Welfare

West Lothian Council has approved plans to reduce the priority level for Scottish Welfare Fund grants, which will mean more local people will be eligible. The council administers both Crisis and Community Care grants from the Scottish Welfare Fund, to support vulnerable West Lothian families. Crisis

Thousands of children from disadvantaged backgrounds will benefit from free breakfasts, thanks to £3 million from the Scottish Government. Announced in the draft Budget for 2025-26, Bright Start Breakfasts will help more primary school children get a healthy start to the day. The initiative wi

Payments to people in receipt of benefits will be protected from inflation after the Scottish Parliament passed the Social Security (Amendment) (Scotland) Bill.

Charities have welcomed the Scottish Government’s decision to reinstate an energy support payment for all pensioners, describing the move as a "huge relief" for older people. Social justice secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville confirmed yesterday that on the roll-out of the new benefit next winte

The Scottish Government’s five family payments have reached a landmark figure since their launch, paying over £1 billion to families across Scotland to help end child poverty, new figures have shown. The latest statistics released from Social Security Scotland reveal that between Februar

Eight million households across the UK are missing out on an estimated £23bn worth of benefits each year, such as Child Benefit, Universal Credit and Pension Credit. To financially empower its customers, Lloyds has launched ‘Benefit Calculator’, a new app feature that gives custome

Concerns about the fairness and consistency of grants awarded through the Scottish Welfare Fund (SWF) have been highlighted in a new report from the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman (SPSO). The report highlights issues with the distribution of the Fund, which provides grants to those in crisis.

Social Security Scotland has published its Annual Report and Accounts, which shows that it made £1.9 billion in payments to people in Scotland from 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024. The payments were made across 14 Scottish benefits, seven of which are not available anywhere else in the UK.

Tens of thousands more unpaid carers in Scotland can apply for a new benefit from today. Carer Support Payment, which is a payment of £81.90 per week paid by Social Security Scotland, has been introduced in phases since November 2023.

The Court of Session has granted permission to proceed in the judicial review challenge against decisions to cut to the Winter Fuel Payment.

New research shows the full impact the two-child limit policy is causing to children and families in Scotland and its critical role in entrenching child poverty. The report, Every Penny Counts - The Struggle to Survive on The Two-Child Limit, was written by Unity Consulting Scotland and commissioned

A new disability benefit for people of State Pension age opens today for new applications from people living in five local authority areas.   Pension Age Disability Payment is the 15th benefit administered by Social Security Scotland. It is for people of State Pension age and over who are disab

As many as 20,000 private renters, including 10,000 children, will be pulled into poverty in 2025/26 if the UK Government doesn't commit to unfreezing Local Housing Allowance (LHA) in the Budget on October 30, JRF has warned.

Community-based housing associations are finding it increasingly challenging to support new tenants, some of whom are waiting months for basic items due to extreme pressures on the Scottish Welfare Fund, the Glasgow and West of Scotland Forum of Housing Associations (GWSF) has found.

Families getting a Scottish benefit to help them buy healthy foods are being urged to check their balance on their prepaid card.  Best Start Foods, a payment of up to £42.40 every four weeks, helps eligible pregnant women, parents, families and carers with children under the age of three