More than 拢50m to keep families warm and well-fed this Easter
Families will receive a boost of over 拢50 million this Easter, with councils given additional funding to keep vulnerable children warm and well-fed.
The scheme, which was introduced in response to the current pandemic, primarily focuses on food and essential utility bills for low-income families. It has meant that councils can ensure that children in their area have the essentials they need.
This new funding comes in addition to the 拢170 million already allocated to the scheme from December until the end of March, and is on top of the previously announced Holiday Activities and Food Programme to support disadvantaged children during the Easter period.
Secretary of State for Work and Pensions Th茅r猫se Coffey said:
鈥淭his scheme has helped thousands of vulnerable children stay warm and well-fed during the coldest months of the year.
鈥淲hile circumstances remain difficult, it is right that we extend it to cover Easter, and I want any worried parent to know there is help at hand.鈥�
The scheme will now run until Friday 16 April. The grants are primarily for聽helping families buy essentials,聽with at least 80%聽of funds ring-fenced聽to be spent on聽food, energy and water bills, with 20% available for other associated essential costs. Councils can also offer support to vulnerable individuals and households without children.
Every local authority involved in the scheme has already used it to provide food for vulnerable children. In addition, many areas provided further support thanks to the scheme, including white goods being supplied to vulnerable families in Cheshire East, and the creation of a winter clothing fund for children in Telford and Wrekin.
During the first two months of the scheme half the 拢170 million was spent, with almost two and a half million vulnerable households benefitting. Based on local authority reporting for this period, 95% of funding spent has been provided to families with children, and 95% of funding has been used to support households with food or utility bills.
This is all part of the government鈥檚 long-term plan to tackle poor health, hunger and education. In addition to the now-extended COVID Winter Grant Scheme, the Holiday Activities and Food Programme has been expanded to cover the major school holidays in 2021 鈥� starting with this Easter.
The HAF provides local authorities with grants they can use to arrange childcare provision, provide valuable support to families on lower incomes, and give children the opportunity to access rewarding activities alongside healthy meals over the school holidays.
Information about Local Authority allocations of additional funding
Allocations of the original 拢170 million grant (not including the 拢59.1 million additional funding) can be found on the COVID Winter Grant Scheme guidance page.
This extension brings the total value of the scheme to 拢229.1 million.
| Upper Tier Local Authority (County Councils, Metropolitan Districts, Unitary Authorities and London Boroughs | DWP indicative allocation of 拢59.1m |
|---|---|
| Barking and Dagenham | 拢302,480 |
| Barnet | 拢343,114 |
| Barnsley | 拢328,913 |
| Bath and North East Somerset | 拢134,435 |
| Bedford | 拢167,672 |
| Bexley | 拢215,445 |
| Birmingham | 拢1,803,918 |
| Blackburn with Darwen | 拢224,568 |
| Blackpool | 拢244,991 |
| Bolton | 拢386,195 |
| Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council | 拢371,401 |
| Bracknell Forest | 拢76,904 |
| Bradford | 拢792,765 |
| Brent | 拢397,158 |
| Brighton and Hove | 拢300,860 |
| Bristol City of | 拢570,302 |
| Bromley | 拢262,078 |
| Buckinghamshire | 拢336,350 |
| Bury | 拢215,339 |
| Calderdale | 拢255,177 |
| Cambridgeshire | 拢507,387 |
| Camden | 拢272,292 |
| Central Bedfordshire | 拢204,088 |
| Cheshire East | 拢306,093 |
| Cheshire West and Chester | 拢321,729 |
| City of London | 拢7,011 |
| Cornwall | 拢636,739 |
| Coventry | 拢449,373 |
| Croydon | 拢419,542 |
| Cumbria | 拢520,225 |
| Darlington | 拢126,828 |
| Derby | 拢312,705 |
| Derbyshire | 拢758,227 |
| Devon | 拢710,157 |
| Doncaster | 拢418,396 |
| Dorset | 拢320,584 |
| Dudley | 拢367,847 |
| Durham | 拢650,974 |
| Ealing | 拢371,628 |
| East Riding of Yorkshire | 拢286,842 |
| East Sussex | 拢554,473 |
| Enfield | 拢399,635 |
| Essex | 拢1,334,287 |
| Gateshead | 拢257,380 |
| Gloucestershire | 拢524,139 |
| Greenwich | 拢336,411 |
| Hackney | 拢400,490 |
| Halton | 拢180,764 |
| Hammersmith and Fulham | 拢203,417 |
| Hampshire | 拢1,007,725 |
| Haringey | 拢342,895 |
| Harrow | 拢204,749 |
| Hartlepool | 拢137,998 |
| Havering | 拢231,087 |
| Herefordshire | 拢187,027 |
| Hertfordshire | 拢866,869 |
| Hillingdon | 拢289,004 |
| Hounslow | 拢286,245 |
| Isle of Wight | 拢158,821 |
| Isles Of Scilly | 拢1,442 |
| Islington | 拢304,980 |
| Kensington and Chelsea | 拢164,042 |
| Kent | 拢1,565,837 |
| Kingston upon Hull City of | 拢427,299 |
| Kingston upon Thames | 拢119,444 |
| Kirklees | 拢517,219 |
| Knowsley | 拢257,513 |
| Lambeth | 拢388,824 |
| Lancashire | 拢1,363,058 |
| Leeds | 拢986,468 |
| Leicester | 拢487,309 |
| Leicestershire | 拢508,316 |
| Lewisham | 拢376,331 |
| Lincolnshire | 拢772,976 |
| Liverpool | 拢847,834 |
| Luton | 拢254,726 |
| Manchester | 拢897,422 |
| Medway | 拢315,871 |
| Merton | 拢165,547 |
| Middlesbrough | 拢229,320 |
| Milton Keynes | 拢251,068 |
| Newcastle upon Tyne | 拢398,948 |
| Newham | 拢470,772 |
| Norfolk | 拢952,759 |
| North East Lincolnshire | 拢218,483 |
| North Lincolnshire | 拢185,145 |
| North Somerset | 拢183,700 |
| North Tyneside | 拢224,228 |
| North Yorkshire | 拢499,013 |
| Northamptonshire | 拢723,355 |
| Northumberland | 拢345,045 |
| Nottingham | 拢491,668 |
| Nottinghamshire | 拢805,153 |
| Oldham | 拢338,848 |
| Oxfordshire | 拢475,549 |
| Peterborough | 拢258,532 |
| Plymouth | 拢321,935 |
| Portsmouth | 拢266,171 |
| Reading | 拢161,481 |
| Redbridge | 拢274,259 |
| Redcar and Cleveland | 拢181,742 |
| Richmond upon Thames | 拢117,107 |
| Rochdale | 拢325,716 |
| Rotherham | 拢350,218 |
| Rutland | 拢21,909 |
| Salford | 拢378,711 |
| Sandwell | 拢488,307 |
| Sefton | 拢340,858 |
| Sheffield | 拢726,695 |
| Shropshire | 拢292,592 |
| Slough | 拢165,176 |
| Solihull | 拢196,712 |
| Somerset | 拢537,180 |
| South Gloucestershire | 拢197,867 |
| South Tyneside | 拢207,539 |
| Southampton | 拢313,183 |
| Southend-on-Sea | 拢199,442 |
| Southwark | 拢386,465 |
| St. Helens | 拢249,027 |
| Staffordshire | 拢772,271 |
| Stockport | 拢301,674 |
| Stockton-on-Tees | 拢236,223 |
| Stoke-on-Trent | 拢376,703 |
| Suffolk | 拢722,385 |
| Sunderland | 拢372,630 |
| Surrey | 拢739,234 |
| Sutton | 拢160,612 |
| Swindon | 拢213,781 |
| Tameside | 拢311,010 |
| Telford and Wrekin | 拢211,842 |
| Thurrock | 拢181,821 |
| Torbay | 拢173,985 |
| Tower Hamlets | 拢418,230 |
| Trafford | 拢204,502 |
| Wakefield | 拢437,747 |
| Walsall | 拢394,491 |
| Waltham Forest | 拢328,717 |
| Wandsworth | 拢290,705 |
| Warrington | 拢202,206 |
| Warwickshire | 拢488,309 |
| West Berkshire | 拢96,955 |
| West Sussex | 拢691,676 |
| Westminster | 拢266,431 |
| Wigan | 拢390,942 |
| Wiltshire | 拢385,170 |
| Windsor and Maidenhead | 拢82,168 |
| Wirral | 拢425,734 |
| Wokingham | 拢72,555 |
| Wolverhampton | 拢369,174 |
| Worcestershire | 拢558,760 |
| York | 拢144,875 |
| Total | 拢59,100,000 |
More information
- Over 拢50 million boost to the Covid Winter Grant Scheme will cover the 2-week Easter period
- Scheme helping thousands of vulnerable children stay 鈥渨arm and well-fed鈥� says Work and Pensions Secretary Th茅r猫se Coffey
- Nearly 2.5 million awards were made to vulnerable households during December and January
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