Earlier this month, temperatures dropped so low in the small village of Sedbergh in Cumbria that cold weather payments were triggered.
The one-off £25 sum is paid to those on benefits during prolonged cold weather.
Next door neighbours Rosemary, 93, and Marjorie, 92, have known each other since primary school. Neither of them qualified for winter fuel allowance or cold weather payments this year.
“It’s a lot of money to lose,” Rosemary said. “It makes a big difference. You shouldn’t rely on it but you did rely on it, I though ‘oh well I can get a bit of extra food I can get another bag of coal in’.”
Marjorie’s home is old and poorly insulated. “I find it difficult to heat my home because I’ve got all outside walls and they’re stone,” she said.
Data from the Department for Levelling Up shows that the area to the north of Sedberg is the worst in England for energy efficient homes.
17.7% of homes in and around Penrith have the lowest EPC ratings – F or G.
