London Councils commissioned first ever evaluation of Welfare Assistance schemes

As the new year has begun, London’s local authorities have kicked off 2023 by assessing how well boroughs Welfare Assistance Schemes are helping residents combat cost-of-living pressures.

With findings being announced today, the cross-party group London Councils have commissioned their first ever in-depth evaluation of boroughs’ Local Welfare Assistance schemes (LWA), to discover how well they are helping locals and how they can be improved.

Local authorities have said this provision is needed ‘more than ever’ due to the severe cost-of-living pressures facing low-income residents but warns that tight funding constraints undermine authorities’ ability to offer support.

Led by analysts at the research firm Policy in Practice and co-funded by the Greater London Authority, the evaluation of LWA schemes found residents in the capital did not confide in local authorities for help due to a lack of funding.

Councils unveiled various tragic events, such as domestic violence and redundancy, can result a financial crisis and trigger an application for welfare assistance.

However, research discovered applicants experienced major delays in receiving benefits payments, suggesting delivery problems in the national benefits system are a factor driving demand for local welfare support.

Experts also discovered people in London exhausted all other routes of support before confiding in local councils, claiming their only other options would be extremely risky and potentially harmful, including living without electricity and stopping eating.

Cllr Claire Holland, London Council’s Executive Member for Communities, said: ‘It’s hard to overstate how tough things are for some people at the moment.

‘Huge numbers of Londoners are struggling to make ends meet – and boroughs are doing everything we can to help the most vulnerable escape spiralling financial crisis.

‘As this research shows, councils’ local welfare services provide a vital safety net. We’re often our residents’ last hope and a bulwark against homelessness and despair.’

Although some Londoners are struggling to retain financial support, the report found LWA schemes have had a positive impact on housing security and homelessness prevention.

Researchers discovered the number of London citizens who had fallen behind on their rent payments had decreased significantly compared to an average increase for all low-income households. Additionally, this remains impressive as homelessness charity, Streets of London, has reported more than 8000 people sleep rough on the streets of London each year.

To conclude their report, London Councils highlights that while boroughs are working hard to help their communities through current economic challenges, local authority finances are themselves under considerable pressure.

Against this backdrop, the umbrella body estimates that boroughs in the capital will need to make up to £100m of savings in 2023/24.

Photo by Mike Stezycki and Sandy Millar