Low-income households to receive cash support

Cornwall Council say low-income households will get £80 in cash to help with the cost of living

Low-income households in Cornwall will benefit from one-off cash payments to help with the cost of living, Cornwall Council has said.

A total of £4.5m of extra financial support had been secured through the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) Household Support Fund (HSF), the authority said.

Payments would be made by the end of June, it added.

Dr Andy Virr, cabinet portfolio holder for adults and public health, said the cost of living continued to "have a huge impact on many families across Cornwall".

'Better targeting'

He said: "It is good to see we have again secured this significant funding to help as many as possible.

“I hope it will go some way to ensure pensioners and parents in particular can pay their bills and put food on the table for their families."

One-off payments include £80 for pensioners in receipt of pension credit and £80 for adults assessed as requiring domiciliary care and receiving a financial contribution to the cost of the care from the council.

Families receiving council tax support would get £80 per child, and families living in emergency accommodation would also get £80 per child, officials said.

Portfolio holder for children and families Barbara Ellenbroek said the council had had changed its eligibility criteria for households with children, so it was "now linked to whether they receive council tax support rather than benefits-related free school meals".

"By better targeting the awards, we are able to help families with children of any age, rather than just school-age children," she said.

The council said the remaining money would go to partner organisations, including Citizens Advice Cornwall, Disability Cornwall, Cornwall Carers Service and Community Energy Plus.