Veteran 'scared of winter' as energy fund launched

Liam Murphy is given £100 in Aldi vouchers to help pay for food

An army veteran has said he is "scared of winter" as he tries to balance saving money on heating with managing his health.

Liam Murphy, 41, who served in Afghanistan and lives in Telford, has multiple health issues and said last year he had to choose between heating and eating.

He is among people in fuel poverty to benefit from a new charity fund which has partnered with agencies and housing trusts across the West Midlands to provide food and fuel vouchers and household items.

Mr Murphy said: "It's not a nice time, especially for people who've got problems. The vouchers are really going to help a lot".

The Cadent Foundation, funded by the gas company of the same name, is providing £2m nationally, of which a quarter will be spent in the West Midlands.

It said it was aiming to "fill the gap left by cuts to the winter fuel allowance for pensioners" and the rising energy price cap.

The foundation is working with:

• Citizens Advice (Birmingham and Sandwell)

• Groundwork (Birmingham, Coventry, Black Country, Newcastle-under-Lyme, Stoke, Herefordshire)

• Wrekin Housing tenants in Shropshire, Staffordshire, Telford & Wrekin

• Act on Energy (Birmingham, Coventry, Dudley, Sandwell, Solihull, Walsall, Warwickshire, Wolverhampton, Worcestershire)

5,000 households to get help in region

The fund is open through the winter until March.

Ranjit Blythe from the Cadent Foundation said the fund would help about 5,000 households in the West Midlands.

Mr Murphy joined other beneficiaries at a launch event at Wrekin Housing's Stallard Court retirement home in Oakengates, Telford.

The Afghan veteran lost his job after an accident at work and almost lost his flat.

Welcoming help from the fund to pay for heating, he said: "I'm diabetic as well and I've got diabetic neuropathy in my legs, so I always have to keep my legs warm or else I'm in pain."

He added: "People who are in the same situation, they just need to engage and reach out for help, because there is help available."