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.
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.
A total of 144,128 COVID Winter Hardship Payments have been made to families across Scotland.
The payments are available to families with children receiving Free School Meals on the basis of low income, with £14.41 million given to households as part of the Scottish Government’s Winter Plan for Social Protection.
A one-off payment of £100 was made by local authorities for each eligible child in receipt of Free School Meals between 30 November and the start of the winter holidays.
Communities Secretary Aileen Campbell said: “We know that many families are struggling financially due to the pandemic, whether through lost earnings, increased food costs or simply needing to run their heating more. This additional payment will hopefully have helped ease the strain they are facing.
“We have now provided over £50 million in additional funding to local authorities to continue the provision of Free School Meals during school closures, periods of online learning and holidays from the summer, and we are committed to do so through the forthcoming Easter holidays.
“The provision of Free School Meals outside of term time and the £100 payment are just two of the ways we’re working to support people and communities. We have invested over £500 million to mitigate the negative impacts of the pandemic, which includes a £22 million increase to our Scottish Welfare Fund and considerable investment in support provided by community and third sector organisations.
“With our Scottish Child Payment also due to start next week, we are showing our commitment to tackling poverty and inequality through this pandemic and beyond.”
The £100 million Winter Plan for Social Protection was 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.
Families are eligible for their children to receive Free School Meals, on the basis of low income, if they receive certain benefits or their local council considers they are facing financial hardship.
Funding for Free School Meals has been provided as follows:
April – June 2020: £15 million – remote learning
July – Sept 2020: £12.6 million – summer holidays
Oct 2020 – March 2021: £6.95 million – Oct, Christmas and Feb holidays
Jan 2021: £7.057 million – remote learning
Feb 2021: £5.841 million – remote learning
April 2021: £4.29 million – Easter holidays
This funding has enabled local authorities to ensure that every eligible child has continued to receive a free school meal alternative – direct payment, voucher or food parcel – throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.
£540 million in benefit payments since launch of new system
The Scottish Government has provided people who need it with over £540 million in payments since launch in September 2018 up to 31 March 2020, according to the Social Security Scotland’s annual report published today.
From 1 September 2018 to 31 March 2020, benefits were delivered that support low income families during key stages in a child’s life, people struggling to pay for funerals and unpaid carer
The support paid over the course of the financial year reporting period 1 April 2019 to 31 March 2020 totalled £346.7 million.
A further three benefits have been introduced since March 2020. Job Start Payment, Child Winter Heating Assistance and the Scottish Child Payment which is estimated could pay an extra £142 million to people in Scotland every year.
Social Security Secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville said: “Social security is the most significant new public service to be created in Scotland since devolution.
“Social Security Scotland’s latest annual report shows that our new service is already supporting thousands of low income people including families with young children, carers and those who have lost loved ones.
“It paid out £346.7 million in the last financial year and we expect this to be much higher when we report again next year given the introduction of three more benefits – including the game changing Scottish Child Payment.
“What’s also encouraging is that over 80% of clients who rated their experience of applying for Scotland’s benefits said it was good. Making sure we get money to those who need it is our priority but to truly do things differently we want to make sure that people have a good experience – that they are treated with dignity, fairness and respect.
“Of the ten benefits we currently offer, seven are completely new forms of assistance and the others are more generous than the UK benefits they replace. And despite the impact of Covid-19, we have introduced three new benefits in the last four months and our new Scottish Child Payment that will provide eligible parents and carers with an additional £10 per child per week is open to applications and will be paid from the end of February 2021.
“Over the course of this year, the service has continued to grow and take on new responsibilities. And next year will bring even greater challenges with the introducing of the more complex disability benefits. People can be reassured that we will continue to ensure that our social security system is there for people when they need it, and is something they can be proud of.”
Chief Executive of Social Security Scotland, David Wallace said: “I’m very proud of what we have achieved during the 2019/20 reporting period and since launching our brand new public service. And I’m pleased we have been able to effectively get money to so many people in Scotland who need it.
“There is still a lot more to do as we prepare to start to deliver the more complex disability payments and our service will continue to grow.
“The annual report demonstrates all that we have accomplished. Looking forward, our new Corporate Plan sets out what we will do to deliver on our responsibilities in the future.
“And our Charter Measurement Framework co-designed by people with lived experience of benefits – will help us measure our success.”
Background
Payments made during the reporting period of 1 April 2019 to 31 March 2020 include Best Start Grant Pregnancy and Baby Payment, Best Start Grant Early Learning Payment, Best Start Grant School Age Payment, Best Start Foods, Carer’s Allowance Supplement, Young Carer Grant and Funeral Support Payment.
Social Security Scotland also reports on Carer’s Allowance payments that are made on its behalf through the Department for Work and Pensions.
Over £537 million in benefit expenditure was recorded in the Social Security Scotland annual report (£346.7 million in 2019/20 and £190.9 million in the seven months of 2018/19) with an additional £6.9 million in 2019/20 Best Start Foods payments coming from the Scottish Government’s health budget. Best Start Foods spend is accounted for in the Scottish Government’s annual accounts.
As of 23 November 2020, Social Security Scotland now directly administers ten benefits. Benefits introduced in 2020/21 include Job Start Payment (introduced August 2020), Scottish Child Payment (applications accepted from November 2020 with payments to start end February 2021) and Child Winter Heating Assistance (introduced November 2020)
Payment introduced to protect people when challenging benefit decisions
People challenging disability benefit decisions will be able to claim a new Short Term Assistance payment under Scotland’s new social security system.
Short Term Assistance will mean people continue to receive the amount of money they were getting before the decision was made to lower or stop their payment.
To ensure people are not put off seeking an appeal or re-determination, they will not have to repay Short Term Assistance if the re-determination or appeal upholds the decision to lower or stop their social security payment.
This is a first for benefit delivery in the UK and it will be introduced alongside Child Disability Payment, the Scottish Government’s replacement for Disability Living Allowance for Children.
Social Security Secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville said: “People’s lives are complex and making benefit decisions, which take into consideration a whole range of unique circumstances, is difficult.
“Social Security Scotland will gather as much information as we can, working with the applicant, the wider public sector and health and social care professionals to make the right decision first time. However, we know that we won’t always get it right and where we don’t, we want people to feel able to challenge us to look again.
“This is why we are introducing Short Term Assistance. We know that it can be difficult for people who rely on disability assistance when their payment has been reduced or stopped. The decision to ask for a re-determination or appeal can be daunting. This new payment will give people the confidence to ask us to look again and to go to appeal if they feel they need to, ensuring they get everything they may be entitled while working through this process.
“We hope to drastically reduce the need for people to go through the re-determination and appeal process under our new system by getting the decisions right first time. Where we don’t get it right though, we will give people who rely on this service the opportunity to right this wrong, without being penalised.”
Extra money for more than 14,000 disabled children
Families of disabled children will receive a new heating benefit by Christmas.
The Child Winter Heating Assistance is a new £200 payment to help families of a child on the highest rate care component of Disability Living Allowance for Children to heat their homes. There are more than 14,000 children expected to be eligible.
Payments will arrive with people from Friday 27 November and these are expected to be complete by Friday 11 December.
People do not need to apply for this payment. It will be made automatically by Social Security Scotland using information provided by the Department for Work and Pensions. Families will get a letter in advance to confirm that they will be getting this payment.
This is the first form of disability assistance to be introduced by the Scottish Government using its new social security powers.
Cabinet Secretary for Social Security and Older People, Shirley Anne Somerville said: “As the nights draw in and the temperature starts to drop we will all be conscious of the extra cost to heat our homes. For families of the most seriously disabled children and young people, who may need to heat their homes for longer periods, this can bring even more pressure in what is already a challenging circumstance.
“I am so pleased that we have been able to introduce this payment before Christmas, ensuring people will have this money ahead of the coldest of the winter months. I hope this helps these families plan their finances and that they can turn the heating on without as much worry about how they are going to afford it.
“I am delighted that despite the impact of COVID-19, we’ve been able to move forward with three new benefits this year – Job Start Payment, Scottish Child Payment and now Child Winter Heating Assistance. This is the first disability assistance that we will deliver using our new social security powers.
“We are continuing to work with delivery partners to review the timeline for introduction of our remaining benefits and we will do everything we can to start these as soon as we can practically and safely do so.”
Background
a client will qualify for Child Winter Heating Assistance if they live in Scotland and were in receipt of the highest rate care component of Disability Living Allowance for children on at least one day between 21 September 2020 to 27 September 2020.
families will get letters in advance to confirm to expect this payment. Payments will be made in batches from Monday 23 November and arrive in people’s banks approximately four days later. It is expected to take two weeks to complete all payments. This payment will be made to the same account that they receive Disability Assistance Living Allowance for Children payments to.
families will get a payment for every child who receives the highest rate Disability Living Allowance for children. This is not a per household payment.
if a family believes that they are eligible for this payment and they haven’t had a letter or a payment, they should contact Social Security Scotland from Tuesday 8 December for further advice.
people can contact Social Security Scotland through web chat at mygov.scot/contact-social-security-scotland/ by calling the Freephone helpline on 0800 182 2222.
while the pandemic continues to have an impact on our operations and our delivery partners – including health and social care and the Department for Work and Pensions – we are doing what we can to progress policy, design and development work. We are still working through what the impacts of COVID-19 mean for our delivery timeline and holding conversations with partners to establish what we can introduce and when.
New legislation to improve the benefits system to help those who need it most has been unanimously passed by the Scottish Parliament.
The Social Security Administration and Tribunal Membership (Scotland) Bill supports the delivery of the new Scottish Child Payment, to provide low-income families with an additional £10 per week, initially for each child aged under six.
The Payment, together with Best Start Grant and Best Start Foods, will provide over £5,200 of financial support for families by the time their first child turns six. For second and subsequent children this will provide over £4,900.
Cabinet Secretary for Social Security and Older People Shirley-Anne Somerville said: “When I brought this Bill forward, the driving force was to have the Scottish Child Payment in place as soon as possible to make an impact on child poverty.
“I am pleased and proud that, in the teeth of a global pandemic, the Scottish Child Payment will open for applications in November with first payments to start from February 2021. Vitally the bill passed today ensures that the Payment will be up-rated every year in line with inflation, from April 2022 onwards.
“This Bill also ensures that there is a duty to inform people of their potential eligibility for benefits such as our Child Payment. Promoting the take-up of Scotland’s social security benefits is a major part of our strategy to make sure people access the financial assistance they are entitled to.”
The Social Security Administration and Tribunal Membership (Scotland) Bill makes a number of improvements to the social security system, and expands the range of judges allowed to sit on Scottish Tribunals.
It allows Ministers to appoint a person to receive benefit payments on someone else’s behalf if the claimant is a child or – in the case of an adult – if the claimant agrees to the appointment.
The Bill also allows appropriately qualified medical professionals other than just doctors to confirm that a person is terminally ill for the purpose of ‘fast tracking’ their benefit claim. The first benefit to which this will apply is the Child Disability Payment.
The Bill applies the rules for dealing with fraud consistently across different kinds of social security.
The Scottish Fiscal Commission estimates that the Scottish Child Payment could support up to 194,000 children this year. This number has increased by 14 per cent since the Scottish Government released forecasts in June 2019, largely due to the increased Universal Credit caseload as a result of COVID-19.
Initially introduced for children under six, the Payment will be rolled out to under 16 year olds, eventually helping up to 499,000 eligible children.
