Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what discussions she has had with local authorities on the link between the Local Housing Allowance rates and Discretionary Housing Payment applications.

We regularly engage with local authorities in relation to Discretionary Housing Payments (DHPs), this includes discussions on Local Housing Allowance (LHA) rates.

DHPs can be paid to those entitled to Housing Benefit or the housing element of Universal Credit who face a shortfall in meeting their housing costs, including those in the private rented sector whose LHA maximum rate does not cover the full amount of their rent. Local authorities have broad discretion to spend in line with their local priorities, supported by non-statutory guidance, which provides a list of priority groups to assist with their decision making.

Funding for LHA rates was boosted by almost £1bn in 2020/21 and rates have been maintained in cash terms at their increased levels for 2021/22.

Local authorities are notified annually of the total amount allocated to each authority. For 2021-22 the Government has made available £140m in DHP funding for local authorities in England and Wales to distribute to help support vulnerable people with housing costs.