£100 million package will help communities at risk
Funding to help people pay for food, heating, warm clothing and shelter during the winter is part of a new £100m support package.
The fund will help those on low incomes, children and people at risk of homelessness or social isolation cope with winter weather and the economic impact of coronavirus (COVID-19) and Brexit.
The Winter Plan for Social Protection, announced by First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, will also address domestic abuse and digital exclusion.
COVID-19 has had a significant negative effect on Scotland’s economy hitting jobs and living standards hard – and Brexit will exacerbate the situation.
With winter approaching, some of Scotland’s most at-risk communities are facing rising costs for food, fuel and other essentials.
Key elements of the plan include:
- £22m for low income families including £16m to give the low income families of an estimated 156,000 children in receipt of free school meals a one-off £100 payment by Christmas
- £23.5m to help vulnerable children through additional support for residential and care homes, social work, and the Children’s Hearing system
- £15m for the Communities and Third Sector Recovery Programme to support the work of local organisations
- £5.9m to promote digital inclusion for older people, support social isolation and loneliness and to promote equality
- £7m to help people who are struggling to pay fuel bills
- £5m to help those at risk of homelessness find a settled home
The Winter Plan for Social Protection also includes £15m of flexible funding for local authorities entering COVID-19 protection level 4 – announced by the First Minister earlier this month – which can be used to pay for food and essentials.
The First Minister said: “We will shortly become the only part of the UK to give low income families an extra £10 per week for every child – initially for children up to age 6 and then for every child up to age 16.
“This has been described as a game changer in the fight to end child poverty. The first payments will be made in February, but I know that for families struggling now, February is still a long way off.
“So I am announcing today a £100 million package to bridge that gap, and help others struggling most with the impact of COVID over the winter months.
“It will include money to help people pay their fuel bills and make sure children don’t go hungry. It will offer additional help for the homeless, and fund an initiative to get older people online and connected. And it will provide a cash grant of £100 for every family with children in receipt of free school meals.
“The money will be paid before Christmas and families can use it for whatever will help them through the winter.
“That could be food, new shoes or a winter coat for the kids. Families will know best what they need – that’s not for government to decide.
“Initiatives like this are not just about providing practical help to those who need it most – they are an expression of our values and of the kind of country we are seeking to build.”
The £100m Winter Plan for Social Protection has been developed to mitigate social harms posed by the concurrent risks of COVID-19, winter cost of living increases and EU exit, as well as to promote equality and human rights.
The full breakdown of the £100m fund is:
Support for families on low incomes (£22m)
Supporting services for children and young people (£23.5m)
Enhancing capacity within the third sector and communities (£15m)
Funds for local authorities moving into level 4 (£15m)
Further help with fuel costs (£7m)
Further investment in strategic national food activity (£2m)
Further investment to support people affected by homelessness (£5.14m)
Increased digital inclusion through Connecting Scotland for older people, support for social isolation and loneliness and strategic investment to promote equality (£5.91m)
A campaign on benefit uptake and income maximisation (£0.25m)
Reserve fund to meet potential pressures (£4.2m)
End Child Poverty members in Scotland welcomed the First Minister’s announcement today committing to provide low-income families entitled to free school meals in Scotland with a £100 per child payment.
Amidst rising child poverty and the financial impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, this package of financial support for families whose children are eligible for free school meals will bring some welcome relief.
Speaking on behalf of End Child Poverty members in Scotland, Peter Kelly, Director of Poverty Alliance in Scotland, said: “It has been clear that children and families struggling to stay afloat through the pandemic cannot wait for the Scottish Child Payment for the lifeline support they need.
“So, it is very welcome that the Scottish Government has listened to people living on low incomes and organisations across Scotland, by committing to cash grants to support families through winter.
“For many fighting to keep their heads above water amid a rising tide of poverty, the cold winter months are bringing deeper hardship. This payment will act as an anchor to help them weather the storm until the rollout of the Scottish Child Payment.”
For many months End Child Poverty members in Scotland have been calling on both the Scottish and UK Governments to act urgently to get money into the pockets of struggling families, to mitigate the financial impact of the pandemic and consequently the concerning rise in child poverty. We are pleased that the Scottish Government has listened to our calls and committed to supporting families most in need.
Getting cash directly into the pockets of families ensures dignity, respect and choice for families, recognising that families themselves are best placed to decide how to provide for their children. Working directly with children and families every day, they tell us the difference having money in their pockets means for them.
Many families across Scotland have been facing a long and difficult winter of increasing financial uncertainty and anxiety about how to pay their bills or feed their children. The Scottish Child Payment will not be fully rolled out until 2022, so this additional payment for those families will help bridge the gap between now and then.
Today’s announcement will go some way to alleviating the financial stress and anxiety for many families over the coming weeks and months.
However, there is currently no detail about how families with only pre-school aged children will benefit from today’s commitment or families with ‘No Recourse to Public Funds’, and this must be clarified. We also continue to call on the Scottish Government to commit further to increasing household incomes for struggling families who will continue to face much more uncertainty and financial insecurity during the pandemic and beyond.
We also continue to call on the UK Government to commit to making the temporary uplift to Universal Credit of £20 per week a permanent lifeline for families, beyond April next year. This permanent uplift should also be applied to legacy benefits and Tax Credits.
We believe today’s announcement is a good first step towards getting the desperately needed and vital financial support into families’ pockets. As we look towards next year and beyond there is much more needed if Scotland is to meet its child poverty targets. We look forward to working with the Scottish Government to help them achieve this.