| answer text |
<p>The current Household Support Fund runs from April 2023 until the end of March
2024, and the Government continues to keep all its existing programmes under review
in the usual way.</p><p> </p><p>The Government is committed to reducing poverty and
supporting low-income families. Our approach to tackling poverty is based on clear
evidence that parental employment, particularly where its full time, reduces the risk
of poverty. In the financial year 21/22, children living in households where all adults
work were around five times less likely to be in absolute poverty after housing costs
than those living in workless households.</p><p> </p><p>The Government is putting
significant additional support in place for those on the lowest incomes from April.
Subject to Parliamentary approval, working age benefits will rise by 6.7% while the
Basic and New State Pensions will be uprated by 8.5% in line with earnings, as part
of the ‘triple lock”.</p><p> </p><p>To further support low-income households with
increasing rent costs, the Government will raise Local Housing Allowance rates to
the 30th percentile of local market rents, benefitting 1.6 million low-income households
by on average £800 a year in 24/25. Additionally, the Government will increase the
National Living Wage for workers aged 21 years and over by 9.8% to £11.44 representing
an increase of over £1,800 to the gross annual earnings of a full-time worker on the
National Living Wage.</p>
|
|
