Top 10 tips for saving money this winter

If you are affected by cancer, you may be eligible for various benefits to help with everyday living costs.

Our benefits and financial support information outlines different benefits and how to claim them. Use our online Benefits Calculator to check what you might be entitled to.

Some additional benefits are available to help during the winter months. These include:

• Winter Fuel Payment, 
• Cold Weather Payment and 
• Warm Home Discount Scheme.

Learn more about these payments and grants. 

Extra help with energy bills

If you are having difficulties paying your gas and electric bills, contact your suppliers.

They should work with you to review your situation and discuss options for a payment plan.

You might be able to get help by joining the Priority Services Register. This is a free support service designed to give priority help to people who need it most. Find out more about getting this extra support from your energy supplier.

Additionally, the Boiler Upgrade Scheme, provided by the UK government, offers support to upgrade your home's heating system. Visit the GOV.UK website for details.

There are lots of ways you can warm up your home without turning the heating on.

Putting draught excluders by your doors, using radiator reflectors, and closing your curtains can help keep warm air in. It's also worth checking that furniture is not blocking your radiators.

• Find out more about cost effective ways to keep warm.
• Get advice from The Energy Saving Trust has about draught-proofing your home.

Batch cooking and freezing meals like soups and stews is a great way to save money. It reduces food waste and lowers your energy usage as you won't need to cook from scratch every day.

Meal planning is another good way to save money on your weekly food bills shop and reduce impulse buying. Here are some tips to help get you started with meal planning:

1. Write a meal plan for the week. Think about what you enjoy eating, what will give you a balanced diet, and what you could cook in bulk. Some ingredients will work for multiple meals, so it could be cheaper to buy a larger pack - for example, mince you use in a spaghetti bolognese and a shepherd's pie.
   
   
2. Make a list of the ingredients you will need. Think about when you need to buy fresh fruit and veg. Don't buy them too early as you don't want them to be past their best by the time you want to use them. 
   
   
3. Make your shopping list and go shopping. 

Here are a few things you can do to try and reduce the amount of electricity you use:

• Switch to LED light bulbs. LED bulbs use light-emitting diodes (LEDs) and are a lot more energy efficient than regular light bulbs.
• Turn off things like televisions when you're not using them. Don't just leave them on standby.
• Switch off lights when you leave a room.
• When using your washing machine, use cycles at 30 degrees or cooler.
• When boiling the kettle, only boil the amount of water you need.

There are also a few things you can do to reduce the amount of water you use:

• Don't boil more water than you need.
• Have showers instead of baths.
• Use a washing-up bowl, rather than cleaning dishes under a running tap.

When it comes to things like car and home insurance, broadband and mobile phone, do you know if you're getting the best deal?

There are lots of price comparison websites you can use to compare the cost of different providers. Some of the most popular ones are:

• Compare the Market
• Confused.com
• Go.Compare
• Uswitch.

This information has been written, revised and edited by Macmillan's Digital Content Editor team and checked by Macmillan's Cancer Information Development team.

Learn more about our Digital Content Editors and how we produce our cancer information.