Many Britons are forced to visit warm banks to keep warm amid the cost-of-living crisis and soaring energy bills, CNN reports.

So-called warm banks are a refuge for families and locals to escape the bitter pressures of Britain's cost-of-living crisis - if only for half a day.

Thousands of warm banks have opened their doors across Britain this winter as household budgets have shrunk further due to soaring energy bills and inflation has reached a 40-year high. According to the Warm Welcome Campaign, an initiative to combat the cost-of-living crisis, there are more than 3,000 registered organizations operating warm banks in the U.K.

The center is funded by donations from individuals and local businesses, as well as income from charitable foundations.

According to the U.K. government, the cost of living has risen sharply since the beginning of 2021. According to the same study, between October 2021 and October 2022, domestic gas and electricity prices increased 129 percent and 66 percent, respectively.

The average annual electricity bill rose 96% from last fall to £2,500 (about $3,000), with the U.K. government stepping in to cap the unit cost of gas and electricity bills at that level until April 2023.

However, the total amount consumers pay depends on their consumption habits, where they live, how they pay for energy and the type of meter they use.

Charlotte says she limits her gas and electricity consumption in her apartment. Instead of turning on the heat in the evening, she says, she and her partner sit under blankets and use warmers to keep warm.

She also expects her household's energy costs to increase by Christmas, as her children, ages 4 to 17, spend more time at home during the school vacations. Currently, Charlotte spends most of her day in the warm bank and said this habit will continue over the holidays to reduce her expenses at home.