Plans to support pensioners who are struggling with the rising cost of living have been agreed by Cambridgeshire County Council’s Communities, Social Mobility and Inclusion Committee.
Members met recently to receive an update on the latest round of the Household Support Fund, which requires the council to spend a certain amount of the funding allocated to it on people of pensionable age who are struggling to make ends meet.
Our partnership with Age UK Cambridgeshire and Peterborough succeeded in supporting almost 2,000 people of pensionable age who came forward for support. However there are many people who are struggling but who have not been able to come forward for support.
As a result, committee members agreed to pursue a partnership with Anglian Water and Cambridge Water which will see payments made into the accounts of people of pensionable age who are in arrears or on discounted tariffs. Eligible residents will be contacted by their water companies before the end of December. Residents should not contact Anglian Water, Cambridge Water or Cambridgeshire County Council as they will not be able to access the scheme in this way.
Councillor Tom Sanderson, chair of the Communities, Social Mobility and Inclusion Committee, said: "Our team has worked hard and contacted as many eligible residents as possible, including direct mail to people in receipt of Pension Credit. Our partnership with Age UK Cambridgeshire and Peterborough has helped encourage applications from people who don’t usually contact the council.
"By working with Anglian Water and Cambridge Water its means that we can support a large number of people in our area through the coming months. We wanted to ensure that we spent all of the allocation from central government as we know that there are residents who need it. This scheme has allowed us to do just that.
"The Household Support Fund has now been extended to the end of March 2023, so if you or someone you know is struggling with the rising cost of living, please get in touch so we can help.”
The Household Support Fund was launched by the Government in November 2021 to support people who were most impacted by the Covid pandemic and struggling to make ends meet.
It has been extended a number of times and although our water support scheme has now ended a further extension to the Fund has been made to cover the autumn/winter period to support residents who are struggling the most by the rising cost of living. Full details about the latest extension will be announced shortly.
For more information about support measures in place to help people who are struggling visit here.
