An emergency fund is being put in place to deal with disabled people who urgently need modifications to their homes.
Blog Preston revealed last month a £2million funding pot had already run dry – less than six months into the financial year – meaning people needing adaptions because of physical or mental conditions could be left waiting until April at the earliest.
As part of an £800,000 cost of living package, due to be debated by a full council meeting this week, the city’s ruling Labour group says it is putting £100,000 in place to allow the most urgent cases to go ahead.
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Rising demand for changes to homes paid for through the Disabled Facilities Grant coupled with a surge in the cost of works means all works taking place had been paused until April 2026.
A report due to go before councillors states they want to put a £100,000 urgent uplift in place: “Demand for adaptations to homes to enable those with disabilities to stay and live meaningful lives in their homes is under pressure.
“In the current year, applications have exceeded the funding allocated from central government, resulting in a waiting list of unapproved applications.
“This proposes to fund an increase in the capital programme to begin to tackle the waiting list for those who re currently waiting for adaptations to be agreed.
“Amendments to the council’s policy on discretionary disabled facilities grant payments will shortly be presented to cabinet but these are unlikely to address the shortfall.
“Additional monies to be allocated based on means testing for adults as per the current statutory process.”
The uplift to the disabled facilities grant is one of a number of cost of living measures being proposed including one-off payments to those the council says are most impacted by benefit caps and also free swimming sessions being proposed for those who already receive concessionary discounts.
Leader of the city council councillor Matthew Brown said: “The cost of living crisis is still very much with us. Many households are still struggling to pay for daily basic things like food, energy bills and rent and are dropping below the poverty line which is unacceptable.
“Whilst we are working hard to elevate household incomes through initiatives like our Real Living Wage City campaign and investment and support through skills, training and promoting a more democratic and fair economy, the most financially challenged households still need immediate help with meeting basic living costs. These proposals go some way to help more of our residents as we face the colder winter months.”
“The city’s commitment to Community Wealth Building can be evidenced through these measures to tackle a wide range of socio-economic challenges and inequalities in our Preston wards to create a healthier, more inclusive city. Critically, it’s important we work closely with our anchor partners and communities to bring about effective, long lasting change and a stronger, fairer economy that everyone benefits from.”
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