OVER 5,500 households across Tynedale and Ponteland will receive £301 from the Government, with payments hitting bank accounts from today.

Those eligible will be paid between Tuesday April 25 and Wednesday May 17, with HMRC making payments to tax credit-only customers between Tuesday May 2 and Tuesday May 9.

As the cost of living continues to affect families across the UK, these payments are designed to target support towards the most vulnerable in society and provide them with a financial boost.

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) will send payments automatically and directly to recipients’ bank accounts, with a reference to their National Insurance number followed by ‘DWP COL’.

This is the first of up to three payments for those eligible on means-tested benefits, including Universal Credit, pension credit and tax credits, totalling £900 through 2023/24.

These will be accompanied by a £150 payment for people on eligible disability benefits this summer, and a £300 payment on top of Winter Fuel Payments for pensioners at the end of 2023.

Those entitled do not need to apply for the payment or do anything to receive it. Payments made during this window will be staggered over the next couple of weeks meaning not everyone entitled to receive a payment will receive it today.

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Guy Opperman MP said: “This latest additional payment will be welcomed by thousands of families across Tynedale and Ponteland – as will further payments due over the next year.

"I welcome that the Government continue to support those most vulnerable to rising costs, including through record benefits and national living wage increases as well as these exceptional Cost of Living Payments responding to the global pressures we are facing.”