Pension Age Winter Heating Payment (PAWHP) will replace the UK Government's Winter Fuel Payment (WFP) in Scotland in winter 2024, according to a Fairer Scotland Duty assessment published by the Scottish Government on 26 September 20241. The payment will be delivered by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) on behalf of the Scottish Government in 2024/2025, ahead of Social Security Scotland taking responsibility for delivering it in 2025/261.
The Scottish Government states that the UK Government's decision to restrict eligibility for Winter Fuel Payments left Scottish Ministers with no choice but to mirror that approach in PAWHP1. Payments will be made on terms equivalent to the UK Government's current approach to WFP, providing support to between 110,000 and 130,000 people who have reached state pension age and are in receipt of relevant benefits this winter1. The relevant benefits are Pension Credit, Universal Credit, income-related Employment and Support Allowance, income-based Jobseeker's Allowance, Income Support, Working Tax Credit and Child Tax Credit1.
Payments are set at £200 or £300 depending on the age of those receiving the relevant eligible benefits during the qualifying week in September, when entitlement is established1. The Scottish Government expects this to lead to an investment of approximately £30 million, with the number of recipients dependent on Pension Credit take-up1.
"The UK Government's decision to restrict eligibility for Winter Fuel Payments left Scottish Ministers with no choice but to mirror this approach in Pension Age Winter Heating Payment, our replacement for Winter Fuel Payment."
The assessment sets out fuel poverty figures for older households. Older households have a fuel poverty rate of 36%, compared with 27% for families, and an extreme fuel poverty rate of 24%, compared with 10% for families1. The Scottish Government estimates that 15% of pensioners over state pension age, around 150,000 people, were living in relative poverty after housing costs in Scotland between 2020 and 20231. One in seven people over state pension age is living in poverty, and by 2030 one in five people in Scotland is expected to be over pensionable age, a total of 1.1 million people1.
Before the UK Government's decision to restrict WFP eligibility, the Scottish Government consulted on PAWHP as a universal payment, in line with a commitment to match WFP eligibility1. Within responses to that consultation, 58% of individuals and 89% of organisations agreed that a like-for-like introduction of PAWHP would be an effective way to provide financial support for older people, while 80% of respondents expressed support for universal eligibility1. Five organisations called for the benefit to be targeted more effectively at those in fuel poverty1.
| Element | Detail |
|---|---|
| Payment rates | £200 or £300, depending on age |
| Eligible recipients | 110,000 to 130,000 |
| Expected investment | Approximately £30 million |
| Qualifying week | September |
| Delivery body, 2024/2025 | Department for Work and Pensions |
| Delivery body, 2025/26 | Social Security Scotland |
Why it matters for households
For a pensioner household in Scotland that receives Pension Age Winter Heating Payment, the £200 or £300 arrives on the same terms as the restricted Winter Fuel Payment now paid elsewhere in the UK, and the eligibility rules turn on receipt of a listed benefit during the September qualifying week rather than on age alone. That means a household whose only income is the state pension, and which is not on Pension Credit or another listed benefit, falls outside the payment this winter. The Scottish Government's own figures show older households already carry a higher fuel poverty rate than families, and that older households are less likely than families to report that their heating system does not always keep them warm in winter, at 18% compared with 27%1. For a home off the gas grid, the payment is a fixed sum towards a fuel bill that may be met by oil, LPG or electricity, and the assessment notes that rural and island households not on the gas grid were among the themes raised in earlier consultation responses on winter heating benefits1. Scotland's separate Winter Heating Payment continues on its own footing, and the Child Winter Heating Payment remains in place for households of severely disabled children and young people1.
What happens next
The DWP will make PAWHP payments in Scotland in 2024/2025 on behalf of the Scottish Government, with Social Security Scotland taking responsibility for delivery in 2025/261. The assessment does not give a payment date within the winter.