A CAMPAIGN to help millions of struggling Brits with the cost of living crisis is to be launched by the government tomorrow.
Cost of Living Tsar David Buttress has been working with major UK businesses as part of the government’s Help for Households imitative.
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It will feature bespoke deals and discounts for households from some of the UK’s biggest business, including Asda, Morrisons, Amazon and Vodafone.
Tomorrow a new Help for Households website launches to feature the discounts, as well as highlighting existing initiatives which could save families money.
The offers are set to be regularly updated – with a particular focus on helping families ahead of the summer holidays, back to school, Autumn and Christmas.
They include an extension to Asda’s ‘Kids eat for £1’ scheme, where children aged 16 and under can access a hot or cold meal for £1 at any time of day in Asda Cafes across the UK.
As well as free kids theatre tickets with an adult ticket in August for West End shows in London and 25 percent off ten-pin bowling and mini-golf games during summer holidays at Hollywood Bowl and Puttstars.
Tomorrow, Prime Minister Boris Johnson and David Buttress will be meeting with senior business leaders at No10 to discuss what more support can be given to families.
Cost of Living Business Tsar, David Buttress is set to thank businesses for their support and praise the campaign’s “good start”.
He will also make clear that “we’ve got more to do and more deals to announce – not just over the summer holidays but when kids return to school and in the run up to Christmas when costs are typically higher”.
The government has created the campaign to support families, and hopes it will follow in the footsteps of the hugely successful Eat Out to Help Out campaign which was launched in 2020.
The scheme offered half price food and soft drinks on Mondays,Tuesdays and Wednesday, with cash recouped from the government.
However, the Help for Households campaign focuses on arranging new deals, as well as extending or highlighting existing ones – and firms won’t be able to reclaim cash from the government.
The Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, said: “We’re facing incredibly tough global economic headwinds and families across the country are feeling the pinch.
“Both the public and private sector have a role to play here – and that’s why it’s great to see so many leading UK businesses are now coming forward to offer new deals and discounts that will provide much needed respite at the checkout.”
This morning, new data from the Office for National Statistics figures revealed inflation has hit 9.4%.
Rates are now at the highest level since 1982, piling extra misery onto households.
Experts have warned inflation will only keep rising, as the Bank of England said inflation could hit 11% this year.
What deals are included in Help for Households?
Here are all the deals we know about, so far:
ASDA
An extension of Asda’s ‘Kids eat for £1’ scheme, where children aged 16 and under can access a hot or cold meal for £1 at any time of day in Asda Cafes across the UK.
Sainsbury’s
Sainsbury’s will feature its ‘feed your family for a fiver’ campaign, helping customers with budget-friendly meal ideas to feed a family of four for less than £5.
Free theatre tickets
Theatres in London are uniting for Kids Week, an initiative giving children the chance to see a West End show for free throughout August with a full paying adult, with half price tickets for two additional children in the same group.
Hollywood Bowl and Puttstars
Hollywood Bowl and Puttstars are offering 25% off ten-pin bowling and mini-golf games before 11am throughout the school summer holidays.
Vodafone
Vodafone is promoting its mobile social tariff of £10 a month, which it offers to customers in social hardship. Read more about social tariffs.
Amazon
Amazon has launched a new ‘help for households’ webpage, which will provide free entertainment such as Freevee and Amazon Music, as well as educational resources for school-aged children and low-price essential groceries.
Morrisons
Morrisons is highlighting its offer of a free meal for every child at in-store cafes when a parent buys an adult meal.
WE MUST TACKLE THE COST OF LIVING CRISIS
COST OF LIVING TSAR DAVID BUTTRESS WRITES FOR THE SUN:
It’s not often we compare Britain to the Sahara Desert but this week has been a scorcher like no other. The sweltering conditions have been difficult, but we’ve also seen countless examples of people doing their bit for the community and looking out for one another.
Families checking on elderly neighbours. Brave firefighters working long hours to tackle the blazes. Churches offering ‘cool down’ spaces for the vulnerable.
It’s that same spirit of common purpose that has seen many businesses across our country come together to help tackle the biggest issue facing families right now; rising inflation and the cost of living.
It’s a problem affecting countries across the globe and we’re all feeling the pinch as the cost of everyday essentials, from food to energy, continue to tick up.
As government’s Cost of Living Tsar, I’ve made it my mission to strike cost of living deals and discounts with the private sector to help make life just a little bit easier for families who are struggling. In barely over a month, and following discussions with government, some of the UK’s biggest companies have come forward to offer their support with many more in live discussions.
This includes Asda’s ‘Kids eat for £1’ scheme, where children aged 16 and under can access a hot or cold meal for £1 at any time of day in Asda Cafes across the UK, while Sainsburys are introducing their ‘feed your family for a fiver’ campaign, helping customers with budget-friendly meal ideas to feed a family of four for less than £5.
In London’s West End, theatres are uniting for Kids Week, an initiative giving children the chance to see a West End show for free throughout August with a full paying adult, with half price tickets for two additional children in the same group. Vodafone, meanwhile, are promoting a mobile social tariff of £10 a month.
This is a good start but we’ve got so much more to do, not just over the summer holidays but when kids return to school and in the run up to Christmas when the bills typically pile up.
I appreciate that while many businesses, especially small businesses, are suffering with inflationary pressures, others have more capacity to help. To those who can help, my message is simple: join our campaign to help households navigate these choppy waters.
And to families up and down the country: join the 2.2 million others who have visited our online cost of living support page to learn more about these deals and access the £1200 per household support package already being offered by government.
None of this is easy and there are difficult times ahead. Much like the heatwave, cost-of-living pressures are caused by factors beyond our control won’t simply go away overnight. But these deals show that businesses and government are stepping up to the plate and joining forces to provide the help for households that is needed.
