Thank you for contacting me about the Household Support Fund.
As set out at Autumn Statement 2022, the Government is providing an additional £1 billion of funding to enable the extension of the Household Support Fund in England, bringing the total funding to £2.5 billion since October 2021. This extension allows local authorities to continue to provide discretionary support to those most in need. In the case of Derbyshire, £10,808,162 has been allocated to support the most vulnerable.
I understand that no further decisions have been taken on the Household Support Fund, and the Government continues to keep all its existing programmes under review. However, in April all working-age benefits, including Universal Credit, will be uprated in line with September 2023 Consumer Price Index Inflation – 6.7 per cent. Additionally, the basic State Pension, new State Pension, and Pension Credit standard minimum guarantee will be uprated in line with average earnings growth of 8.5 per cent.