§ Ms KeebleTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security (1) what grants or loans are available to pensioners in Northampton who were victims of the recent floods; [42385]
(2) what is the (i) average and (ii) range of time it has taken to process (a) community care grants, (b) budgeting loans and (c) crisis loans from date of receipt of application by the Benefits Agency to receipt of funds by the applicant; [42383]
National Social Fund (SF) clearance targets 1997/98 and Benefits Agency's (BA's) achievement Table 1 Clearance targets BA achievements in relation to the targets BA's average clearance time Community Care Grants (CCGs) 65% cleared in 7 days 86% cleared in 7 days 5 working days 95% cleared in 20 days 99% cleared in 20 days Budgeting Loans (BLs) 65% cleared in 6 days 82% cleared in 6 days 5 working days 95% cleared in 20 days 99% cleared in 20 days Crisis Loans (CLs) On the day the need arises' 98% 1 working day 1 We aim to clear applications that are specifically for CLs on the day the application is received. All applications to the SF are considered for CCGs and BLs initially. At the point when the SF Officer knows that such an award is inappropriate a CL is considered. Whilst the majority of CL applications are made in person, a proportion of postal applications are received. Therefore, for the purpose of measuring performance, the target is considered to have been met if 95% of CL applications are considered on the day on which they were received Note:
The information has been provided by the BA's Benefit Support SF Accounting Team, is provisional and maybe subject to change
188W(3) how many flood victims in Northampton have received (a) community care grants, (b) budgeting loans and (c) crisis loans; and what is the average value of each category of grant or loan. [42382]
§ Mr. DenhamThe administration of the Social Fund is a matter for Peter Mathison, Chief Executive of the Benefits Agency. He will write to my hon. Friend.
Letter from Peter Mathison to Ms Sally Keeble, dated 1 June 1998:
189WThe Secretary of State for Social Security has asked me to reply to your recent parliamentary questions about the Social Fund (SF) loans and grants available to the victims of the recent floods in Northampton.Over the Easter weekend, the Benefits Agency (BA)'s Northampton office was open to personal callers and for telephone enquiries. The Business Manager appeared on BBC Radio Northampton to publicise the additional opening hours and to give advice to the public. Social Services and the Police were also advised of the additional opening. All applications for immediate help on Sunday 12 and Monday 13 April were awarded. On Tuesday 14 April a flood helpline was made available to the public, giving them direct access to staff able to answer their enquiries. This telephone number was advertised in the local press and on local radio. District staff also attended public meetings, held on 14, 15 and 16 April, to offer advice and assistance.In common with all client groups, pensioners who were affected by the floods in Northampton were eligible to apply to the SF for Community Care Grants (CCGs) if they were receiving Income Support (IS) or income-based Jobseeker's Allowance (JSA(IB)), Budgeting Loans (BLs) if they have been in receipt of IS or JSA (IB) for 26 weeks or more and Crisis Loans (CLs) which might be payable irrespective of whether the applicant was in receipt of benefit.The BA measures the time taken to process applications to the SF by a series of targets which monitor the time from the date of receipt of the application to the date of the decision, not the date the applicant receives the funds. Information on the time taken to process CCGs, BLs and CLs is contained in the enclosed Table 1.Information relating to the range of time taken to process CCGs, BLs and CLs is not available and could only be provided at disproportionate cost. Information relating to the number and average value of grants and loans received by flood victims in Northampton is not available in the format requested. The BA collates statistics by BA Districts. These Districts do not correspond to constituency boundaries or specific geographical areas.The BA does not routinely collate the reasons for SF applications. However, because of the nature of this emergency, the Northamptonshire District has maintained certain details of applications received from flood victims. Such information as is available is contained in Table 2 attached.I hope that this is helpful.
Social Fund applications from victims of the floods during April 1998 administered by the Benefits Agency's (BA's) Northamptonshire District1 Table 2 Total number of applications Number of successful applications Average value of award (£) Community Care Grants 8 4 573.50 Budgeting Loans 41 36 567.37 Crisis Loans 25 25 46.39 1 BA's Northamptonshire District includes Corby, Daventry and Kettering Caller Offices, Northampton and Wellingborough. The information is provisional and may be subject to change