The amount paid by district and borough councils to support struggling households with housing-related payments has been revealed.

Babergh paid the least in household support payments between April 1 and September 30 when compared with other Suffolk districts and boroughs £36,476 to 37 households, while Mid Suffolk gave £45,232 to 50 households.

Ipswich Borough Council paid the most with around £120,929 was paid to 79 households in Ipswich over the six months.

At district and borough level, the household support fund helps with rent and housing-related service charges in cases of exceptional needs – where these are unmet by other benefit schemes.

Jan Osborne, Babergh hosuing portfolio holder

Ipswich is also the most deprived region of Suffolk. According to the Suffolk Office of Data and Analytics (SODA), in 2019 almost 46 percent of Ipswich's areas were classed as some of the most, second most or third most deprived areas of the UK.

In East Suffolk just over 20 percent of areas were in these categories; in West Suffolk 11 percent were, in Mid Suffolk nearly four percent were and in Babergh just over nine percent were.

West Suffolk Council paid the second highest amount from the household support fund between April and September – around £106,499 to 104 households.

East Suffolk Council paid less money but supported more households than West Suffolk Council – giving nearly £62,719 to 129 households.

Suffolk County Council received £5.1 million from the government between April and September as part of the household support fund, £500,000 of which was distributed to district and borough authorities based on what they requested.

Another £5.1 million from the fund was given to the county council for the period October 2022 to April 2023 and another £500,000 was allocated to districts and boroughs.

The county council used the remainder of the fund to provide school vouchers during school holidays for children eligible for free school meals and to allocate money through the local welfare assistance scheme – also for those in financial hardship.

The government announced the household support fund on September 30, 2021 and revealed its extension until 2023 on the same date this year.

Earlier this year, Suffolk County Council found nearly 18 percent of Suffolk's residents were living in poverty.

SODA showed that in 2021, the population in East Suffolk was 246,000, in West Suffolk it was 180,000, in Ipswich it was around 140,000, in Mid Suffolk it was 103,000 and in Babergh it was 92,000.

You can find out more about payments through the household support fund for residents in Babergh and Mid Suffolk here: https://www.babergh.gov.uk/housing/council-housing/money-advice-and-support/household-support-fund/, in Ipswich here: (https://www.ipswich.gov.uk/content/household-support-fund-hsf, and in East Suffolk here: https://www.eastsuffolk.gov.uk/features/additional-help-this-winter-household-support-fund/. West Suffolk gives information about housing-related support here: https://www.westsuffolk.gov.uk/cost-of-living/cost-of-living-housing.cfm