Sutton Council set to provide support for vulnerable residents this winter

Sutton Council is set to continue to provide cost of living support to residents struggling financially this winter following the successful lobbying of the Government to extend the Household Support Fund.

Since October 2021, the Council has used the Household Support Fund to provide much needed support to residents affected by the rising cost of living. This has included funding for a foodbank, direct payments to households facing financial pressures and meals for children in need during the school holidays.

The Household Support Fund is money provided by the Government to councils which can be used to help those who need it the most in local communities. While the scheme was set to end in September 2024, the Government announced that it would be extended until March 2025 following lobbying by local authorities across the country, including Sutton Council. As a result, the Council will be able to continue to fund schemes that help residents with the cost of living.

As well as providing direct financial support to residents, the Council will also write to hundreds of pensioners across the borough to encourage them to claim Pension Credit and therefore the Winter Fuel Allowance. This step will help ensure that Sutton’s least well-off pensioners, who would otherwise have been impacted by the Government’s decision to remove the Winter Fuel Payment, will continue to receive support during the colder months. 

Councillor Jake Short, Chair of the Housing, Economy and Business Committee, said: 
“The Fund is a great example of how local councils are best-placed to decide where resources will most help local communities. I am pleased that the Government has listened to councils like Sutton and extended the Household Support Fund. 

“Now we need long-term certainty from the Government. The Household Support Fund has become a lifeline, administered by the Council, and an integral part of the welfare state. Short term, last minute extensions cannot be the norm. The Household Support Fund must be made permanent.”

“I would now encourage the Government to add to this support by reversing their decision to remove the Winter Fuel Payment from all but the least well-off pensioners.” 

Note to editors:  

The allocation of the Household Support Fund will be discussed at a meeting of the Strategy and Resources Committee on Monday 7 October 2024. The papers can be found on the Council’s website.