Cornwall cost of living payments delayed

Cornwall Council said it was doing all it could to get the payment codes to parents

Cost of living payments for families in Cornwall who receive free school meals could be delayed until after Christmas.

Household Support Fund payments of £80 per child are available to help the most vulnerable people over the winter.

Cornwall Council said the Post Office had taken "a little longer to create these payments than was originally expected".

The explanation has been met with hostile responses from some parents.

The fund is provided by central government and in a statement, Cornwall Council said: "We're working hard to ensure families of eligible school children receive their £80 per child cost of living support payment as soon as possible.

"We'd hoped that codes would be sent to schools this week, before the end of term, so they could be redeemed for cash at Post Offices before Christmas.

"Unfortunately it's taken the Post Office a little longer to create these payments than was originally expected so schools may not have enough time to issue all codes before the end of term."

'Families suffer'

It added that it had "never been able to guarantee this funding would be available before Christmas", but it was "doing everything we can to ensure the codes are sent to schools for onward distribution to parents".

Families that do not receive their code before Christmas would receive them at the start of the next school term, it said, apologising for any inconvenience.

Responding to the council's Facebook post, Lisa Edmunds said: "They had this money months ago from the government but instead of sorting it straight away they have left it until the deadline and now families have to suffer."

The council urged anyone seeking help and advice with the cost of living to visit their website.