Wiltshire Council distributing £2.7m Household Support Fund
They're also working with groups and charities, to reach those in need
Wiltshire Council has been allocated £2.7m of Household Support Fund from the Department for Work and Pensions, for the period 1 October 2024 to 31 March 2025.
That's to support households that would otherwise struggle to buy food, pay essential utility bills or meet other essential living costs during the current cost-of-living challenges.
The fund is intended to support a wide range of low-income households in need, including families with children of all ages, pensioners, unpaid carers, care leavers and disabled people, larger families, single-person households and those struggling with one off financial shocks or unforeseen events.
Wiltshire Council has also identified that support is required for the homeless/rough sleepers, Gypsy, Roma, Traveller and Boater Community.
New government guidance on how the funding can be used to support people now enables councils to assist with the cost of clothing including school uniforms, period and hygiene products, delivery and installation of essential items such as fridges, freezers and ovens. It can also be used for one-off payments to prevent a crisis.
Local Authorities have the flexibility to identify which households are in most need of support and apply their own discretion when identifying eligibility. The expectation is that The Fund should be used to support households in the most need; particularly those who may not be eligible for the other support government has recently made available but who are nevertheless in need and who require crisis support.
Cllr Ian Blair-Pilling, Cabinet Member for Public Health said:
“Working in partnership with local organisations and charities, who are able to reach those in need in our community, has already enabled us to successfully deliver previous rounds of household support fund to households that are struggling during the current cost-of-living challenges.
“We are pleased that the Government announced in the recent budget that funding will continue in 2025-26 and we await further details about this. We also hope the government will put in place a long-term strategy for providing support to those struggling with the cost of living.
“This latest allocation of funding is primarily to provide crisis support to those most in need, with a smaller proportion of funding also available for preventative support. Support for those in crisis will be provided via the Council and our Voluntary Community Services including: Citizens Advice, Trussell Trust and Age UK, who will have financial outreach workers throughout Wiltshire.”
Earlier allocations of the Household Support Fund have been distributed to families, disabled people and older adults through over 90 different schemes.
Food, furniture, rent contributions, fuel support and advice are key areas where schemes have made a difference through the government funding since it was first introduced in October 2021.
The council has administered the HSF across a range of areas.
A substantial amount has been on free school meals in the holidays, food, energy, advice services and other essentials.