21 February 2023 , 11:55
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Councils are being given more funding to help provide struggling families with cash, food vouchers and other methods of support.
An extra £842million is being allocated to the Household Support Fund, which is being extended for the fourth time.
The funding will be available from April 1, 2023, and will run for one year until March 31, 2024.
The Household Support Fund is a pot of cash provided by the Government and distributed by local councils to struggling families.
It is down to each local authority to decide how it spends its share of this money, and who is eligible for help, which means the support on offer can be a postcode lottery.
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Each council should update its website over the next few weeks with more information about the help available.
To give you an example of the support that has previously been offered, West Northamptonshire Council gave residents £250 in cash to help households pay their bills.
Blackpool Council provided up to £300 in energy vouchers, while Medway Council issued up to £210 in supermarket or energy vouchers.
It's likely councils will offer up similar examples of support when the scheme is renewed again in April.
Each council gets a different portion of funding depending on the size of the catchment area, population, and need.
To access the funding, you'll need to contact your council. They will then assess whether you're eligible based on their criteria.
Each local authority has a webpage set up detailing the help they can offer through the Household Support Fund.
The current round of Household Support Fund cash, worth £421million, is due to end on March 31, 2023.
Mims Davies, DWP Minister for Social Mobility, Youth and Progression, 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 £26 billion 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.
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“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.”