Support payment for low-income households

Closed 24 Jan 2024

Opened 13 Dec 2023

Contact

07890 604860

corporatestrategy@rbkc.gov.uk

Feedback updated 6 Mar 2024

We asked

Kensington and Chelsea is home to some of the most deprived households in the country and many households in the borough continue to struggle with the impact of the rising cost of living.

The Council has outlined its commitment to support a fairer borough and helping people with the cost of living and proposed making a  £100 support payment in May 2024 to low-income households likely to be struggling the most. The costs of the scheme will be met from the Council’s Cost of Living Reserve, which has been allocated for support of this kind.

We asked residents whether or not they supported the proposal for this support payment.

You said

The majority of respondents (97 per cent) supported the proposal. The most selected ways that they felt that the £100 payment could help eligible households was ‘support with bills and utilities’ (83 per cent) and ‘support with food costs and other essentials’ (69 per cent).

We did

Following the consultation and the high percentage of support for the proposal, it was agreed that the £100 support payment would go ahead which will help over 16,500 households with ongoing cost-of-living pressures. This decision was taken by the Council’s Leadership Team in February.

Payments will be made in May 2024 to eligible residents who are in receipt of certain benefits and details are available on the Council’s website and have been included in the Council tax information that has been sent to all residents.

The Council also provides wider financial support such as the Council Tax Reduction Scheme for those on a low income to help with their Council Tax bills.

You can find out more about the low-income support payment on our website.

Results updated 6 Mar 2024

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Overview

Kensington and Chelsea is home to some of the most deprived households in the country and many households in the borough continue to struggle with the impact of the rising cost of living.

The Council has outlined its commitment to support a fairer borough and helping people with the cost of living and is proposing to make a £100 support payment in Spring 2024 to low-income households likely to be struggling the most.

The £100 payment would be paid to over 16,500 residents in the borough.  Whilst there is no single way to identify those on low incomes, it is suggested that the payment will be made to the following residents:

  • All households in receipt of any Council Tax relief, up to and including 100 per cent relief (approximately 13,000 households)
  • All households in receipt of Housing Benefit not in receipt of Council Tax relief (approximately 2,200 households).
  • All households in receipt of the housing costs element of Universal Credit but not in receipt of Council Tax relief (approximately 1,400 households).

By targeting the payment in this way, we hope to reach those on the lowest incomes in the borough, including residents placed by the Council in temporary accommodation outside of the borough.

The costs of the scheme will be met from the Council’s Cost of Living Reserve, which has been allocated for support of this kind.

The Council is consulting on the proposal before making a decision about the scheme to make sure we have an opportunity to hear people’s views. The £100 support payment scheme is not currently up and running. The Council will confirm the outcome of the consultation early in 2024.

If you require the consultation in an alternative format or language please contact corporatestrategy@rbkc.gov.uk or call 07890 604860.

The payment would be in addition to the existing Council Tax Reduction Scheme and other support provided by the Council which helps households on low incomes. If you want to find out more about the Council Tax Reduction Scheme, please contact the Council Tax Team. At this point the team won’t be able to answer questions about the £100 support payment as the scheme is not yet up and running.

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