Borders Covid community hubs to reopen for cost-of-living aid

The hubs will provide food and warmth to anyone struggling with the cost-of-living crisis

Councillors in the Borders have agreed to reopen community hubs to provide food and warmth in the face of the cost of living crisis.

The centres operated during the Covid pandemic to provide support for people and families who were struggling.

Scottish Borders Council has agreed a £1.2m package which will see them return this autumn and winter.

It will also allow £100 warm-clothing payments to be made to each of the 2,350 eligible children in the region.

Councillor Robin Tatler said he believed many organisations and charities would come together to provide the required support to ensure no-one was left "out in the cold".

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"The council has responded magnificently in the past to crisis - whether it's a weather a crisis or the pandemic," he said.

"The community assistance hubs were hugely successful as were the resilience groups and that experience is going to be taken forward as we tackle this crisis."

He said communication would be vital to make sure that everyone knew that if they needed help it was available and the locations where it could be accessed.

The move is part of the council's anti-poverty strategy and a report said it was clear that many people in the region were already affected and the situation would "significantly worsen" during the autumn and winter.

Funding for the scheme will come from a £1.4m underspend delivered by the local authority in 2021/22.

The report said that while support was also expected from UK and Scottish governments it was important the council did not delay its response and put in place appropriate measures.