New benefit to tackle child poverty pays out £3.6 million since February
An estimated 78,775 children have already benefitted from Scottish Child Payment since its launch.
The benefit, which is unique to Scotland, is intended to help low-income families with the costs of raising a child. It gives qualifying parents and carers £40 every four weeks for each child under six.
A total of 92% of the applications received and processed have been approved, and payments started in February.
Applications were received from people living in all 32 local authorities in Scotland, with the highest number of 17,330 from Glasgow City.
Parents and carers are able to apply for all eligible children in their household in a single application and can also apply for Best Start Grants and Best Start Foods at the same time.
Scottish Child Payment is in addition to the UK wide Child Benefit.
Cabinet Secretary for Social Security Shirley-Anne Somerville said:“It is great to see so many families benefitting from the Scottish Child Payment and that it is making a positive impact on the lives of so many children. We are working hard to tackle child poverty and it is fantastic to see the number of households being supported so quickly after the payment’s launch.
“It is a benefit unique to Scotland within the UK, and has been hailed as a potential ‘game-changer’ in the fight against child poverty.
“It shows how, with the welfare powers we have gained, we are making a real, positive difference to the lives of young people and their families, boosting the life chances of children across the country.”
More than 104,000 applications were made between 9 November 2020 and 31 March 2021.
If you need local help or advice about your benefits, contact Granton Information Centre. Telephone 0131 552 0458, 0131 551 2459 or email info@gic.org.uk
Official statistics have been published for Best Start Grant and Best Start Foods for the period from December 2018 to 28 February 2021.
More than 162,800 Best Start Grant and Best Start Foods applications have been approved, with a total of £53.8 million paid to clients since launch.
Three cash payments make up Best Start Grant. These are Pregnancy and Baby Payment, Early Learning Payment, and School Age Payment.
Best Start Foods is a prepaid card that can be used in shops and online to buy healthy foods for pregnant mothers and children under three-years-old.
Since launch, more than £17.1 million of payments have been awarded for Pregnancy and Baby Payment, £13 million for Early Learning Payment, £10.1 million for School Age Payment and £13.6 million paid through Best Start Foods.
Authorised applications for December 2020, January 2021 and February 2021 for all payments stand at 4,755, 4,545 and 5,480 respectively.
Social Security Scotland began taking applications for Scottish Child Payment in November 2020. As part of the application process, individuals can choose to make a joint application for Scottish Child Payment, Best Start Grant, and Best Start Foods.
Details on how to apply for Best Start Grant and Best Start Foods are available at MyGov.scot.
HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) is sending out about 2.5 million annual renewals packs to tax credits customers from this week. Customers should check their details in the renewal pack and report any change in circumstances to HMRC.
The packs will be sent out over the next six weeks and all customers should receive theirs by 4 June.
HMRC recognises that many tax credits customers will have been affected by the pandemic and may have earned less money than in previous years. It is important that customers check the details contained in their annual renewal pack are correct, including income details.
Renewing online is quick and easy. Customers can log into GOV.UK to check on the progress of their renewal, be reassured it is being processed and know when they will hear back from HMRC. Customers can also use the HMRC app on their smartphone to:
renew their tax credits
check their tax credits payments schedule, and
find out how much they have earned for the year
Tax credits help working families with targeted financial support, so it is important that people don’t miss out on money they are entitled to.
If there is a change in a customer’s circumstances that could affect their tax credits claims, they must report the changes to HMRC.
Circumstances that could affect tax credits payments include changes to:
· living arrangements
· childcare
· working hours, or
· income (increase or decrease)
Customers do not need to report any temporary falls in their working hours as a result of coronavirus. They will be treated as if they are working their normal hours until the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme closes.
Criminals can take advantage of tax credits renewals to text, email or phone taxpayers offering ‘rebates’ or threatening them with arrest if they don’t pay bogus tax owed. Many scams mimic government messages to look authentic.
If someone contacts a customer claiming to be from HMRC, asks for bank or other personal details, threatens arrest or demands that they transfer money, it might be a scam.
Over 100 organisations from across Scotland have today written to the leaders of Scotland’s political parties, urging them to commit to a radical extension of free bus travel, in a move that they say would have a transformative impact on the lives of people across Scotland’s communities.
The call has been made as part of the Poverty Alliance’s Everyone Aboard campaign, which asks for their support in extending fre bus travel to under 25s and people on Universal Credit and other low-income benefits.
The coalition of organisations – coordinated by the Poverty Alliance and including Friends of the Earth Scotland, the Scottish Youth Parliament and Barnardo’s Scotland – are making the call at a time of growing poverty in Scotland, with recent Scottish Government statistics showing over 1 million people in Scotland are now living in the grip of poverty.
Bus travel will, the letter states, be critical in stemming the rising tide of pandemic-related youth unemployment, with bus travel particularly important for young people and people on low incomes to help them access the labour market. Without this action, the organisations have warned, they “risk being left behind in our economic and social recovery.”
Peter Kelly, Director of the Poverty Alliance, said: “We are calling on the leaders of Scotland’s political parties to take the bold, far-reaching action to help loosen the grip of poverty on people’s lives. Removing the barrier to transport would be a significant step towards building a Scotland where everyone is included, no matter their income.
“This move would also help advance gender equality, as women disproportionately rely on public transport to access jobs, healthcare and activities to boost their wellbeing.
“Lone parents, who are predominantly women, would particularly benefit. Expanding the use of public transport will play an important role in reducing Scotland’s emissions and responding to the climate emergency.
“Extending free bus travel is a key way the next Scottish Government can help make Scotland a greener and more just place for us all to live.”
Mollie McGoran MSYP, Trustee of the Scottish Youth Parliament, said: “Young people and people on low incomes have been some of the hardest hit by the COVID-19 pandemic and so must be put at the heart of the recovery.
“That’s why we support the aims of the Poverty Alliance’s Everyone Aboard campaign to provide free bus travel for young people and people on low incomes in Scotland.
“We believe that Transport Scotland and the Scottish Government should provide funding to support initiatives which make it easier, cheaper, and safer for young people to use active and sustainable travel options.
“Our 2018 national campaign All Aboard found young people feel bus fares are too high. The cost of public transport creates barriers to participation which are denying young people and those on low incomes access to opportunities, and this proposal would be a great step in the right direction.”
Gavin Thomson, Air Pollution Campaigner, Friends of the Earth Scotland, said: “Transport is the biggest emitting sector in Scotland. To meet our climate change targets, bold action must be taken to promote cleaner forms of travel, like public transport, and lead a just transition away from fossil fuel private car use.
“Extending free bus travel to all young people under 25 and those on Universal Credit will form an important part of the solution and help ensure no one is left behind as we transform our transport system.
“The upcoming Scottish Parliament election provides political parties an opportunity to demonstrate their commitment to tackling climate change. We must seize it.”
1.9 million meals distributed – and latest statistics DO NOT include pandemic period
Between 1 April 2019 and 31 March 2020, the Trussell Trust’s food bank network distributed 1.9 million three-day emergency food supplies to people in crisis, a 18% increase on the previous year. More than seven hundred thousand of these went to children.
Across Scotland, more than 237,000 were distributed – 80,000 of which were for children.
Food bank use has increased by 74% over the last five years, the charity reports. The top three reasons for referral to a food bank in the Trussell Trust network in 2019-20 were low income, benefit delays and benefit changes.
Releasing the charity’s latest annual statistics, Trussell Trust’s CEO Emma Revie said: “This year has been an extraordinarily difficult one, with many more people across the country facing destitution as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. Food banks carry on, working as tirelessly as ever, to support people in crisis through the unprecedented challenge the pandemic continues to pose.
“The statistics in our 2019/2020 report show the situation in food banks up until the end of March, before the true economic impact of the pandemic had hit. Despite this, we see a rise in the number of people being forced to use a food bank yet again.
“This constant rise in food bank use, year after year, cannot continue. More and more people are struggling to eat because they simply cannot afford food – and when we look to the year ahead, it’s likely even more people will be forced into destitution. This is not right.”
“We know this situation can be turned around – that’s why we’re campaigning to create a future where no one needs a food bank. Our benefits system is supposed to protect us all from being swept into poverty and while additional government measures have helped some people stay afloat this year, clearly more needs to be done.
“That’s why we united with partners from across the charity sector in urging the UK government to make sure everyone can afford the essentials through the economic downturn.
“And we want to see governments at all levels doing everything in their power to protect people from financial hardship.
“We have outlined what needs to be done – it’s in our power to protect one another, we’ve seen it during this health crisis, and we need it to continue during this economic one.”
New figures from Age Scotland reveal that older people on low incomes missed out on £88 million in Council Tax reduction support last year.
These “astonishing” levels show that much more needs to be done to boost people’s understanding of the financial support available and make the process of receiving it much more streamlined.
As council tax bills for this financial year land on doormats across Scotland, the charity estimates that hundreds of thousands of older people are missing out on vital support they are entitled to. With 150,000 pensioners living in poverty and tens of thousands more on the cusp, Age Scotland says this huge sum of unclaimed support would make a real difference to those most in need.
These figures have been revealed as the charity launches its new ‘Check in, Cash out’ social security awareness campaign.
The Age Scotland campaign aims to raise older people’s awareness and increase uptake of the financial support available to help them live well, and work to change the narrative about social security so it is treated in a more positive light, removing any stigma about accessing it.
It will run all year round, urging people to call their 0800 12 44 222 helpline for an entitlement check and access their wide range of free information guides about social security. The charity will also offer awareness and training sessions about the most relevant financial support for older people.
Age Scotland believes that Council Tax Reduction is one of the most widely underclaimed benefits and heavily linked to missing Pension Credit support.
The figures, confirmed by the Scottish Government, show that the average annual award for Council Tax Reduction in 2019-20 to people over 65 in Scotland was £716.56.
It is estimated that at least 123,000 older households in Scotland are not claiming the Pension Credit they are entitled to which would make them eligible for full Council Tax Reduction.
Brian Sloan, Age Scotland’s Chief Executive said: “This astonishing level of underclaimed Council Tax Reduction, among other sources of financial support such as Pension Credit, could be making a real difference to the lives of those older people on low incomes, driving down levels of poverty and boosting their wellbeing.
“We’ve got to make it easier for people to claim and ensure that accessing passported benefits is much more streamlined.
“Age Scotland’s helpline identified around £500,000 in unclaimed social security for older people last year but that is clearly just the tip of the iceberg.
“Every year hundreds of millions of pounds in vital financial support is missed by those who are unaware it exists, don’t know where to turn for help to claim, are locked out as they aren’t online, or feel stigma about needing this help.
“We’re here to support older people to find out more about of the financial support available to them with our free information guides and free eligibility checks through our helpline. We can also help people to claim if they are missing out.
“Social security is not just for older people on low income. If you have a disability or illness which means you need extra help, or care for someone, you could also be missing out.
“We would urge older people to call our helpline on 0800 12 44 222 to find out if they are receiving all the social security support they are entitled to. Please don’t hesitate to check in, as you may well be entitled to cash out on additional financial support.”
Call the Age Scotland helpline on 0800 12 44 222 for free eligibility checks, as well as advice and free guides on Council Tax Reduction and other social security such as Pension Credit, Attendance Allowance and Carers Allowance.
Age Scotland’s information guide on Council Tax Reduction and their “Check in, Cash out” campaign is available at www.age.scot/CheckInCashOut.
Figures released on Young Carers Action Day reveal that The Scottish Government has paid out more than £860,000 to eligible young carers since The Young Carer Grant opened in October 2019.
Over 2,900 applications have been authorised to support young people aged 16, 17 and 18 who spend an average of 16 hours a week caring for someone who receives a disability benefit.
The Young Carer Grant is an annual payment of £305.10 made to young carers to spend on anything they like, for example, a subscription to a video or music streaming service, new clothes or something else that helps them take a break from their caring responsibilities.
Young carers who have previously received the Grant and still meet the eligibility criteria can re-apply 12 months from the date of their previous successful application.
Cabinet Secretary for Social Security Shirley-Anne Somerville said: “Young carers play a vital role across our society. It is fantastic that so many have received this financial support since the benefit was introduced.
“People may not realise what they do at home is caring – you could see it as just part of your day to day life. It is true all year round but it is worth emphasising again on Young Carers Action Day that people should check if they are entitled to The Young Carer Grant.
”I encourage young people who help someone that receives disability support to check if they could get this additional financial support.”
Young carers can combine the hours they spend caring for up to three eligible people in order to reach the 16 hours a week requirement
To find out more and apply people should visit mygov.scot/benefits or call 0800 182 2222
The statistics cover the period of 21 October 2019 – 31 January 2021
December 2020 and January 2021 had the highest number of successful applications since the payment began, with 335 and 325 authorised respectively.
The person or people the young person is caring for must have received one or more of the following benefits for at least the last three months:
the daily living component of Personal Independence Payment (PIP)
the middle or highest care rate of Disability Living Allowance (DLA) including Child Disability Living Allowance
Attendance Allowance
Armed Forces Independence Payment
Constant Attendance Allowance – either: Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit (at or above the normal maximum rate), or War Disablement Pension (at the basic rate)
Granton Information Centre can help you get the benefits you are entitled to. GIC has been supporting clients throughout the pandemic and is here for you.
For free, professional advice call 0131 552 0458 or 0131 551 2459, or you can email info@gic.org.uk – an adviser will respond to your message.
Thousands of families are now receiving their first Scottish Child Payment. As of Sunday 28 February 52,000 applications had been approved.
The new benefit to tackle child poverty, which is unique to Scotland, will give qualifying parents and carers £40 every four weeks for each child under six.
98,000 applications had been received by the end of February. Parents and carers are able to apply for all eligible children in their household in a single application and can also apply for Best Start Grants and Best Start Foods at the same time.
Social Security Secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville said: “I am delighted that the first payments of our game-changing Scottish Child Payment are now reaching families’ bank accounts.
“We’ve had a fantastic response to our new payment and I’m really proud that 52,000 applications have been approved already. I’m also really pleased at the number of applications received and I’d like to ask people for their patience while we process these as quickly as we can.
“The Scottish Child Payment is the most ambitious anti-poverty measure currently being undertaken anywhere in the UK. This payment will help lift children out of poverty so we want everyone entitled to this new benefit to receive it.
“The Scottish Child Payment together with the three Best Start Grant payments and Best Start Foods could give families on low incomes up to £5,200 by the time their first child turns six. This is significant support which is why we are making every effort to reach people.
“Social Security Scotland has written to everyone eligible on their database and those on data feeds from HMRC and the Department for Work and Pensions, proactively inviting them to apply, and they will continue to do so as more people access these qualifying benefits.
“We are also launching a marketing campaign later this month to promote our five social security payments for low income families to encourage everyone to apply for the financial support available.”
Omar Al Hmdan’s family in Aberdeen received their first Scottish Child Payment this week.
The father of three said: “The Scottish Child Payment will be helpful to families right across Scotland who are struggling or have limited incomes. It will help support my family to buy milk, nappies and food for the household.
“I’m very proud to call Scotland my home and that our Scottish Government is providing this benefit to families who need it most. Throughout lockdown many families struggled but this support will make a big difference to my family and families across Scotland.”
Social Security Scotland Management Information can be viewed here
Eligible families across Scotland are being encouraged to apply for the Best Start Grant School Age Payment before applications close on 28 February.
The one-off £250 payment can be used to buy anything from a warm coat to books and toys. Applications are open to families that have a child that was born between 1 March 2015 and 29 February 2016.
Parents who have deferred their child’s entry to school from August 2020 to August 2021, or those who are home schooling, may still be eligible for this payment and should still apply before the closing date.
The payment is part of the Best Start Grant, a package of three payments to support families who get tax credits or certain benefits – including Universal Credit, Income Support and Housing Benefit.
More information on the Social Security Scotland website
More than 77,000 Scottish Child Payment applications have been received since Social Security Scotland started taking applications on 9 November. The new benefit, which is unique to Scotland, will give qualifying parents and carers £40 every four weeks for each child under six.
The benefit starts today, meaning that Social Security Scotland is now able to do final eligibility checks and start issuing decisions. The first decisions and payments will arrive from later this month.
Payments for those who applied today or earlier will be backdated. Parents and carers have not yet applied and have a child under six are encouraged to apply today to get the maximum amount of money they are entitled to.
People who apply after today will have their payment calculated from the day that they apply.
Social Security Secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville said: “This is a fantastic response to our new payment. Today marks the day that parents and carers will become eligible for Scottish Child Payment.
“We’ve had a great response and this is a very large number of applications. It will take time to work through these applications and I’d like to ask families for their patience while we work as quickly as we can to process these.
“The Scottish Child Payment is the most ambitious anti-poverty measure currently being undertaken anywhere in the UK. Announced in late June 2019 the new payment has been achieved at great speed.
“In 2021-22 we will invest £3.6 billion in social security payments supporting carers, young people, and low income families including £68 million for this new payment. Significantly more families are now relying on benefits due to the pandemic – some perhaps for the first time. Scottish Child Payment will help lift children in Scotland out of poverty.
“We are proactively promoting this payment and we have written to everyone on the Universal Credit and HMRC tax credit databases who may be eligible to invite them to apply. .
“Covid-19 restrictions continue to put additional pressure on parents and carers and I recognise how busy families are. But I’d like to take this opportunity to encourage anyone who hasn’t yet applied, to take ten minutes to get their application in – it’s vital that people get the money they are entitled to.”
Scottish Child Payment has been introduced ahead of schedule for children under six by building on the existing infrastructure for Best Start Grant payments. The payment is planned to be fully rolled out to children under the age of 16 by the end of 2022. This is subject to data on qualifying benefits being received from the DWP to enable Social Security Scotland to make top-up payments.
