31 March 2022
In his spring statement, the chancellor added £500 million to the household support fund, which started out as a pot of money given to councils to support families during the pandemic. This was a miserly response to the challenges families are facing, given prices are rising at pace and benefits will not increase at the same rate. But what is the role of this type of support? And how should it be delivered? That was what our Ending the need for food banks project set out to answer.
22 March 2022
Emergency support plays a small but vital role in the social security system. It is there to help families through one-off shocks that cause a sudden drop in income or increase in costs, such as the onset of a health problem or the washing machine breaking down. But, in practice, many families are not getting the support they need when they need it, and this is contributing to the rising demand for food banks.
11 January 2021
This guidance aims to support local authorities to consider how any additional funding received to support households struggling during the crisis can best help tackle child poverty, and to spark ideas or stimulate interest in developing new approaches in your local authority area. This may include how to spend unallocated money from the COVID Winter Grant Scheme, but also how support to families is being provided, or could be provided by your local council, outside the remit of this grant.
