News / Shetland gears up for benefits crisis
SHETLAND’S public agencies are gearing themselves up to the imminent crisis expected from government welfare reforms.
In April around 200 Shetland households will lose up to £100 a month in housing benefit through the so-called “bedroom” tax.
Next year’s changes to disability living allowance and other benefits will affect hundreds more islanders, as the government seeks to cut its welfare bill by £18 billion over two years.
Shetland Islands Council, NHS Shetland, Citizens Advice and government agencies are preparing staff to cope with the number of appeals for help they expect as the changes start to bite.
Social work and other frontline staff will receive training throughout March about what advice to give people needing support.
Meanwhile anyone seeking advice is being told to contact the Citizens Advice Bureau on 01595 694696.
Little can be done to help people hit by the bedroom tax where single households will lose benefits for any spare bedrooms they have – by 14 per cent for one spare room and 25 per cent for two.
The SIC and Hjatland Housing Association are trying to offer house swaps where they can, but many tenants are trapped in larger properties because there are so few single bedroom houses available for rent. One suggestion is they consider taking in lodgers.
The main concerns about other changes to benefits revolve around people who are unable to access the internet or do not have a bank account.
Plans are afoot to offer training budgeting and how to complete online forms, which will be necessary to claim benefits from early 2014.
Discussions with the Shetland Islands Credit Union are underway to see of they can help people without bank accounts.
The council is expecting its services to be put under greater pressure as people find it hard to cope with the loss in household income.
SIC policy manager Emma Perring said: “We are planning ahead as much as possible and we feel we have done as much as we can at this stage.”
The council has been given £59,000 from the Scottish Welfare Fund to distribute amongst the most needy cases as a safety net against real crises.
SIC leader Gary Robinson said people should not underestimate the impact these welfare reforms will have.
Meanwhile the SIC’s executive committee has agreed to write to the UK government protesting about the changes.
It has also invited local MP Alistair Carmichael, a member of the cabinet, to meet and discuss their concerns.
Carmichael said he would be very willing to meet the council and hear any evidence of any difficulties the changes are causing.
“A lot of this is still at the planning stage, this is the point at which we can make a difference,” he said.
“However I have to say there is an enormous amount of money involved here across the country and if it’s not going to come from this budget then it is going to have to come from somewhere else.”
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