Tag Archives: ukcuts
Amid growing poverty, councils have failed to save fund for those in need
From April 2015, a £180m a year hardship fund will be abolished. Councils have simply not made a strong enough argument for it
Iain Duncan Smith‘s axe has struck again. This time its local authority welfare assistance schemes on the block. But we’re not talking reform or even cuts. The scheme had already been significantly cut last year. From April 2015 a £180m a year hardship fund will be abolished completely. That’s right. Scrapped. A vital safety net will no longer be there.
For years I’ve seen the value of crisis loans, which used to operate under the social fund until the government devolved funding last year, allowing councils to set up their own discretionary crisis funds. They’re a critical part of the welfare system to help people in desperate need.
New bid to tackle the thousands in fuel poverty in Norfolk
A task force of county councillors are looking at how to stop vulnerable people having to choose between eating or heating. Photo credit: Help the aged/PA.
Dan Grimmer Monday, January 6, 2014
6:30 AM
Together, we can do more to stop people in Norfolk from having to choose between heating and eating – that is the message from a task force set up to investigate the scale of the problem in the county.
Surviving Winter
Norfolk’s Surviving Winter appeal has smashed through the £25,000 barrier. But requests are still coming in faster than donations, as some of our neediest elderly people feel the chill.
Norfolk Community Foundation last month issued a fresh call to those who may not need their winter fuel payments to pass the money on to those who do.
Surviving Winter, backed by the EDP, has been a lifeline for hundreds of Norfolk’s neediest households, giving grants towards the cost of fuel.
There are three ways you can give to the appeal:
Merseyside woman to pay bedroom tax on sensory room for severely disabled daughter
A Merseyside woman must pay the bedroom tax on a room which has been converted into a sensory area for her severely disabled daughter.
Dawn Lennon faces finding more than £570 a year because the government has deemed the room to be spare.
