A charity based in Barrow have been providing free 'warm kits' to help people struggling through the winter.

Groundwork’s Green Doctors help households stay warm, save money on their household bills and reduce carbon.

To combat the cost of living crisis, along with plummeting temperatures, the service has fiven out over 600 kits recently, with more than 1,000 still available.

Victoria Myers, the project manager at Green Doctors, said: "Everything we do is funded which means we've got the opportunity to help people without them having to think about paying.

"We've signed a contract with Westmorland and Furness Council, which will allow us to continue for at least another year, and we're aiming to keep delivering the kits for years after that too."

The charity have been running the initiative for three years, though the problem seems to be becoming more prevalent than ever.

"It's becoming colder and our winters are getting colder," Victoria explained.

"People are rightfully worried about reducing their energy bills so, if you focus on warming the person, then there's less pressure to warm the home."

The packs include a hat, scarf, gloves, socks, hot water bottle, insulated travel mug, fleece blanket and further information about the organisation.

As well as handing them out during home visits, the charity uses other local organisations across Furness, including churches, to spread them throughout the community.

Victoria described how it is vital for her team to use these avenues, with plenty of people uneasy about asking for help.

She said: "We go to community events and get referrals from friends of friends, who tell us about how people they know are struggling.

"We have to coax them into accepting the support because they can be quite embarrassed about admitting any financial difficulties, but we assure them that everything we do is done in private."

Green Doctors also arrange home visits to provide 'bespoke' advice about how individuals can reduce their energy bills.

This can range from finding the perfect thermostat reading to using a slow cooker for meals.

For more information, visit the website here.