By Joe Locker, Local Democracy Reporter
A council in Nottinghamshire is looking to extend its cost of living support after councillors raised concerns over “so much suffering” in its communities.
In December last year Newark and Sherwood District Council created a fund of £150,000 to help residents and staff with the cost of living crisis.
A further £50,000 was added to the fund in February this year due to demand.
So far, the council has spent almost £20,000 on food and clothing vouchers for 264 households in need.
It has also worked in partnership with Citizens Advice Newark and Sherwood to give £30,000-worth of fuel vouchers to 288 households and handed out 314 ‘energy boxes’ featuring LED bulbs, a torch, hot water bottle and dehumidifier packs.
Tens of thousands of pounds have been spent on more support schemes for businesses and residents.
Staff also received support including free parking for two years and £1,500 interest-free loans.
During a cabinet meeting on October 31, councillors said the fund should be extended next year.
Cllr Paul Taylor (Lab) said: “There is a lot of good work going on in supporting the people of Newark and Sherwood, particularly those who are suffering really badly from the cost of living crisis.
“It appears to be getting worse and worse and certainly I would be suggesting that we do need to be looking at this again for next year, and looking at the possibility of increasing the support that is available.
“It is the biggest issue effecting the people of this district and we need to be tackling it even greater in the future.
“For now we have got budgets that are set. I’m not suggesting we need to increase it now, but certainly next year we need to be looking at providing even more support.
“There is so much suffering going on.”
So far £149,800 has been allocated to activities and projects to support people in need.
The authority is now looking to spend the remaining £52,800 on additional projects.
Remaining money is to be spent on projects such the expansion of food clubs into the evenings, pending confirmation from the charity FareShare, as well as providing emergency food parcels for families who have run out of all essentials and cannot access a food club.
However the council says these services can only be offered if there is enough food available.
FareShare distributes food to almost 8,500 charities and community groups across the country, but with the increase in demand for its services the organisation has struggled in securing the volume of food needed for all clubs.
The council said its officers are working closely with FareShare to manage the risk and maintain a sustainable service.
If cost of living support is extended into 2024, the council’s suggested projects include ‘grow your own’ vegetable packs for households, which would come at a cost of £5,000, a mobile food bank, and a full-time food coordinator costing £35,000.
Another suggested project is the creation of a ‘town centre gift card’ to support local independent retailers, promote local trade and increase local spend.
Cllr Paul Peacock (Lab), the Portfolio Holder for Strategy, Performance and Finance, added: “There is an awful lot of good work that has gone into this over the year, probably more than a year really.
“I think Paul is right. I think probably we need to work even harder, do even more but we are happy to work on those things.”
