Household Support Fund Policy for the Funding Distributed to Councils in October 2021 - Find a freedom of information request

1. Please provide a copy of the council's Household Support Fund policy for the funding distributed to councils in October 2021. The policy should outline how the council was going to disburse the funding and by what criteria.

2. What was the value of the parts of the Household Support Fund provided to the council in October 2021 (or thereabouts) that the council made available to individual applicants (not referrals from third party organisations)?

3. Of the figure in question 2, how much did the council eventually provide to applicants?

4. If the council fully spent the figure in question 2, on what date(s) was this part(s) of the fund closed to new applicants?

5. How many applicants received funding under the parts of the Household Support Fund referred to in question 2?

6. How many applications for funding under the parts of the Household Support Fund referred to in question 2 were rejected? Please provide any data the council holds on reasons for rejection.

7. What was the value of the parts of the Household Support Fund provided to the council in October 2021 (or thereabouts) that the council made available to referrals from council services or third-party organisations, e.g. charities?

8. How many referrals received funding under the parts of the Household Support Fund referred to in question 7?

9. How many referrals for funding under the parts of the Household Support Fund referred to in question 7 were rejected?

10. Please provide a copy of the council's Household Support Fund policy for the funding that is to be distributed to councils for April-September 2022.

The policy should outline how the council will disburse the funding and by what criteria. Councils' Household Support Fund policies include various elements - they are rarely disbursed in one block to one group of recipients by one set of criteria. Some involve automatic funding based on eligibility details the council already holds (e.g. Free School Meals status) with no requirement for application or referral. Some parts are disbursed directly to third party organisations, such as food banks. Some are based on applications by individuals, while others are based on referrals by council services or third party organisations. Questions 2-6 relate to those parts that were disbursed based on applications from individuals, while questions 7-9 relate to those parts that were disbursed on the basis of referrals. Some councils may not have disbursed any money on the basis of applications or referrals, in which case questions 2-9 do not apply.

1. Please see the attached documents.

Approx. 53% of the total grant funding was distributed via schools and EY settings to children eligible for FSM, EYPP and 2-year-old EYE. For the purchase of food during non-term time. The remainder of the funding distributed via District Councils (DC’s) through Cash or vouchers for food, utilities, or other essentials this was via a trusted partner arrangement.

2. Each eligible child at that time would have been allocated via their school or EY setting in cash/ food or vouchers

• October: £15
• December: £30
• February: £15
• March: £40

3. The county council distributed via schools and Early Years setting £2,912,391.00. (53% of the provisional grant).

4. The county council final distribution in March was based on eligible children as at 4 March 2022. The DC closed applications on 24 March 2022.

5. See the table below:

6. Lincolnshire County Council did not reject any applicant as it was based on eligibility detailed in Q1.

7. District Councils’ allocated support based on needs via trusted partner assessment was approx. 47% of the grant for Lincolnshire = £2,552,294.00. The total grant provisionally allocated to Lincolnshire was £5,464,685.20.

8. Total volume/referrals via district councils = 19,694.

9. Lincolnshire County Council does not hold this information.

10. The policy for Lincolnshire County Council for that period is still to be confirmed however proposals being developed would adopt a similar approach to that of the previous policy.

However, until final guidance is issued by DWP, a formal decision will not be able to be undertaken. It would be adapted to account for the change in the cohorts identified within the revised draft guidance.

If you would like to see a copy of the attachment sent with this response, please request it from CustomerInformationService@lincolnshire.gov.uk quoting the reference number 3823530.