Response to The Spring Budget 2024

Above: Elizabeth Froude, Group Chief Executive of Platform Housing Group

"At Platform Housing Group we have had a Wellbeing Fund for 4 years and the demands on it for essentials are as needed today as they were in the depths of the Covid pandemic.

“We also continue with support for local foodbanks in our communities.

“So it is pleasing to see this need acknowledged in The Spring Budget with the extension of the Household Support Fund, although the extension of only 6 months may need to be revisited, given the current crisis we are seeing.

“The reduction in National Insurance is no doubt welcomed by all working adults.

“We see many of our customers - working hard to sustain themselves in low income jobs – needing additional support from us and I am sure this will help them deal with some of the inflating costs they are experiencing on the simple basics of life.

“However, we are disappointed on the lack of support for energy improvement in existing homes and the silence on a commitment to more social rented homes, neither of which can happen on a scale and pace needed without government support.”