Cost of Living Vouchers to be Distributed as part of new Council Household Support Fund Scheme

COST-OF-LIVING vouchers are set to be distributed next month to hundreds of households across Reading struggling to afford soaring energy and food bills.

The vouchers form part of Reading’s proposed Household Support Fund initiative for 2023/24. The Council has once again designed a targeted local scheme which gets support to residents who need it the most. This year it will include an expanded flexible application-based element for residents who are struggling to cope with inflationary costs.

A Household Support Fund (HSF) grant of £2,261,298 has been confirmed by the Department for Work and Pensions for Reading Borough Council until the end of March 2024 to provide support to households, including those who may not be eligible for the other Government support recently made available.

The Council has tailored a support package for Reading which is made up of:

1. Two equal £125 payments to an estimated 3,888 families across Reading who receive Pupil Premium free school meals, and for an estimated 236 care leavers. The first of these payments will be sent out via Post Office voucher in the coming weeks, with a second voucher sent out to eligible families in December
2. A one-off payment of £450 for the estimated 909 older people above pension age in receipt of Housing Benefit who do not receive the direct Government support provided to recipients of other DWP benefits. Eligible residents should receive a payment directly into their bank accounts in October
3. An enhanced application-based element which will allow any Reading borough resident to apply to the Council for financial support, with prioritisation being given to low-income households who are struggling financially and who are at higher risk of falling into crisis.

Under the application process, low-income households at risk are defined as households in receipt of low-income benefits, or other related state benefits (such as a Personal Independence Payment), and residents who are not in receipt of any income-based or other state benefits, but have specific circumstances which have negatively impacted their overall cost of living, such as an unexpended or increased expenditure.

If the proposed scheme is agreed, the application process is expected to open later in July and applications would be made via a form on the Council’s website. Details of how residents can apply will be widely publicised nearer the time.

Reading’s Household Support Fund proposal will be discussed at a meeting of the Council’s Policy Committee on Monday July 10. The full report can be found at https://democracy.reading.gov.uk/documents/s27754/Household%20Support%20Fund%204.pdf

Councillor Jason Brock, Reading Borough Council Leader, said:

 “Sadly, the rising cost of living shows no sign of abating, and hardly a day passes without more bad news on this front and even more people across Reading are struggling as a result. The Council has designed a local scheme which targets support towards those residents who need our help the most.

 “As well as providing support to families eligible for free school meals, care leavers and some older people, the supplementary application-based process – which goes live in July – will enable us to help other residents who do not necessarily fit into those defined categories but nevertheless find themselves, through no fault of their own, in circumstances which mean they are struggling to cope.”

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

 “This continues to be an extremely worrying time for families and individuals across the town, with bills continuing to rise and the prospect of further increases over the coming months.

"We have gone through a process to identify those families and other residents who will need the Council’s support, however we know there will be other residents in need of help who did not meet the criteria set. That could be for any number of reasons or personal circumstances, so a supplementary application-based approach has been developed for this year’s local Household Support Fund scheme to help us to identify those residents and, where necessary, provide some financial assistance in these difficult times.”

Every local council which receives the Household Support Fund 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 require further advice or help with managing the rising cost of living can go to https://www.reading.gov.uk/housing/money-matters/ for information and advice.