions to tackle the causes of poor health, such as safe and secure homes, good work, social connections, community power, and clean air

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Notes to Editors


1. Media Enquiries

For media enquiries please contact Bradford Watson – press@peopleshealthtrust.org.uk / 020 4548 0940 / 07891 725 542

2. Report – Attached in email

3. Data

  • Excess winter death data is drawn from London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine research
  • Links between poor mental health and cold housing are highlighted in longitudinal analysis of the British Household Panel Survey (1996 to 2008)
  • Data on the number of disabled pensioners ineligible for winter fuel payments under the new changes is drawn from The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP)’s high level equality impact assessment
  • Data on 2.5 million older people missing out on winter fuel payments as a result of changes to eligibility is drawn from Age UK research.

4. Quotes from grassroots organisations and those they support

  • Organisations we heard from reported that older people are generally “extremely worried about the coming winter months and how they will afford to pay for their fuel bills”
  • One group told us: “We work with people who live with bipolar disorder so they feel that this announcement and the stress could lead them to having an episode.”
  • “[People’s] mental as well as physical health would potentially be affected through worrying about paying their increased bills and not having adequate heating and hot meals.”
  • “People are worrying, alone, waiting to see what happens”
  • Many organisations noted there has been “no communication received by anyone as to whether they are still entitled to it”, meaning that there was reliance on rumours and misinformation. One organisation said that in their city “some older people think its means tested to a community not individual.”
  • “We didn’t know if the changes were starting straight away or if it would come in next year.”
  • “Those who have unavoidably high energy needs because of disability or illness will be in serious trouble as a result”
  • “Individuals with chronic health conditions are likely to experience further deterioration in their living conditions”
  • One organisation noted that “the knock on impact all comes back to the health services”

5. Report recommendations

These recommendations have been shaped by the views of the organisations we heard from and the older people they work with.

  • The government should cancel, or at least postpone until next winter, the proposed changes to the Winter Fuel Payment to avoid irreparable harm to millions of older people this winter.
  • Any new proposals to change the Winter Fuel Payment must have undergone a thorough equalities impact assessment (under the Public Sector Equality Duty), which must pay serious attention to means testing as a means to ensuring health equity, alongside a consultation process to understand the impact on older people and older disabled people.
  • There must be careful consideration to how policies like these are communicated, and how information reaches people who are most likely to be harmed by policy changes. This must recognise people’s different starting points, for example people who are unaware of the changes or are vulnerable to misinformation, or who are experiencing digital exclusion, language barriers, learning difficulties or isolation.
  • Dedicated resources should be provided to the voluntary and community sector, which is at the front line of the implementation. This is essential if policies that relate to welfare support are to be successful and avoid relying on an already stretched and underfunded civil society to pick up the pieces or on an overburdened NHS for an emergency safety net.

6. People’s Health Trust is a health equity charity with over a decade’s experience working with local communities across Great Britain to address health inequalities through the building blocks of health. We want to stop people dying too young and make health equal.

Since 2011 People’s Health Trust has distributed £130 million to 3,598 local projects reaching 769,011 people.

7. People’s Health Trust’s Community Manifesto for Health Justice sets out priorities for the next government to address health inequalities including achieving safe and decent homes which improve health and prevent long-term harm; ensuring each citizen has adequate resources to meet the basic costs required to keep them healthy and introducing cross-government responsibility for addressing health inequalities.