Agenda item

Report from the Assistant Chief Executive. 

Recommendations:

That Cabinet:

1.    Note the provisional allocations of the Household Support Fund Grant of £2.489m have been made as follows:

a.    £1.028m for food vouchers to children eligible for free school meals for school holidays up to and including Easter 2025.

b.    £1.156m to support applications from households for assistance with energy costs, through the Council’s Energy Crisis Support Scheme.

c.     £150k towards the costs of the Council’s Local Council Tax Support Top Up Scheme.

d.    £45k to support care leavers, being young people leaving foster or local authority care and living independently in their own accommodation who are responsible for paying their own utility bills, providing additional financial support through the cost-of-living increases.

e.    £60k to local voluntary and community sector (VCS) organisations to support vulnerable households over Christmas / New Year through a supplement to the Crisis Support service level agreement.

f.      £50k to provide parcels of household items to be distributed through VCS community support including food banks, social supermarkets, and the Open Arms programme drop-in sessions.

2.    Delegate authority to the Assistant Chief Executive in consultation with the Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Social Inclusion and Neighbourhood Working, to determine revised and final allocations for the Household Support Grant, to include provision for other eligible actions within the use of Household Support Fund should it not be possible to achieve full spend of the grant through the approved options.

Consideration was given to the report which explained that the Household Support Fund (HSF) had been extended by Government from October 2024 to March 2025, with £421m of funding available in England. Consistent with previous awards, the Council had been awarded £2.489m for the Borough for

this time period.

Given the need in communities to commence support for the most vulnerable

residents and the timing of the grant award and receipt of the associated grant

conditions, a delegated officer decision was taken to allocate this funding on 11 October 2024. The report provided a summary of the allocations of the £2.489m of funding made. Any variations arising through spend were proposed to be managed through adjusting the allocation made towards the Energy Crisis Support Scheme.

It was noted that the application process for the Energy Crisis Support Scheme was open and available to all households, including pensioners.

Resolved:

That Cabinet:

1.    Note the provisional allocations of the Household Support Fund Grant of £2.489m have been made as follows:

a.    £1.028m for food vouchers to children eligible for free school meals for school holidays up to and including Easter 2025.

b.    £1.156m to support applications from households for assistance with energy costs, through the Council’s Energy Crisis Support Scheme.

c.     £150k towards the costs of the Council’s Local Council Tax Support Top Up Scheme.

d.    £45k to support care leavers, being young people leaving foster or local authority care and living independently in their own accommodation who are responsible for paying their own utility bills, providing additional financial support through the cost-of-living increases.

e.    £60k to local voluntary and community sector (VCS) organisations to support vulnerable households over Christmas / New Year through a supplement to the Crisis Support service level agreement.

f.      £50k to provide parcels of household items to be distributed through VCS community support including food banks, social supermarkets, and the Open Arms programme drop-in sessions.

2.    Delegate authority to the Assistant Chief Executive in consultation with the Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Social Inclusion and Neighbourhood Working, to determine revised and final allocations for the Household Support Grant, to include provision for other eligible actions within the use of Household Support Fund should it not be possible to achieve full spend of the grant through the approved options.