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Near £3m cost of living help awarded to northern Lincolnshire for this winter

The next round of government Household Support Fund (HSF) cash allocations for local councils have now been announced, with northern Lincolnshire to get £2.9m.

The fund helps councils provide vital cost of living help. HSF was due to conclude this month, but was recently extended to the end of March. While a national funding figure of £421m had been disclosed, what each local authority will be getting had not been announced.

North East Lincolnshire Council will get £1.6m, and North Lincolnshire will receive £1.3m. Across Yorkshire and Humber, councils have been granted £47m for the next six months through HSF.

Councils have relatively free rein on how the money is spent, so long as it is targeted at low income residents, including families. In response to the announcement, a North East Lincolnshire Council spokesperson said: “We’re currently working through the latest guidance from the government, issued earlier this week, and considering options to best support our residents.”

North Lincolnshire Council leader Cllr Rob Waltham has welcomed the HSF’s extension, saying: “I am pleased that the Government has finally recognised the importance of the Household Support Fund and the vital help it gives to residents in need – especially older people and families.

“We will pledge to use this money locally to support our most vulnerable residents in these particularly difficult times when energy bills are rising and other household costs continue to increase.” Referencing the planned means-testing of Winter Fuel Allowance, he added: “While HSF does not come anywhere near to replacing the financial hit local pensioners will take, it will help the council support thousands of residents who need it most.”

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Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall MP said of the funding regionally: “This £47 million boost will support families who need across Yorkshire and the Humber with the costs of feeding children, heating homes, or helping people get to work.

“This comes alongside our work to fix the foundations of our country, grow the economy and deliver opportunities for people to get work and get on in work, so everyone feels better off.”

In previous rounds, the majority, or about half, of North East Lincolnshire Council’s HSF spend has been on £15-a-week vouchers during school holidays for children in receipt of free school meals. Almost 8,000 children in the borough got the vouchers this summer.

It has also run an HSF grant scheme, offering one-off payments of up to £250, or white goods such a cooker, to lower income residents. Great Grimsby and Cleethorpes MP Melanie Onn has written to the council’s chief executive, asking that pensioners are prioritised in this next HSF round, lasting from October to March.

In North Lincolnshire, previous HSF cash has been spent on the likes of Post Office pay-out vouchers to help less well-off pensioners with energy payments, and cookery classes for 1,000 low income families. The new funding means during HSF’s three year existence, northern Lincolnshire has received over £19m in grants from the government fund.

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Original artice: https://www.grimsbytelegraph.co.uk/all-about/scunthorpe

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