Crisis grant payments given to hundreds of Falkirk area households

The Scottish Welfare Fund made 815 of such payments to residents between April and June – a 59 per cent increase on last year.

The fund has paid out a total of 20,305 crisis grants to households in the Falkirk Council area since it was established in 2013, enabling residents to pay for expenses like food and heating.

Nationally, £5.2 million in crisis grants was handed out across Scotland between April and June this year – up 77 per cent on the same period in 2019 – after the Scottish Government increased the amount of funding available.

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Falkirk West MSP Michael Matheson said: “The Scottish Welfare Fund is an important example of the kind of action the Scottish Government has taken to ensure there is additional financial support in place for people struggling to cope with the economic impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.

“This is in stark contrast to what is happening at Westminster, where Tory MPs have voted to deprive children of free school meals over holidays.

“The SNP will keep supporting people in Falkirk district through this challenging time and keep tackling poverty – and we will continue to do everything in our power to mitigate the devastating impact of the UK Government’s benefit cuts while the majority of welfare powers remain in Westminster’s hands.”

For more information on crisis grants, visit the Scottish Government website.

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