Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether she plans to provide additional support for housing costs to families who are facing significant increases in their private rent.

In April 2020, Local Housing Allowance rates were increased to the 30th percentile of local rents. This investment of nearly £1 billion provided 1.5 million claimants with an average £600 more housing support in 2020/21 than they would otherwise have received.

Local; Housing Allowance rates have been maintained at their 2021/22 increased levels and will remain at those levels for 2022/23, so that everyone who benefitted from the increase will continue to do so.

For those who require additional support, Discretionary Housing Payments are available. For 2021-22, the Government has made available £140 million in DHP funding for local authorities in England and Wales to distribute to help support vulnerable people with housing costs. Since 2011 we have provided almost over £1.5 billion in DHPs.