VE Day: Council duties under the Armed Forces Covenant
As we mark the 80th anniversary of VE Day, Geoff Wild, Legal & Governance Consultant, looks at the duties of councils under the Armed Forces Covenant.
Starmer announces U-turn on winter fuel payment cuts
21/05/2025 Keir Starmer has said he would review the winter fuel entitlement policy after critics warned it would impact pensioners struggling with the cost of living. |
NHS backlog not driven by surge in benefit claims
02/05/2025 The increase in NHS waiting lists is unlikely to be connected to the recent surge in health-related benefits claims, according to the IFS. |
Celebrities speak out against cuts to disability support
20/03/2025 Celebrities, including Rosie Jones and Sir Stephen Fry, have spoken out against benefit cuts, arguing they will force disabled people to use food banks. |
Children's mental health crisis costs over £1tn
05/02/2025 The failure to tackle the children's mental health crisis costs the UK over £1tn in lifetime lost earnings, researchers focusing on mental health warn. |
Disability benefit claimants miss out on £4bn
31/01/2025 Benefit claimants received over £4bn less than they were entitled to in 2023-24 increasing the risk of financial hardship for those losing out, watchdog says. |
Growth alone won’t cut child poverty, research finds
29/01/2025 Labour will make no progress on child poverty by the end of this Parliament unless it invests in social security, new analysis has found. |
High Court blocks health benefit cuts
17/01/2025 Cuts to health benefits which were announced by the previous Government, and which are due to take effect in September, are unlawful, High Court rules. |
Council’s five-year appeals backlog uncovered
12/12/2024 Luton Borough Council had a backlog of benefits appeals cases dating back five years, an investigation has found. |
Scottish Government pledges to scrap two-child benefit cap
05/12/2024 The Scottish Government has announced plans to scrap Westminster’s ‘pernicious’ two-child cap on benefits. |
Just 5% of London private rentals affordable to low-income households
17/10/2024 Only 5% of private rental listings in London are affordable to households who use Local Housing Allowance (LHA) to pay their rent, new research has found. |
An alternative to Winter Fuel Payments
08/10/2024 Alex Clegg, economist at the Resolution Foundation, sets out a possible alternative to Winter Fuel Payments. |
Charity says 10,000 children have fallen into poverty under Labour
07/10/2024 The two-child benefit cap has pushed 10,000 children into poverty since the Labour Government took office, new research has found. |
Nearly eight million families at risk of ‘fuel stress’
30/09/2024 A think tank has urged the Government to support vulnerable people who are no longer eligible for winter fuel payments, warning that millions are at risk. |
£68m in Pension Credit is unclaimed, Kent says
30/09/2024 Almost 18,000 households in Kent could be missing out on a combined £68m in unclaimed Pension Credit, according to the county council. |
Starmer defeated in winter fuel payment vote
25/09/2024 The Labour leadership has lost a union-sponsored motion at the party’s conference that called on ministers to reverse the cuts to winter fuel payments. |
Government urged to reverse fuel payment cuts
20/09/2024 Councillors in Stockton have backed a motion urging the Government to reverse its ‘deeply unfair’ decision to stop providing the Winter Fuel Payment to millions of pensioners. |
Councils step up to help pensioners hit by winter fuel scheme cuts
16/09/2024 Councils are working to help older people keep their homes warm after the Government axed winter fuel payments for about 10 million pensioners. |
Half of universal credit claimants ran out of food last month
02/09/2024 Almost half of people (48%) claiming universal credit ran out of food last month and could not afford to buy more, a charity has found. |
Call for cross-government taskforce to avoid ‘crisis of care’
22/08/2024 More than a million extra people will be providing informal care over the next decade, a charity has said, calling for a government plan to avoid a ‘crisis of care’. |
Councillors advised to write off £1.25m of debts
06/08/2024 Officers have recommended that Peterborough City Council writes off £1.25m of ‘irrecoverable’ debts. |
Warning over cuts to Winter Fuel Payment
05/08/2024 Tens of thousands of older people face a financial cliff-edge because of changes to the Winter Fuel Payment, new analysis has revealed. |
Annual welfare spending to rise by £20bn
13/06/2024 Welfare spending is set to increase by £20.8bn a year by the end of the next parliament, a think-tank has found. |
‘Grossly unfair’ rule could be penalising 19,000 young carers
12/06/2024 A ‘grossly unfair’ Carer’s Allowance rule could mean more than 19,000 young adult carers are missing out on support while they study, a charity has warned. |
Child poverty ‘directly correlated’ with two-child benefit cap
06/06/2024 Child poverty is ‘directly and strongly’ correlated with the percentage of children affected by the two-child benefit cap within a constituency, analysis has found. |
The Carer’s Allowance scandal
22/05/2024 Government has a choice, says Kirsty McHugh of Carers Trust: continue to rely on the unpaid labour of millions or take action to give a fairer deal to carers. |
Unpaid carers forced to repay DWP over £250m
20/05/2024 The Government requires unpaid carers to pay back more than £250m after thousands were unknowingly overpaid their allowance. |
Government criticised over free school meals threshold freeze
14/05/2024 The Liberal Democrats have criticised the Government for failing to increase the income threshold for free school meals in line with inflation. |
New £64m WorkWell pilot programme announced
08/05/2024 The Government has announced a new £64m pilot programme called WorkWell to assist individuals with long-term health issues rejoin the workforce. |
Ministers propose disability benefits overhaul amid ‘spiralling’ costs
30/04/2024 Plans to overhaul the disability benefits system and ‘deliver better value for the taxpayer’ have been laid out by the Government. |
Years-old study into Carer’s Allowance to be published
25/04/2024 Research into how unpaid carers are impacted when they are forced to repay benefit overpayments will be published ‘shortly’, a minister has pledged. |
MPs call for Carer’s Allowance review
23/04/2024 MPs have called for a review of Carer’s Allowance as new figures showed rising numbers of benefit overpayments going undetected, The Guardian has reported. |
Blow to council hopes for cash boost
23/04/2024 The prospect of extra cash for councils has faded further with the latest public finance figures showing the UK borrowed more than expected last month. |
Proposed disability benefit reforms criticised
22/04/2024 The Prime Minister’s proposed Personal Independence Payments (PIP) reforms will ‘heap more misery’ on people with disabilities, charity says. |
£23bn in benefits goes unclaimed
19/04/2024 The total amount of unclaimed benefits in the UK is now £22.7 billion a year, analysis has found. |
MPs call for benefits ‘uprating guarantee’
25/03/2024 MPs have called for the introduction of an ‘uprating guarantee’ to uprate working-age benefits and the Local Housing Allowance rate on an annual basis. |
Young carers penalised by unfair ‘21 hour rule’
18/03/2024 Young carers who are dependent on Government support are unfairly penalised by the benefits system, a coalition of civil society organisations says. |
Majority on Universal Credit cannot afford enough food
20/02/2024 New research reveals the ‘devastating’ consequences of the inadequate Universal Credit system, according to anti-poverty charity The Trussell Trust. |
Keep carers in work to save £6bn, Government urged
19/02/2024 The UK economy will lose billions this year because of unpaid carers who are unable to work, a think-tank has warned. |
Suffolk council leaders warn of ‘catastrophic’ HRS proposals
13/02/2024 Suffolk council leaders have warned of ‘a catastrophic effect’ on vulnerable residents should Suffolk CC agree proposed Housing Related Support changes. |
Millions would need to double income to escape poverty, report warns
23/01/2024 Six million people in the UK would need to more than double their income just to escape poverty, a new report has found. |
Welsh councils commit to improving benefits system
22/01/2024 All local authorities in Wales have signed up to a new charter, committing to work with the Welsh Government to develop a consistent benefits system. |
Autumn Statement: Councils remain ‘chronically underfunded’
23/11/2023 Support for private renters, devolution, and planning departments is welcome but councils remain ‘chronically underfunded’, council chiefs tell Chancellor. |
Autumn Statement: Housing benefits unfrozen
22/11/2023 Housing benefits for private renters are set to increase as Jeremy Hunt confirms the uprating of Local Housing Allowance (LHA) rates in autumn statement. |
LGA calls for Healthy Start uplift
13/11/2023 The value of the Healthy Start scheme should be increased by 20% to compensate for food inflation, the Local Government Association (LGA) has said. |
Call for 'urgent action on deepening housing crisis'
10/11/2023 The council that increased new homes supply the most last year has urged the Government to take ‘urgent action’ on the ‘deepening housing crisis’. |
Government falling 'woefully short' on supported housing
10/11/2023 Vulnerable people are increasingly provided with poor quality supported housing and suffer ‘significant, detrimental’ impacts due to inadequate support, a report has found. |
Homelessness warning over LHA freeze
09/11/2023 A maintained freeze on local housing allowance (LHA) rates could push 60,000 Londoners into homelessness over the next six years, according to new analysis. |
One million UK children in poverty
24/10/2023 There were 3.8 million people, including a million children, living in destitution in the UK in 2022, with state support ‘relatively absent’, a new report has found. |
Disconnected job schemes failing to tackle unemployment
17/10/2023 Nine million people who are struggling to find work are at risk of being left out of the labour market because of a ‘complex patchwork’ of job schemes. |
LGA warns Hunt over housing allowance rates
16/10/2023 The LGA has warned chancellor Jeremy Hunt he will force more into homelessness unless he ends a three-year freeze on housing rental benefits. |
Child poverty warning over possible benefit freeze
16/10/2023 A freeze on working-age benefits would push 400,000 children into poverty, new research has found. |
Housing allowance freeze forcing more into homelessness, Government told
13/10/2023 More people will be forced into homelessness unless a three-year freeze on housing rental benefits is ended, the Government has been warned. |
Seven in 10 councils struggling amid cost of living crisis
03/10/2023 Seven in 10 councils are struggling to support people hit by the cost of living crisis, according to new research published today. |
Childcare expansion has ‘little to offer’ poorest families
26/09/2023 The free childcare expansion continues a trend of prioritising support for working parents rather than helping low-income families, financial experts warn. |
Claimants losing benefits in ‘managed migration’ to UC
31/08/2023 More than a quarter of claimants who are required to move to universal credit (UC) have not claimed UC and have had their tax credits stopped as a result, new analysis has revealed. |
Disabled people missing out on £24m every month
16/08/2023 Delays to Personal Independent Payment (PIP) reviews have left disabled people missing out on an estimated £24m every month, according to Citizens Advice. |
Rent arrears surge
02/08/2023 Four in five council landlords have reported growing rent arrears over the past year, according to the findings of a new survey. |
Childcare payments boosted by 47%
28/06/2023 Childcare payments to working families on universal credit are to increase from today by 47% in England, Scotland and Wales. |
Newly listed properties unaffordable to benefit recipients
27/06/2023 The proportion of newly listed private rental properties on Zoopla affordable to recipients of housing support has dropped from 23% to 5%, according to IFS. |
Vulnerable families facing £5,600 shortfalls
26/06/2023 The UK’s most vulnerable families are facing shortfalls of up to £5,600 this year due to the cost-of-living crisis, new research has revealed. |
Local Housing Allowance failing to cover costs
13/06/2023 The allowance paid to help people pay rent for private housing is failing to cover their costs, according to new analysis. |
Call for Government to share more data with councils
06/06/2023 Councils are struggling to reach households hit by the cost of living crisis due to the Government’s failure to share its data with local authorities. |
Seven in 10 children experiencing poverty in working households
05/06/2023 The number of children suffering poverty has shot up since support given during the COVID pandemic came to an end, according to new figures. |
Universal Credit childcare payments to rise nearly 50%
31/05/2023 Parents on Universal Credit will be able to claim hundreds of pounds more to cover childcare costs from the end of June, the Government has announced. |
Opportunities missed to help man who died of starvation
15/05/2023 A man with severe mental health problems died alone weighing four and a half stone after opportunities to help him were missed, a review of the case found. |
Nearly £19bn of benefits go unclaimed
02/05/2023 The total amount of unclaimed income-related benefits and social tariffs is now £18.7bn a year, a new study has found. |
Food banks hand out record 3 million food parcels
26/04/2023 A record number of food parcels have been given out over the last year to people struggling with the cost of living, UK’s largest food bank network reports. |
Landlords letting ‘non-decent’ homes get £1.6bn of benefits
19/04/2023 London Mayor Sadiq Khan is demanding action over the ‘scandal’ that billiions of pounds are being paid to landlords for substandard properties. |
Landlords accuse Government of complacency over benefits
18/04/2023 Landlords have accused the Government of complacency over tenants who cannot pay their housing costs. |
Million children in poverty due to limit on benefits
06/04/2023 The two-child limit for payment of benefits is affecting 1.5m children, with more than a million of them growing up in poverty, according to campaigners. |
Half of homeless children forced to move schools
09/03/2023 Almost half of school age children who have become homeless have been forced to move schools as a result of living in temporary homes, charity reveals. |
Benefits £140 a month below everyday costs
27/02/2023 Poverty campaigners have called for a shakeup in the UK’s welfare system after finding that benefits are at least £140 a month below basic everyday costs. |
Over 200,000 children missing out on free school meals
17/02/2023 Local authority leaders have called for the introduction of an automated sign-up system in order to expand access to free school meals to 215,000 children. |
Councils call for ‘fair’ benefits system to help vulnerable
31/01/2023 Councils have warned that vulnerable and less well-off people are being hit hardest by the cost of living crisis. |
Council calls for housing benefits funding review
20/01/2023 Councillors at Telford and Wrekin Council have called for an urgent review of the Government’s funding provision for housing benefits. |
One million private renters at risk of eviction
01/12/2022 One in 12 private renters in England – or nearly one million people – are currently under threat of eviction, housing charity reveals. |
Mini budgets, big budgets – the need for stability and direction is clear
14/11/2022 Sean Sutton argues revenues and benefits have always been at the forefront of implementing new and innovative ways of delivering services – no more so than in the current climate. |
Benefit cuts leave council welfare schemes ‘over-burdened’
28/10/2022 Cuts to benefits have left local authority-administered discretionary welfare support funds ‘over-burdened’, think tank warns. |
Benefits set to be 6% below pre-pandemic levels
19/10/2022 Benefits next year are on course to be 6% below their pre-pandemic levels, financial experts predict. |
Foodbank workers call on PM to increase benefits
17/10/2022 Thousands of food bank workers have signed a letter calling on the Prime Minister to increase benefits and to end the reliance on food banks. |
Benefit cuts to reduce incomes of nine million households
13/10/2022 Plans to cut benefits by increasing them below inflation will leave the poorest struggling to get by on incomes that will drop to levels not seen since 2000. |
Landlords call for cost-of-living plan
30/09/2022 Landlords have urged the Chancellor to adopt a cost-of-living plan for the private rented sector. |
75,000 children stuck in London’s temporary housing
30/09/2022 More than 75,000 children are housed in temporary accommodation in London because of a lack of affordable housing and low benefits. |
Six million people on disability benefits to receive £150
20/09/2022 Six million people who are paid certain disability benefits will begin to receive a one-off payment of £150 from today to help with the cost-of-living crisis. |
Disabilities charity calls for ‘immediate increase’ in benefits
12/09/2022 A charity has called for an ‘immediate increase’ in disability benefits and for more assistance with energy costs to help families with disabled children. |
London councils warn of ‘devastating’ homelessness spike
26/08/2022 The cost-of-living crisis and increases in private rents are set to cause a homelessness spike in the coming months, London boroughs have warned. |
Former PM warns of cost of living ‘humanitarian crisis’
08/08/2022 Government support to help with the cost of living crisis falls short for households on benefits and risks a 'humanitarian crisis', former PM says. |
Call to simplify devolved-benefits in Wales
28/07/2022 A new report has called on the Welsh Government to simplify the benefit system to help more people during the cost of living crisis. |
MPs call for pause in benefit deductions to help struggling families
27/07/2022 MPs have urged the DWP to pause deductions from benefits to help families who are struggling to get by due to the ongoing cost-of-living crisis. |
Seven more Scottish councils make Adult Disability Payment available
25/07/2022 The Adult Disability Payment is now available in seven more council areas in Scotland ahead of national roll out on 29 August. |
Disabled benefit claimants forced to wait five months for first payment
06/07/2022 Benefit claimants applying for disability support are waiting around five months on average to be awarded their first payment, financial experts have revealed. |
Over 820,000 households struggling to pay rent
08/06/2022 Landlords have called on the Chancellor to unfreeze housing benefit as they warn that hundreds of thousands of people struggle to pay their monthly rents. |
Council chiefs welcome £15bn cost of living package
26/05/2022 Local authority leaders have welcomed the Chancellor’s multi-billion-pound announcement of cost of living payments but called for a ‘longer-term solution’. |
MPs voice ‘concerns’ over lack of funding for Ukrainian refugees
04/05/2022 MPs have joined council leaders in calling on Government to provide councils with funding to support Ukrainian refugees arriving via the family visa scheme. |
Around 50% of Muslim households living in poverty
04/04/2022 Half of Muslim UK households are living in poverty and deprivation compared to 18% of the general UK population, an Islamic charity has revealed. |
Homeless deaths increase 80% in two years
31/03/2022 The number of people dying while homeless has increased by 80% in two years, shocking new research reveals. |
Household income to experience 'sharpest fall since mid-1970s’
08/03/2022 Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is likely to cause typical household incomes across Britain to fall by 4% in the coming financial year, think tank says. |
Nine million families will be £500 worse off from April, analysis reveals
25/02/2022 A real-terms cut to benefits could push 400,000 people into poverty by April, new analysis has warned today. |
Sunak unveils £150 council tax rebate
03/02/2022 Local authorities have been tasked with administering a council tax rebate and £144m fund to soften the impact of soaring energy prices. |
More social housing could save councils nearly £600m a year on housing support
18/10/2021 A new study has calculated that councils could save millions if money spent on housing support was invested in building homes in the social rented sector. |
