Decision
Analysis
outcome: The Motion to approve the HSF7 Delivery Plan was carried unanimously.
summary: The decision at stake is the approval of the Household Support Fund (HSF7) Delivery Plan for the period of April 2025 to March 2026.
topline: The Community Services and Licensing Committee has decided to approve the Household Support Fund (HSF7) Delivery Plan for the upcoming year.
reason_contentious: This issue is not particularly contentious as it focuses on providing support for household living expenses and moving towards more preventative measures.
affected_stakeholders: ["Community Health and Wellbeing Manager", "SDC partnering organisations", "Citizens Advice", "P3", "Community hubs", "Local communities"]
contentiousness_score: 2
political_party_relevance: There are no mentions or implications of political parties or political influence on the decision.
URL: https://stroud.moderngov.co.uk/ieDecisionDetails.aspx?ID=289
Decision Maker: Community Services and Licensing Committee
Outcome:
Is Key Decision?: No
Is Callable In?: No
Purpose: Gloucestershire County Council have now confirmed the funding HSF 7 funding allocation and provided guidance for delivery.
Content: The Communities Development Manager introduced the report on behalf of the Community Health and Wellbeing Manager. The Household Support Fund (HSF) was introduced in 2021/2022 and provided support for household living expenses such as food and utilities. The new HSF had moved away from short term fix solutions and instead had been refocused to provide more preventative support through the single year funding allocation. The delivery plan built on good partnership working since the Cost of Living Crisis and focused on the long term change to increase community resilience and wellbeing. The learning outcomes from the delivery plan would feed into the action of the Council Plan. Point 2.9 highlighted the proposed HSF delivery plan for April 2025 to March 2026. Councillor Edmunds raised a question on whether SDC’S partnering organisations such as Citizens Advice (CA) and P3 were equipped with the capacity and knowledge to deliver the support demand needed in the district. The Communities Development Manager explained Officers continuously worked to ensure partners and Community Hubs had the support to deliver services to communities. She would provide an update to Members outside of Committee regarding what training was provided to partners delivering support. Proposed by Councillor Hamilton, seconded by Councillor Aldam. During debate, Members made the following comments: - Councillor Aldam advised she was pleased SDC were moving toward more preventative measures instead of short term solutions such as the supermarket vouchers. - Councillor Robinson was pleased to see how the allocations of funding had been divided within the report and was keen for CA to restart their drop-in sessions within his ward. - Councillor Hamilton requested the Communities Health and Wellbeing Manager be recognised within the minutes for her work in supporting the community hubs and other organisations around the district. He welcomed the evolved preventative and sustainable approach to supporting people. On being put to the vote, the Motion was carried unanimously. RESOVLED a) To approve the Household Support Fund (HSF7) Delivery Plan b) Delegate authority to the Strategy Director of Communities for any necessary changes to the plan before March 2026.
Date of Decision: June 19, 2025