'I got free £350 energy help through little-known cost of living scheme - anyone can use it'

A mum-of-two has shared how one little-knownscheme gave her a free payment of £350 to help her clear her £1,300 debt. Three years ago, Linzi, 35, from Sheffield, was working hard to provide for her family.

Passionate about her, Linzi would go to the gym at 5am each morning to workout and had just received a qualification to become a personal trainer. The plan was to set up for own PT business, and be her own boss. However, when Linzi was pregnant with her second child she became incredibly ill, very quickly and she was forced to leave her full-time job.

In October 2022, Linzi began having issues with her liver, which caused her to go into labour with her son early. Eventually, her illness put her in hospital, and she was diagnosed with Crohn's disease. She told the : "This was why I was so poorly through my , because I kept flaring up because of Crohns, and nobody knew what was going on."

After her diagnosis, the mum-of-two struggled with illness constantly, having to fight off multiple bouts of infections every year. Due to this, Linzi has to have her heating on. She explained: "I have to have it on a certain degree all the time because I physically cannot function when it's cold or I feel cold. I knew I needed to pay for it, I understood that, and it wasn't a problem because I needed it on. I actually couldn't do anything. It was horrible, but I had to do it."

Over the course of the following year, Linzi's energy debt grew as she struggled to cover her £250 monthly energy bill. Due to her high usage, her monthly bill eventually rose to £350 a month. At the time, Linzi's energy provider sent her email warnings about her usage, but thankfully were understanding about her situation.

When she explained why she couldn't cover the bill, her supplier reduced it, and according to Linzi, her supplier "never once pressured" her on this bill and has only ever offered support. At the height, Linzi owed over £1,300. This debt continued to haunt Linzi, as the money she received from her benefit payments only covered her family's day-to-day lives - so she had nothing else left over to help tackle the debt.

Linzi said: "Since having to leave work, it's just been impossible. I just need an extra bit of money to help me get back on my feet because that's all I want. I only stopped working because I was really ill. I don't want to be on benefits. I've worked ever since I was 15, and all I want to do is climb back up."

Last year, Linzi developed depression and struggled to continue juggling everything in her life, and was referred to a peer support group. During these sessions, she would talk about her life and her feelings to support specialists. After discussing the stress her energy debt was causing, Linzi was told about a thing called Lightening Reach.

Lightning Reach is an online portal launched in 2020 that provides information on cost of living grants. These grants are available from various organisations, including housing associations, charities, and local authorities. Linzi's mental health team referred her case to Lightning Reach, which contacted her very quickly after her referral.

Linzi explained: "A woman called me, and we talked about how I got into debt, and how much I had, and I honestly didn't realise until the very end of the phone call that I could get money." Linzi was told that due to her circumstances, she was eligible for an energy support grant from a local charity worth £350.

She said: "I was so shocked when she said it, like I truly didn't expect it. I've always worked like all my life and I didn't know what help there was out there because I've never needed it." After the phone call, Lightening Reach applied for the grant for Linzi and it was applied to her energy account within a few days. She added: "When I saw the debt had gone down by that much, oh man, it was a relief. I know it wasn't all paid off but to have £350 go away, that big lump gone from it was like a massive weight off me."

Alongside this, Lightening Reach also sent Linzi a number of free energy-saving tools, including door and window draft excluders, which would help keep the heat in her home and the cold out - and hopefully lower her energy usage.

Linzi says the help from Lightening Reach came "at the right time" as looking back, she was very close to "cracking". She said: "There seems to be a problem with every aspect of my life and honestly, everything could've gone wrong so quickly but this was really a boost."

Although Linzi is still not out of the woods with her energy debt, she says she is now "just above water". Linzi is currently in the process of trying to claim the disability benefit Personal Independence Payment (PIP) from the Department for Work and Pension (). Although the benefits department initially denied her claim, Linzi is taking it to tribunal.

Lightening Reach has a partnership with TSB, and customers can access the support through the TSB banking app. Non-customers can also access help through the Lightning Reach website .

Dan Pearson, TSB’s Head of Financial Support Strategy and Operations, said: “With household bills rising in April, our partnership with Lightning Reach continues to help people access vital grants that they wouldn’t have known about otherwise. If you’re struggling with bills, it’s definitely worth reviewing if you’re eligible for support via Lightning Reach, and don’t forget you can speak to your bank if you have money worries.”

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