Published: Thursday 29 June 2023
Households in Kensington and Chelsea can apply for £250 cash to help with rising food costs after the Government awarded £2.36m in new funding to support residents with essential bills. The Council has also made available an additional £20k for up to £250 in grants to support younger residents (aged 11 to 19) with essentials.
Residents in Kensington and Chelsea could be eligible for £250 towards their food bills to help with the ongoing rising costs of groceries and essentials. Recognising the challenges its residents are facing as inflation remains high, the Council has set up several programmes using funding to help those in need.
The food grants are part of a £2.36 million award from the Government’s Household Support Fund to help our residents with the rise in the cost of living.
The Council secured the funding from the Department for Work and Pensions and will administer it to provide ongoing support for energy, fuel, and food access and bills.
The Council will be making direct contact to all those receiving the following benefits. Anyone not receiving the below benefits could still be eligible and can make an application online.
• Universal Credit
• Income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA)
• Income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
• Income Support
• Pension Credit
• Child Tax Credit
• Working Tax Credit
An additional £20k pot of funding has also been made available by the Council to support our young residents with the cost of life’s essentials. Young people aged between 11 and 19 (or up to 25 for care leavers and those with special educational needs or disabilities) can apply for a grant to fund school supplies, hygiene products, travel, or clothing. A panel of young people who have helped codesign the fund will review applications and allocate the budget based on need.
Cllr Johnny Thalassites, Lead Member for Finance and Customer Delivery, said:
“By listening to and understanding the needs of our residents, we have been able to put into place funding and support for so many during a challenging time. Now that further funding has become available, we can continue to offer targeted support to those facing difficulties, particularly those on low incomes.
“Our continued partnerships with voluntary and community organisations across the borough, means we are utilising this funding to address the core struggles people are facing, one being the cost of food. Now that we have entered the summer months, our warm spaces offer across the borough have ended and I’d like to thank those organisations who offered spaces for residents over the winter months.”
Since last year’s fund allocation, we made returns of £3.9m in energy rebate payments and £1.65m in council tax rebates. We’ve also supported residents with more than £11,000 in food support and almost £70,000 in fuel support.
The Council allocated £243k worth of funding to schools in the borough from January 2023. Schools could use the funding in a flexible way to support an estimated 639 pupils facing hardship to access school meals, uniforms and breakfast/after school clubs. This funding will support local pupils until the Mayor’s new universal free school meal offer takes effect in September 2023. Pensioners in receipt of housing benefits received a total of £369,300 over the past year to help with their household bills.
AJ Tumlos, Kensington and Chelsea Council’s Youth Mayor said: “People my age are feeling the pinch of the cost of living too. Youth Grants will give young people access to funds to help them excel at school, or to support their personal lives. It’s another way the Council is supporting communities during this difficult time”.