A scheme initiated by a Gleadless Valley Green Councillor to help maximise take up of benefits for people on low incomes will be mainstreamed across the whole of Sheffield.
The idea came from Gleadless Valley Councillor Paul Turpin and was championed by all Councillors on the Committee and supported by the South LAC team. The proposal created a dedicated advice worker post to tackle cost of living issues. The advice worker delivers regular outreach sessions at community centres, food banks and libraries. The advice workers have helped hundreds of people with income maximisation, for example applying for crisis grants such as the Household Support Fund and helping people understand what benefits they may be entitled to. They have also secured reduced water bills for those who are eligible and helped people to manage payments and complete forms.
The Strategy and Resources Committee on Wednesday agreed to,
“Endorse the proposal to increase targeted support for benefits uptake, building on the learning from the South LAC Pilot, and to continue this work across the City as part of the Cost-of-Living Partnership, for 12 months.”
Gleadless Valley Green Party Councillor Paul Turpin said,
“It is great news, for local people, that the Council has agreed to extend the income maximisation pilot, that I originally proposed, across the whole of Sheffield.
“Millions of pounds of benefits that people are entitled to, go unclaimed each year. Helping, often vunerable, people navigate our complex and confusing benefits system helps ensure more people are able to make successful claims. The South LAC Income Maximisation Pilot alone, resulted in an additional £171,905 income for local people. Extending the scheme across Sheffield could bring in millions more.
“There are lots of positives from this initiative. As well as tackling poverty it also means more money is spent in local shops, helping to sustain them and support local employment. Many local people are likely to qualify for Pension Credit. If they do they will also be able to still qualify for the Winter Fuel Allowance, boosting their income by up to a further £300/year.”
