4,000 More Cost-of-Living Vouchers to be Distributed by the Council This Week

READING households in receipt of pupil premium free school meals, and care leavers, will shortly receive cost-of-living vouchers worth £115 each as part of a third tranche of support distributed by the Council this year.

Both groups of residents have already benefitted from £250 of support over the past year as part of Reading Borough Council’s local Household Support Fund (HSF) scheme. The Council holds details of eligible residents and vouchers will be sent out by post from this week. Households have until 15 April 2024 to cash these vouchers at a Post Office.

With high inflation and increased costs continuing to impact on household budgets, the Council designed an HSF scheme for this year which targeted families and vulnerable individuals in the town who are struggling to pay for basic living costs.

As well as households who receive pupil premium school meals and care leavers, £450 was also sent to households with someone above state pension age who receives Housing Benefit, but is not eligible for the cost-of-living payments from Government. 

In total, over 8,100 payments have been made to households across Reading borough. The Council is reminding residents that the deadline for cashing previous cost-of-living vouchers has now expired.

This year, the Council also invited applications from low-income households and vulnerable individuals for financial support to help them with the high cost-of-living.  Over 2,600 successful applications were made and the window for applications has now closed.

Reading’s HSF allocation for the period from 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024 totalled £2,261,298 and was funded by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). Households and previous recipients of cost-of-living vouchers in Reading are being advised that, at this point, it is not known if Central Government will be making any further HSF money available to local councils for 2024/25, or whether the Government will continue to provide direct cost-of-living support for low-income households.

Councillor Jason Brock, Reading Council Leader, said:

“The cost-of-living vouchers being sent out this week are the third set sent out to households in Reading this year. We hope that - alongside the 8,100 payments which have already been made - the vouchers will provide some temporary respite for households who we know are continuing to struggle with basic living costs.

 “The Household Support Fund originated during the pandemic and has subsequently helped many hundreds of Reading households. It is of real concern that - at this stage at least - there is no real indication Government intend to extend the support beyond next month, despite lobbying which is taking place at national level.  We can only hope that position changes as the cost-of-living crisis has not gone away, as we can testify from the increase in demand on council services.”

Councillor Liz Terry, Lead Councillor for Corporate Services and Resources, added:

“For families and individuals struggling to keep up with shopping and household bills over the past year, the Council’s vouchers have proved to be a valuable source of support. As well as inviting applications for support for low-income households this year, the Council has designed a local scheme which now enables us to deliver a third set of vouchers to an estimated 4,000 households in Reading. These will begin to arrive at homes this week. I would remind residents in receipt of these vouchers that they need to be cashed by April 15th.

 “Sadly, it continues to be an extremely worrying time for these households struggling with the high cost-of-living, and the threat that this could be the final year the Household Support Fund is funded by Government will only add to those concerns.”

Every local council which receives the HSF grant can decide how best to use the allocation to support residents in their area.  As a result, support available to residents can differ depending on where people live. For example, Wokingham or West Berkshire residents will receive different support from their local authority, depending on how their local schemes have been designed.

Residents who have questions about the support that Reading Borough Council is providing to people through HSF, can visit a Frequently Asked Questions page on the Council’s website at www.reading.gov.uk/HSF

Residents who require additional advice or help with managing during the cost-of-living crisis, can go to www.reading.gov.uk/money-matters.