Has your council cut its LWA scheme?
In 2013, the Government abolished the system of emergency grants and loans known as the Social Fund.
In its place, the Government told top-tier local authorities in England that they had to set up their own Local Welfare Assistance Schemes (LWAS). However with cuts across the board, many local authorities struggled to do this.
New research from End Hunger UK and Church Action on Poverty has revealed that at least 28 local authorities have closed their scheme completely and almost all the remaining schemes have been drastically cut back.
LWAS are supposed to offer emergency financial support, for example, to help with a sudden bereavement, a broken boiler, or having to move out of a rented home.