Families offered £250 to cope with cost of living

Families and vulnerable people struggling with the cost of living will be offered grants of up to £250, Rotherham Council has said.

Funding for the scheme will come from the £2.5m Household Support grant awarded to the authority by the government.

The cash will also fund food vouchers to more than 13,700 children who are eligible for free school meals during the school holidays.

An additional £1.1m will go towards helping households struggling with energy costs. A similar scheme earlier in the year helped 4,622  families.

The funds will also be used to help about 15,000 local households with their council tax through a £150,000 top-up to the council tax support scheme.

Local Democracy Reporting Service, the council will spend £45,000 to support care leavers and £60,000 on voluntary and community groups to help vulnerable families over Christmas and New Year.

A further £50,000 will be used to provide essential household items, such as cleaning and hygiene products, through services like food banks and social supermarkets.

The council has also set aside funds to cover any variations in demand, with any unspent funds being redirected towards energy crisis support.

Rotherham Council is expected to approve the funding and ensure it is fully utilised by March 2025.

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