Households up and down England are set to benefit from almost £850m worth of additional funding for support with things like energy bills and groceries, the Government has announced.
The £842m investment acts as an extension of the Household Support Fund and has been distributed by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) to target the most vulnerable areas of the country from the 1st of April until the 31st of March 2024.
The Government say that local councils will have the flexibility to spend their allocations on what they believe is best for their region, drawing upon intimate knowledge of their communities.
With the Household Support Fund now worth more than £2bn across its entire lifespan, some of the things achieved using the support provided include:
- Leicestershire County Council working in collaboration with Leicester City Football Club to launch community cooking events.
- Bexley Council developing a café that educated residents on energy consumption and provided them with energy packs.
- Blackpool Council establishing a programme that enabled pensioners and those in need to get food vouchers directly from market stalls.
- Wokingham Borough Council delivering over 650 energy saving packs to vulnerable residents.
Minister for Social Mobility, Youth and Progression at the DWP, Mims Davies, said: “The Household Support Fund has already helped vulnerable families across England through these challenging times and I am pleased it will continue to do so for another full year.
“This is just one part of our extensive and targeted £26bn support package, which includes payments worth £900 for millions of people on benefits and additional support for disabled people and pensioners, whilst every household will continue to save money thanks to our Energy Price Guarantee.
“We also know that bearing down on inflation is one of the best ways to help families cope with rising bills, which is why the Prime Minister has made halving inflation this year one of his top priorities.”
The Government say those wanting to learn more about what support is available in their local area should visit their local authority’s website or contact their local council office.
To view the full funding breakdown for each area, click here.
