Local charity urges more support as cost-of-living crisis mounts in Rochdale

Without further government action, people across Greater Manchester risk falling into severe hardship in order to shoulder energy price hikes, warns Citizens Advice SORT (Stockport, Oldham, Rochdale and Trafford) Group.

The local charity, which has seen the number of people needing help with energy debts increase by 48% since last year, has found that:

• 19% of people in the North West are currently unable to afford energy bills, even if they cut back or fall behind on other essentials
• This jumps to 32% of people after the energy price cap hike on 1 April 

Since the beginning of this year, Citizens Advice SORT Group has dealt with £1.1 million of debt from Rochdale residents, and from January 2021 to January 2022 has seen a 20% in Rochdale residents approaching the service about debt issues.

Citizens Advice SORT Group is calling for urgent government help in two areas: firstly, by increasing benefits in April in line with the current rate of inflation, rather than last September’s rate, and by offering further support to prevent families once again choosing between heating and eating in October when the price cap is predicted to rise again.

Nathan Woodhead, Advisor at Citizens Advice SORT Group said: “The people we’re helping at the Citizens Advice SORT Group are beyond breaking point.

“We are only just at the start of this inflationary crisis, yet the heartbreaking reality is that almost everyone is affected, and quite frankly many are already unable to even afford gas and electricity at current prices. The coming months will only be tougher.

“This is why we're seeing more and more people needing crisis support, such as food bank referrals and more so, help with energy bills and debts.”

Jonathan Yates, Chief Executive of Citizens Advice SORT Group said: “We’re seeing first-hand that the budgets of people across the North West are being pushed to the brink.

“Current measures announced by the government don’t go far enough. Only 6% of people across the region think the energy rebate will make a significant difference to their ability to pay their energy bill from October.

“If the government doesn’t at least increase benefits to match the current rate of inflation, many more households will be pushed to crisis point.”

A government spokesperson said: “We recognise the pressures people are facing with the cost of living, which is why we’re providing support worth £21 billion this financial year and next to help.

“This includes putting an average of £1,000 more per year into the pockets of working families via changes to Universal Credit, freezing fuel duties to keep costs down and helping households with their energy bills through our £9.1 billion energy bills rebate.

“We’re also boosting the minimum wage by more than £1,000 a year for full-time workers and our £500 million household support fund is helping the most vulnerable with essential costs.”

Additional reporting:  Alice Richardson, Local Democracy Reporter