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Scottish Sun
02-08-2025
- Business
- Scottish Sun
Households on benefits including Universal Credit urged to apply for free £200 cash NOW
We reveal below what to do if you're not eligible for one of the £200 payments BANK BOOST Households on benefits including Universal Credit urged to apply for free £200 cash NOW Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) HOUSEHOLDS on benefits including Universal Credit are being urged to apply for £200 in free cash NOW. The help comes via the Household Support Fund (HSF) which is worth £742million and has been shared between councils in England. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 1 Households have been urged to apply for £200 free cash payments Credit: Getty Councils are currently in the process of distributing their share of the fund - but what support you can get varies depending on where you live. Wealden District Council has opened applications for residents - and free cash worth £200 is up for grabs. To qualify, you need to be aged 18 or older, living in the Wealden District Council Local Authority area and be receiving one of four benefits: Universal Credit (that also includes the Housing Costs element) Housing Benefit Council Tax Reduction an SMI (severe mental impairment) exemption and would therefore otherwise be entitled to a Council Tax Reduction You can only apply for one of the £200 payments now if you meet the criteria above and did not receive help through the previous round of HSF, which ran from October 2024 to March this year. Only one application can be made per household and will be paid into your bank account within 14 days of a successful claim. Further details on how to apply can be found via This funding comes as part of phase one of Wealden District Council's allotment of its share of the current round of HSF. The second phase will be held between October 1 and March 31, 2026, when anyone who received help in the previous round of HSF can apply for a £200 payment. The same eligibility criteria for phase one will apply to phase two. Three key benefits that YOU could be missing out on, and one even gives you a free TV Licence What about if I don't live in Wealden? You may be eligible to get support through the HSF if you don't live in Wealden. However, it depends on where you live. This is because each council sets it own eligibility criteria. However, the Household Support Fund, which was first established in 2021, is designed to help those on low incomes, benefits or classed as vulnerable. So, if you fit into any of these three categories, the chances are you will qualify for support. The best thing to do is visit your local council's website where most have a page dedicated to the Household Support Fund. Or, you can contact your local council's customer service helpline to inquire. The latest round of Household Support Fund runs until March 31, 2026, and some councils have already opened up for applications. Households in Birmingham are being urged to apply for £200 payments. Meanwhile, low income households in North Northamptonshire can apply for supermarket vouchers worth up to £320. Other help if you're on a low income It's worth checking if you're eligible for benefits if you haven't already - it could boost your bank balance by thousands of pounds a year. If you're struggling with the cost of food, check where your nearest food bank is. The Trussell Trust has hundreds of food banks across the UK, and you can find your nearest one here - The Trust's food banks issue emergency parcels to people who cannot afford to cover costs themselves. Meanwhile, if you have fallen behind on your energy bills, you might be able to get a grant to wipe any debt. British Gas and Octopus Energy, the UK's two biggest energy firms, both run schemes offering customers grants worth up to £2,000.
Scottish Sun
14-05-2025
- Business
- Scottish Sun
Thousands of Scots on benefits could get almost £30 extra a week
The idea was blasted by the Scottish Tories BANK BOOST Thousands of Scots on benefits could get almost £30 extra a week – find out more ADULTS on benefits in Scotland could get a top-up of at least £29 a week under a £2 billion-a-year plan from experts commissioned by SNP ministers. The proposals have been floated by the Scottish Government's Minimum Income Guarantee Expert Group - set up to explore the idea of handing every adult a basic amount of money regardless of income. Advertisement 1 Thousands of Scots on benefits could pocket almost £30 extra a week Credit: Getty And in papers published today, John Swinney was also told it would cost almost £7billion to 'eliminate child poverty' altogether through mass benefits handouts. But the idea was blasted by the Scottish Tories who said the plans were 'simply unaffordable'. Social security spokeswoman Liz Smith added: 'These eye-watering, additional costs on the benefits bill are simply unaffordable. 'Economic forecasters have already exposed the big black hole in the SNP Scottish Government's welfare budget given the existing circumstances never mind additional pressures.' Advertisement Experts floated the Scottish Adult Payment as a way to get closer to a minimum income guarantee in the short term. It suggests single adults over 25 could receive £29 a week, those under 25 £48 a week, and couples over 25 £57 a week, or £87 if one person in the couple is under 25. Together with the Scottish Child Payment at its current rate for those with children, taxpayers would be forced to fork out £1.957billion to meet the cost of the plan. Ministers were told the plans could lift 170,000 Scots out of relative poverty. Advertisement But costs could spiral further after the group's February meeting minutes show it agreed to call for the Scottish Child Payment to be doubled from to £55 a week. And a reformed, higher, Scottish Child Payment linked to earnings which would cost £3.2billion to taxpayers, but is not within Holyrood's powers. Martin Lewis issues urgent warning to hundreds of thousands of pensioners missing out on 'superpower' benefit worth £3,900 a year Experts said the planned Scottish Adult Payment 'would discourage work' and require major cuts or tax hikes. David Phillips, associate director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies, said income tax would have to be raised by 3.4 percentage points across the board to meet the cost. Advertisement He said: 'The main thing about all these proposals is their significant costs. The options cost £2 billion or £3 billion, even assuming no behavioural response. 'That would require significant cuts to public service spending or increases to taxation.' In a separate document, ministers were told they could eliminate relative child poverty altogether by handing out billions to lower-income Scots so they met minimum living standards. Those with three or more children would be best off according to an official Scottish Government document, which estimates families would receive an average of £15,900 per year. Advertisement And the plans would essentially eliminate child poverty, reducing it by 18 percentage points to leave just a handful of Scots suffering from a lack of cash. The document said: 'Moving all households up to 100 per cent of the Minimum Income Standard from their current levels of income, including unclaimed benefit entitlements, would reduce relative child poverty by an estimated 13 percentage points at a cost of £6.9bn in 2024-25. 'This would effectively amount to eliminating relative child poverty, albeit starting from a position of full take up of benefits. 'Overall relative poverty would reduce by 12 percentage points with a small minority of households remaining in poverty.' Advertisement In 2020 at the height of the Covid pandemic, Nicola Sturgeon said she believed lockdown 'strengthens the case' for a minimum income. She said: 'I have long been interested in the concept but the current situation strengthens the case for it immeasurably. 'It would need the UK Government's cooperation but hopefully we can have a serious discussion.' The Scottish Government has been contacted for comment.
