The Scottish Government is providing £8.6 million in direct support for people affected by the UK benefit cap as part of its work to tackle child poverty.
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) recently published guidance on the annual benefits uprating which will see State Pension and most benefits increase by 10.1 per cent from April 10. The benefit cap will also rise in line with inflation, this will see it increase from £20,000 to £22,020 for families and the lower cap for single households without children going up from £13,400 to £14,753.
The additional funding from the Scottish Government will see an estimated 4,000 families - with around 14,000 children - now able to apply for extra financial support through their local council’s Discretionary Housing Payments scheme.
Commenting on the extra support, Social Justice Secretary Shona Robison said: “We are increasing funding to help bridge the gap between what people need in benefits from the UK Government and what they actually receive. Eligible households could be £2,500 better off on average per year as a result.”
Ms Robison explained that the Scottish Government will spend up to £84 million in 2023/24 on Discretionary Housing Payments to also mitigate the UK Government’s bedroom tax and the ongoing freeze to Local Housing Allowance rates.
She added: “Our child poverty targets are ambitious and that is why we are choosing to invest significantly more in social security than the funding we receive from Westminster and helping to mitigate the damaging impact of UK Government welfare cuts.”
John Dickie, Chair of the Child Poverty Action Group, said: “Mitigating the UK benefit cap is absolutely the right thing to do. Support for struggling families shouldn’t have an arbitrary limit that pushes children into deeper poverty.
“It’s now vital that everyone affected by the benefit cap applies to their local authority for a Discretionary Housing Payment to replace as far as possible the cash support removed by the cap.”
Last year, Fife Gingerbread - a charity which helps lone parents and families in need - supported the ‘Scrap the Cap’ campaign calling on Westminster to end the benefit cap and the financial hardship this causes.
Laura Millar, Strategic Manager at the charity, explained: “Although the number of households affected across Scotland may be relatively small this is an important measure.
“The greatest risk is that households may be unaware of their entitlement, and every year millions of pounds of benefits go unclaimed, we must all raise awareness of this announcement to ensure those most in need of support receive it.”
How to apply for Discretionary Housing Payment
Your local council is responsible for deciding if you will get a Discretionary Housing Payment.
Visit your local council's website to find out:
- if you're eligible
- how to apply
You can find a direct link to your local council website on the MyGov.Scot website here.
To keep up to date with the latest benefits news, join our Money Saving Scotland Facebook page here, or subscribe to our newsletter which goes out daily, Monday to Friday - sign up here.
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