Around 1.5 million homes across England and Wales received the £25 winter support payment, with the government distributing over £35 million through the programme.

The initiative automatically transferred funds to eligible households when local temperatures remained at freezing point or lower for a week at a time.

Those entitled included pensioners and families on limited incomes, with no formal application required as money appeared directly in bank accounts. Recipients included people claiming Pension Credit, Universal Credit and Income Support.

Because the system relied on regional temperature data, individual payments depended on where someone lived.

The scheme covered numerous areas including postcodes DH, DL, NE and TS in the North East, CB, CM, CO, RM and SG in the East of England, and BD, BB, HX, LS, OL and S across Yorkshire and the North West. Homes in postcode areas CA around Carlisle, RH, TN, BN, GU and ME in the South East, and TD and DG near the Scottish border also qualified. Additional qualifying regions included BH, DT and SP on the South Coast, ST, CW and SK in the Midlands, CF, NP, LD and SY in Wales, NR, PE and IP in Norfolk and the East, TS, YO and DL in North East Yorkshire, M, OL, BL, SK and WN in Greater Manchester, AL, LU, WD and SG across London and the South East, and MK and NN in the Midlands and South.

The programme operated from November 2025 until the end of March 2026, when it officially closed. Households in affected postcodes may have received multiple payments during this period.

Late distributions could still arrive if a qualifying cold spell occurred before the deadline.

The payments formed part of broader assistance including £150 towards energy costs, £300 Winter Fuel Payments for pensioners, an increased National Living Wage and a new £1 billion fund for households facing financial hardship.

Many recipients may have overlooked the payment as it arrived without any action on their part.