Household Support Fund

Opened the debate

The Household Support Fund is underutilised in Blackpool despite offering £1.7 million to households in need. There are concerns about the effectiveness of crisis support delivery, with local authorities not always utilising available funds efficiently and third sector organisations needing to use their own resources instead. The fund's performance needs evaluation against specific metrics, and there should be a review of the Welfare Reform Act 2012 and local welfare assistance schemes.

Government Response

It is an honour to serve under your chairmanship, Sir Edward. I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Blackpool North and Cleveleys on securing this debate on the household support fund. The Government introduced a £500 million support fund last October to help vulnerable households with essentials until 31 March this year, providing £421 million of support to local authorities. Local authorities have discretion to assess what is reasonable when it comes to assisting those in genuine need and can use the funding for food, energy, water costs, and other essential needs like broadband or clothing. At least 50% of the funding is dedicated to vulnerable households with children, while up to 50% is available to vulnerable households without children. The fund has provided local welfare support since December 2020, offering nearly £1 billion in assistance through various schemes. Local authorities have made six million awards through the covid winter grant scheme and a further 4.3 million through the covid local support grant. The Department for Work and Pensions shared data on universal credit claimants eligible for free school meals or prescriptions to help identify those most in need. Blackpool has allocated £1.7 million from the household support fund, demonstrating responsive and diverse support by prioritising energy, water bills, winter clothing, boiler repair services, and more. Leicester is issuing an average of £340 per eligible household through the fund for energy grants, while Lambeth provides tailored food boxes and promotes the fund through health and wellbeing buses. Darlington Borough Council partnered with Bread and Butter Thing to distribute fuel vouchers and provide free shopping bags for those in greatest need. The Government are spending a £12 billion fund this year and next on providing wider support to ease cost of living pressures, including cutting the universal credit taper rate, uplifting work allowances, freezing fuel and alcohol duties, increasing the national living wage to £9.50 per hour from April 2023, and announcing a three-part plan worth £9.1 billion to help households with rising energy bills through a discount on energy bills and council tax rebates. There is also existing support for fuel or energy costs, such as the warm home discount and winter fuel payment, cold weather payments of £25 per week, increased healthy start vouchers, and an investment in the holiday activities food programme providing enriching activities and meals to children in English local authorities.