Department for Work and Pensions: Social Fund Allocations

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Work and Pensions (Lord McKenzie of Luton)
My honourable friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (James Plaskitt) has made the following Statement.

I am pleased to announce that the gross discretionary social fund budget for 2008-09 will be £682 million.

This includes a £40 million injection of net funding, being the third of three which in total comprise a substantial £210 million boost to support changes to the loans scheme.

With the net funding available, I have been able to allocate a gross national loans budget of £540 million and a national community care grants budget of £141 million from 1 April 2008.

£1 million will be retained centrally as a contingency reserve. For example, it is available to provide help to Jobcentre Plus budgets facing unexpected and unplanned expenditure.

Details of individual budget allocations will be placed in the Library.