Issue - decisions

In July 2025, the Cabinet Member Safety and Communities made a delegated decision to allocate the Council’s allocation of Household Support Fund:
https://democracy.cheltenham.gov.uk/ieDecisionDetails.aspx?ID=3389

This decision report sets out a three minor revisions to the allocation of the fund.

To approve the revised proposals for the allocation of Household Support Fund 2025/26 as set out in Appendix A;

Background
The Household Support Fund (HSF), first introduced in 2021/22, is funding that is made available via Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) to County Councils and Unitary Authorities in England to provide crisis support to vulnerable households in the most need with the cost of essentials. The secondary objective is to provide preventative support to prevent vulnerable households from falling into – or falling further into – crisis.

Gloucestershire County Council (GCC) has been allocated £6,507,891 for the period 1 April 2025 to 31 March 2026. The allocation of this funding has been agreed by the GCC’s relevant Cabinet member which includes a sum of £ £1,424,000 allocated to the six district councils to enable them to provide their own localised schemes to support vulnerable people.

A sum of £262,329.50 was allocated to Cheltenham Borough Council to cover the period 1 April 2025 to 31 March 2026.

Previous allocations of HSF were agreed by Cabinet in December 2022, June 2023, and July 2024.