Man 'freezing' but scared to put the heating on amid rising bills after Universal Credit uplift ends
Watch Sam Blackledge's report
People at a food bank in Torbay say they are 'scared to put the heating on' as winter brings rising household bills.
The Paignton Community Larder, one of a network of food banks across the Bay, is seeing a rising demand.
Volunteers say they are worried they could run out of supplies as the weather gets colder and benefit changes and higher bills start to kick in.
John Greenwood, who attends the facility at Southfield Methodist Church, says he is worried about the energy crisis.
"I'm in debt with my gas and electric, and now it's going up sky high I don't know how I'm going to pay it," he said.
"I daren't put my heating on. I'm freezing but I'm too scared to put it on because it's going to be sky high.
"Somebody said it's going to be at least £200 to £300 on top of what we're paying every year. Whether that's true or false, I don't know. I'll soon find out when I get the bill."
The Government boosted Universal Credit payments by an extra £20 a week to help lower earners survive the pandemic - but that uplift ended last month.
Despite some further changes in the recent budget, charities still say those on low incomes will be hit hardest.
Anita Davies, co-ordinator at the Paignton Community Larder, said: "There is always a reason why people need food.
"If we can get to the bottom of that and help with that, hopefully they won't have to keep coming back to us again and again.
"They are on such a small amount of money anyway, losing that £20 is a lot of money to lose. With the food and fuel prices going up, they just cannot live on what they're getting.
"We struggle to get food in, our shelves aren't that full. If we get more and more people coming in, that food will have to come from somewhere. We do worry about it."
Chief executive of Citizens Advice in Exeter, Thomas Godwin, told ITV News it has seen a 36% rise in people going to them with concerns around debt and household bills.
He said the £20 loss "has a real effect" on people's ability to pay their bills, heat their home and put food on their table.
Watch Thomas Godwin's interview
"We all know that with the rising price of food, fuel, as well as inflation - which the Chancellor says might reach 4% - we're in for what we're considering a bit of a perfect storm this winter," he said.
"People are facing really big decisions about whether to heat their home or put food on their table.
He said it is "very worrying" people who are in work or on Universal Credit are still having to rely on food banks.
Thomas added: "We're also very concerned about many people with a level of debt, maybe a mortgage, a car, or another debt. They are very susceptible to a change of circumstance and a loss of earnings which may have a huge knock-on effect for them.
"We've got about 138,000 people in our region currently claiming Universal Credit and around 40 per cent of them are in work - there's still people who are not earning enough money to meet the minimum amount that the Government think they need."