Agenda item

The Executive RESOLVED that

(i)            the criteria of the Emergency Food Poverty Grant Scheme be altered to accept applications from not-for-profit organisations to assist with meeting fuel/energy costs when setting up a ‘warm bank’ type of initiative within Surrey Heath;

(ii)          an upper limit of £5,000 per application or organisation for either food or fuel be introduced; and

(iii)         authority to agree any grant condition changes be delegated to the Head of HR, Performance & Communications in consultation with the Support & Safeguarding Portfolio Holder.

The Executive considered a proposal to amend the Council’s Emergency Food Poverty Grant Scheme (EFPGS) by extending its remit to include applications from not-for-profit organisations to assist with meeting fuel/energy costs when setting up a ‘warm bank’ type of initiative. The EFPGS had been launched in December 2020 and had awarded 5 grants to date, at a total cost of £10,400.  An initial £20,000 had been agreed at the Executive meeting in October 2020 to meet local demand, and this had been increased by a further £50,000 in February 2021.

Members were informed that, in response to rising energy costs, the concept of ‘Warm Banks’ had recently gained national attention. Warm Banks aimed to enable people who couldn’t afford heating to be invited to spend their time at no cost in heated churches, halls and other open public buildings. Plans were being developed through the Council’s Community Support Working Group to enable communities to collaborate in partnership to make communal facilities available; discussions were also underway with the Watchetts Residents Group, which was working with St Mary’s Church to open a Warm Bank. Organisations that were working to develop this initiative would require financial support and changing the criteria of this scheme to include fuel and food poverty would enable the Council to pro-actively provide this support to help meet some of the additional heating costs that will be incurred.It was proposed to make available up to £5,000 per application or organisation for either food or fuel. It was also proposed for the fund to be open until exhausted or 31March 2023, whichever was earlier. 

RESOLVED that

(i)     the criteria of the Emergency Food Poverty Grant Scheme be altered to accept applications from not-for-profit organisations to assist with meeting fuel/energy costs when setting up a ‘warm bank’ type of initiative within Surrey Heath;

(ii)   an upper limit of £5,000 per application or organisation for either food or fuel be introduced; and

(iii)  authority to agree any grant condition changes be delegated to the Head of HR, Performance & Communications in consultation with the Support & Safeguarding Portfolio Holder.

Note: it was noted for the record that Councillor Rodney Bates declared that he was the safeguarding officer for St Mary’s Church, one of the organisations involved in discussions regarding Warm Banks.