Pensioners living in North Newcastle or Sunderland have just until the end of this week to get a £30 food voucher before the window to apply closes.
Frozen food giant Iceland announced last month that it would supply a total of 80,000 pensioners with the vouchers to help them cope with rising food bills - but this Friday, September 16, is the last date to apply for one. To qualify for the £30 voucher, you must be 60 or older and rely solely on your state pension or other benefits for food and essentials. You can get more than one voucher per household, for example, if you're in a couple, but you can only apply once, so if you've already had one, you can't get another.
The vouchers are also only available in 17 areas nationwide with the highest proportion of poorer pensioners, so in the North East, you won't be able to get one unless you live in North Newcastle or Sunderland.
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You can apply for the voucher by calling 0800 098 7877 from 9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday. There is a high volume of calls, but Iceland has said that if you use the call back function, you should receive a return call by the end of the day. Once you've successfully applied, your voucher will arrive by post within seven days. A paper voucher is the only way to get your £30, but it can be used right up until New Year's Eve once you've received it.
You can spend your voucher in 269 Iceland stores across the UK, which is around a quarter of Iceland shops. Check which stores are accepting the vouchers here.
Vouchers can be used on food and household items, but not alcohol and tobacco. You can use your voucher across more than one transaction, so if your shop does not reach £30, you can save the rest for another time. You can also make your money go further by using your voucher in conjunction with Iceland's 10% discount for pensioners, which runs every Tuesday.
Iceland has partnered up with the Rothesay Foundation, which helps support charities to provide better care for older people, to fund the scheme. Richard Walker, managing director of Iceland Foods, said: "No one should ever have to worry about how they are going to eat or drink, and we hope that the support we can offer across the UK will help pensioners access and enjoy a worry free meal during this time."
Data analysts Kantar yesterday announced that shopping bills have gone up by £571 since last year, with food prices rising by 12.4% on average over the past 12 months. This means that the average weekly food shop now costs £5,181 a year - up £571 from £4,610 just 12 months ago.
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