In the last financial quarter, the Scottish Welfare Fund made 1,570 crisis grant payments to people in West Lothian to help pay for essentials such as food, energy bills, and household necessities.
The latest figures show that the Scottish Welfare Fund has paid out a 27% increase of crisis grants in West Lothian compared to last year, and a total of 25,860 crisis grants to households in West Lothian since the fund was established in 2013.
After the Scottish Government increased the amount of funding available, the Scottish Welfare Fund awarded £5.2 million in crisis grants across Scotland between April and June 2020, which is an increase of 77% on the same period last year.
Fiona commented,
“This vital support stands in stark contrast to what is happening at Westminster, with Tory MPs voting to deprive children of free school meals, and robbing Scotland of crucial funding to support our most vulnerable.
“While the Scottish Government works to improve provision for families in West Lothian facing poverty, we continue to have to spend money to protect the most vulnerable in our communities from UK Government benefit cuts.
“Although most of the powers over welfare and social security policy remain at Westminster, I am pleased that the SNP Government is doing everything in its power to tackle poverty and support people in West Lothian to get through this challenging time.”
ENDS
Notes: Statistics Publication available – https://www.gov.scot/publications/scottish-welfare-fund-statistics-update-to-30-june-2020/