Are you aged 16 to 18 and caring for someone 16 hours a week on average? The Young Carer Grant is now £326.65!
This is available on an annual basis so if you got the payment a year ago, and still care for someone, don’t forget to apply again.
Find out more: https://bit.ly/youngcarergrant
From this month, eligible people who apply for Best Start Early Learning Payment will receive the increased amount of £267.65.
You can apply when your child is aged between 2 and 3.5 years old.
Find out more: https://bit.ly/EarlyLearningPayment
People who are due payments on Monday 2 May and Tuesday 3 May will receive these by the end of Friday 29 April.
This is due to the May Day bank holiday.
All other payment dates will stay the same.
Plans have been announced to automatically pay the Best Start Grant Early Learning and School Age Payments to parents and carers who already receive Scottish Child Payment when their children become eligible.
The change will be introduced later this year when Scottish Child Payment is extended to under-16s and increased to £25 per child, per week.
This builds on extensive work already done to make applying for the Scottish Government’s five family payments as straightforward as possible.
It includes the ability to apply for all children in a household on a single form. The form can be completed online, by phone or on paper. Parents and carers contributed to the design of the form to make sure the language was clear and easy to navigate.
As set out in the recent Tackling Child Poverty Delivery Plan ‘Best Start, Bright Futures’, the introduction of automatic awards will remove the need for eligible families receiving Scottish Child Payment to reapply when their child becomes eligible for the Early Learning and School Age Payments.
This will mean less paperwork for tens of thousands of families and ensure that families automatically receive the support to which they’re entitled.
On a visit to FARE Scotland in Glasgow, Minister for Social Security, Ben Macpherson said: “Tackling child poverty is a key mission for the Scottish Government and automating payments, where we already have all of the information we need to do so, will mean parents and carers automatically getting the financial support they are eligible for paid directly to them.
“Since launching Best Start Grant in December 2018, we’ve made more than 177,000 payments, totalling £55.3 million in support, families who need it most. Automating payments, where we can, will enable us to help even more families.
“We are committed to making sure that receiving our five family payments is as straightforward as possible. Automatic awards, increasing Scottish Child Payment to £20, and again to £25 by the end of the year, and uprating eight Scottish benefits by 6% are some of the ways we are using our limited social security powers and resources to help families in need.”
Jimmy Wilson, Chief Executive of FARE Scotland, said: “There are families who aren’t aware of all the benefits to which they’re entitled so anything that can be done to make the process simpler is to be welcomed.
“It’s more important than ever that people understand the help which is there for them.
“The advantages in having automatic awards could be significant. We hope this move has a positive impact on take up rates which could help to reduce and prevent child poverty and support family wellbeing.”
Social Security Scotland factsheet
The flagship family payment – Scottish Child Payment – has now doubled to £20 per week per child. 104,000 children are already benefiting from this increase.
The payment, which is unique to Scotland, was designed to tackle child poverty head on. It is one of five family benefits which provides financial support to low income families with children aged under 6.
The benefit will be extended at the end of the year to all eligible children under the age of 16 – and at that point also increase further from £20 to £25.
Once extended, it is expected over 400,000 children could be eligible. The newly doubled Scottish Child Payment, together with the three Best Start Grant payments and Best Start Foods, will provide families with more than £10,000 by the time their first child turns 6 and £9,700 for subsequent children.
This compares to less than £1,800 for an eligible family’s first child in England and Wales, and less than £1,300 for subsequent children.
Visiting Glasgow based family charity Govan Help, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said: “We are using our social security powers to take immediate steps to put cash in the pockets of families by doubling the Scottish Child Payment to £20 per week per child – support not replicated anywhere else in the UK.
“This is a key part of our national mission to tackle child poverty. We will further increase this payment to £25 by the end of 2022 – five times the amount campaigners originally asked. This will gives families additional financial support of £1,300 for each eligible child every year. We will back this with investment of around £671 million over the next two years – just part of our package of support for families.
“Our Tackling Child Poverty Delivery Plan will also build on our investment in employment support for parents, through new skills and training opportunities and key worker support to help reduce household costs and drive longer term change.
“We are determined to give children the best start and a bright future by putting more money into the pockets of those who need it most. Increasing the Scottish Child Payment will make a real difference to families and help to build a more equal and fairer Scotland for everyone.”
Viv Sawers, Chief Officer at Govan Help, said: “This is a fantastic measure from Scottish Government in tackling Child Poverty in Scotland. The roll out and the uplift in Scottish Child Payment will have an incredible impact on the families across Scotland who need it most and we are delighted to see money going directly to families who we know are struggling to meet their basic cost of living.
“Govan has higher than average rates of Child Poverty so this will have a hugely positive impact on the quality of life for families in this local community. We see families struggling daily, they have told us what a difference this has made already with the cost of living increases, we look forward to supporting more families to access this as it rolls out to children up to age 16 later this year.
“We know parenting is a really hard job, without financial pressures, this funding will go a long way to removing stresses that can impact on healthy family functioning and wellbeing.”
EIGHT of the benefits delivered by Social Security Scotland will now increase by 6%. The increase in payments for low income households and carers comes as the cost of living continues to rise.
Benefits and assistance including Job Start Payment, Young Carers Grant, Funeral Support Payment and Carer’s Allowance Supplement were due to be increased by 3.1% for 2022/23. Subject to parliamentary approval, the increases will now be almost doubled to a 6% uprate.
In addition, the three Best Start Grant payments, which we had not previously planned to uprate, will also now be uprated by 6%, and Child Winter Heating Assistance, which was previously set to rise by 5%, will now also rise by 6%.
From tomorrow (1st April), there will be a 100% increase in Scottish Child Payment, which will double from £10 per week to £20. Best Start Foods was already increased from £4.25 to £4.50 a week in August (5.88%).
Adult Disability Payment and Child Disability Payment will still increase by 3.1% on April 11 in line with the equivalent benefits (Disability Living Allowance and Personal Independence Payment) which are still administered by the Department for Work and Pensions under agency agreement.
This is to avoid creating a two-tier system where individuals paid by Social Security Scotland are paid more than clients whose cases have not yet transferred to the Scottish system.
Payment rates for 2022-2023 are:
| Benefit | Rates 2021-2022 | Rates 2022-2023 | New rates 2022-2023 (6% uprate) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Best Start Grant | |||
| Best Start Grant Pregnancy and Baby Payment (1st Child Payment) | £606.00 | £606.00 | £642.35 |
| Best Start Grant Pregnancy and Baby Payment (Subsequent Child Payment & Extra Payment for Twins/Triplets) | £303.00 | £303.00 | £321.20 |
| Best Start Grant Early Learning Payment | £252.50 | £252.50 | £267.65 |
| Best Start Grant School Age Payment | £252.50 | £252.50 | £267.65 |
| Child Winter Heating Assistance | |||
| Child Winter Heating Assistance (annually) | £202.00 | £212.10 | £214.10 |
| Funeral Support Payment | |||
| standard rate for other expenses element | £1,010.00 | £1041.30 | £1,070.60 |
| other expenses element where there is a funeral plan | £123.25 | £127.05 | £130.65 |
| removal of implanted medical devices | £20.55 | £21.20 | £21.55 |
| Job Start Payment | |||
| Job Start Payment (one-off) standard rate | £251.25 | £260.35 | £267.65 |
| higher rate | £404.00 | £416.50 | £428.25 |
| Young Carer Grant | |||
| Young Carer Grant (annually) | £308.15 | £317.70 | £326.65 |
| Carer’s Allowance Supplement | £8.90 | £9.15 | £9.45 |
| Child Disability Payment | Rates 2021-2022 | Rates 2022-2023* |
|---|---|---|
| Care Component Highest Rate | £89.60 | £92.40 |
| Care Component Middle Rate | £60.00 | £61.85 |
| Care Component Lowest Rate | £23.70 | £24.45 |
| Mobility Component Higher Rate | £62.55 | £64.50 |
| Mobility Component Lower Rate | £23.70 | £24.45 |
| Adult Disability Payment | Rates 2021-2022 | Rates 2022-2023* |
|---|---|---|
| Daily Living Component Standard Rate | £60.00 | £61.85 |
| Daily Living Component Enhanced Rate | £89.60 | £92.40 |
| Mobility Component Standard Rate | £23.70 | £24.45 |
| Mobility Component Enhanced Rate | £62.55 | £64.50 |
* 3.1% increase in line with the equivalent benefits (Disability Living Allowance and Personal Independence Payment) which are still administered by DWP under agency agreement.
The new Adult Disability Payment will open for applications today (Monday 21 March) for people living in three pilot areas.
People aged between 16 and state pension age who are disabled, have a long-term health condition or a terminal illness living in Dundee City, Perth and Kinross and Western Isles council areas can apply.
Adult Disability Payment will replace the UK Government’s Personal Independence Payment (PIP) in Scotland.
People with ongoing awards of Personal Independence Payment and Disability Living Allowance do not need to make an application for Adult Disability Payment. Their awards will transfer to the Scottish social security system automatically from summer 2022.
Further council areas will be introduced in phases until Adult Disability Payment is rolled out nationally on 29 August 2022.
Minister for Social Security Ben Macpherson said: “Social security is a human right and none of us know when we might need it – it is a shared investment to help build a fairer society, together. We are developing a system that is rooted in trust to make sure people can access the support that they are entitled to.
“Launching this first Adult Disability Payment pilot is a significant milestone, as we start to deliver our biggest and most complex benefit. We are taking a positive and compassionate approach to delivering disability assistance, centred around our principles of dignity, fairness and respect.
“We know people have found applying for disability benefits stressful in the past. That is why we have listened to their experiences and have designed our service to work for people, not against them.
“We are ensuring that accessing Adult Disability Payment is as straightforward as possible and we will always start from a position of trust. Importantly, in the Scottish system no one will be subject to Department for Work and Pensions style assessments and we will never use the private sector to carry out health examinations.
“There won’t be any degrading functional examinations, such as asking a client to ‘touch their toes’.. These changes have been welcomed by those with lived experience, who we have worked with to design this benefit.
“People will only be invited to a consultation on occasions when we require more information so we can make a decision. This will be a conversation with a health and social care professional to understand how an individual’s disability or health condition impacts them.
“We are committed to giving people timely decisions, but our priority is making the right decisions first time and sometimes this may take a bit longer. This will reduce the need for people to go through a redetermination or appeal.
“Adult Disability Payment is there to support people to live well and provide security at the most difficult of times. I would encourage those who think they could be eligible to check and apply.”
Tracy McNally, Director of Dundee Citizens Advice Bureau said: “Helping people with social security payments, and disability payments in particular, is one of the biggest things we do and we’re excited that Dundee is one of the pilot areas for the roll out of adult disability payments.
“It’s really important that the new system is rooted in dignity and respect for applicants, and doesn’t cause unnecessary stress or anxiety.
“We’d encourage anyone who may eligible for the support to apply, and if anyone ever needs help or advice on social security issues, your local CAB is here for you.”
Disabled people with the most serious lifelong health conditions will have more financial security under Scotland’s social security system.
Adult Disability Payment will replace the UK Government’s Personal Independence Payment (PIP). It will open for new applications in pilot areas starting this month.
Disabled people on the highest components of the new benefit and whose needs are highly unlikely to change will be eligible for an “indefinite award”. In effect, this will mean they will not be subject to reviews and can rely on their new benefit into the long-term.
People with ongoing awards of Personal Independence Payment and Disability Living Allowance do not need to make an application for Adult Disability Payment. They will be contacted from this summer to let them know when their awards will automatically be moved safely and securely to Adult Disability Payment.
Social Security Minister Ben Macpherson said: “The introduction of indefinite awards, as part of Adult Disability Payment, underlines our commitment to deliver on the principles of Scotland’s social security system to treat people with dignity, fairness and respect.
“In making this decision, we have engaged with a wide range of people with lived experience of the current system and will continue to listen as we design and build a social security system that works for disabled people.
“We want to ensure that people on the highest levels of Adult Disability Payment awards receive long-term and adequate support, because those with lifelong conditions, or disabilities resulting in needs highly unlikely to change, should not be subject to unnecessary reviews when it is reasonably expected that their situation will not change.
“Under the UK Government’s Personal Independence Payment, similar awards have generally been reviewed between every 2 to 10 years. However, disabled people tell us that even review periods of 10 years can create stress and anxiety. That is why we have decided to introduce indefinite awards – we are determined to do things differently and build a more compassionate system in Scotland.”
Moira Tasker, Chief Officer, Inclusion Scotland said: “Inclusion Scotland warmly welcomes the announcement that there will be indefinite awards of Adult Disability Payment. We are glad the Minister has acted on the views expressed by disabled people and adopted this measure.
“It will come as a huge relief for disabled people with high, permanent levels of impairment who faced continual reassessments under the flawed DWP, Personal Independent Payment, system. Indefinite awards will also provide some certainty and security for those who receive them.”
Morna Simpkins, Director of MS Society Scotland, added: “We are pleased the Scottish Government has listened to the views of the MS community and MS Society Scotland and will re-introduce indefinite awards.
“MS is relentless, painful, and disabling. Indefinite awards will provide some people living with progressive long term conditions, like MS, with the security of knowing they will not have their awards downgraded or income cut.”
Adult Disability Payment is the twelfth benefit to be introduced by Social Security Scotland since September 2018, which includes seven new benefits, unique to Scotland.
PLANS FOR A NEW BENEFIT
Views are being sought on plans to improve support for Scotland’s community of unpaid carers through the introduction of a new benefit.
Under Scottish Government proposals, Scottish Carer’s Assistance will replace Carer’s Allowance, currently delivered by the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP), and be delivered by Social Security Scotland.
It will support over 80,000 people who provide 35 hours per week or more of care to those receiving certain disability benefits. An additional payment of more than £500 a year will be made to those who care for more than one person.
A consultation published today outlines proposals aimed at improving the service that carers receive, including increased financial support and links to wider support in areas such as social care, employability, education and bereavement.
It also highlights how support could be expanded once those already in receipt of Carer’s Allowance have been transferred from DWP to Social Security Scotland.
Social Security Minister Ben Macpherson said: “Caring for a loved one can be a positive and life changing experience but also presents many challenges. We will deliver Scottish Carer’s Assistance in a compassionate and considerate way, linking carers to wider services.
“We will also create a weekly payment of £10 for those caring for more than one person, and if the person they care for is challenging a change to their disability benefits we will make support available.
“This is in addition to continuing support for young carers and maintaining the extra support from our Carer’s Allowance Supplement, providing eligible carers with an extra £460 a year.
“When we have introduced our new benefit, and safely and securely transferred people from Carer’s Allowance to Scottish Carer’s Assistance, we intend to make further improvements. We will look for opportunities to make these changes sooner if we can do so without putting carers’ existing benefits at risk.
“These further changes would help remove barriers to education, allow carers to add together hours spent caring for more than one person to qualify for support, extend support after the loss of a cared for person or when a cared for person is in hospital, and enable carers to earn more from paid work.
“We want to hear people’s views on these plans, other potential changes beyond these, and thoughts on how improvements would help address inequality and poverty.”
Fiona Collie, Policy & Public Affairs Manager at Carers Scotland, said: “Carers Scotland is very pleased to welcome the publication of this consultation on proposals for Scottish Carer’s Assistance and a new Carer Additional Person Payment to support unpaid carers.
“This opportunity to improve the main financial support for carers in Scotland is an important one and carers have long discussed ways in which it can be changed to recognise their caring and better meet their needs.
“I would encourage as many carers as possible to respond and bring their views and experiences to the consultation, either individually or through events and activities that are planned.”
The Scottish Carer’s Assistance consultation is open for responses until 23 May 2022.
