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Universal Credit payments were boosted by Rishi Sunak in early 2020, as all claimants were awarded a top up of around £20 a week to help with the impact of coronavirus. However, the increase was temporary and from October 1, millions of claimants will see their payments reduced.
Charlie Young, a Project Manager at Arun and Chichester Citizens Advice, commented: “So many families we’re helping are just about managing to scrape by. Take away £20 a week and you push them into the red. It’ll be devastating.
“We’re gearing up to provide more crisis support if the cut happens. That means food bank referrals, fuel vouchers and helping parents of babies and toddlers get access to nappies and milk.
“This type of support is critical, but ultimately nothing can plug the gap that will be left in people’s budgets if that extra money is taken away.”
To illustrate how damaging this could be for families, Citizens Advice shared Shaun’s story, a single dad from Northumberland with a son in primary school.
Shaun previously worked as fisherman but has had to take time off due to health issues. Shaun is “already struggling to make ends meet and is worried he’ll fall further into debt if his benefits are cut.”
He said: “My son is growing all the time, so he always needs something new but I just can’t afford it.
“I’ve had to cut back and pay the bare minimum in bills just to afford his school uniform.
“I’m doing my very best to give him everything he needs but it’s a daily struggle. I just don’t know how I’m going to cope. I‘d have to go down to one meal a day to make sure my son has enough to eat.”
Previous research by Citizens Advice showed the unequal impact of the cut, with people one and a half times more likely to claim Universal Credit if they’re in areas the Government has targeted for ‘levelling up’.
The charity’s frontline advisers spoke of particular concerns about single parents being hardest hit by a drop in income given their essential outgoings and Dame Clare Moriarty, Citizens Advice’s Chief Executive, concluded on this: “A cut to Universal Credit this autumn will be a hammer blow to millions of people.
“It undermines our chance of a more equal recovery by tipping families into the red and taking money from the communities most in need.
“The Government must listen to the growing consensus that it should reverse course and keep this vital lifeline.”
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