Issue - meetings

Further to Minute 68 (17 January 2023), the Cabinet Member for Finance, Growth and Core Services reported on the latest proposals aimed at supporting local residents during the current cost-of-living crisis.

The Government had allocated funding for the financial year 2023/24 via the Energy Bills Support Scheme (Alternative Funding) (EBSS AF) and the fourth iteration of the Household Support Fund, which the Council would be responsible for administering.  The Cabinet Member advised that in order to simplify the resident’s journey and align policies and processes, a single Local Hardship Schemes policy document encompassing the Council’s Discretionary Housing Payment (DHP), Household Support Fund (HSF), Individual Assistance Payment (IAP) and Discretionary Council Tax Relief (DCTR) had been produced, to coincide with a single application process.

Cabinet resolved to:

(i)  Note that the Council shall be responsible for verifying applications and making payments under the Government’s Energy Bills Support Scheme Alternative Funding;

(ii)  Approve the Council’s updated Local Hardship Schemes policy 2023/24, incorporating the Discretionary Housing Payment, Household Support, IAP Local Hardship and Discretionary Council Tax Hardship schemes, as set out at Appendix 1 to the report; and

(iii)  Delegate authority to the Director of Support and Collections, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Finance, Growth and Core Services and the Strategic Director, Finance and Investment, to vary the allocation of funding and scheme criteria where appropriate to reflect future demand.