Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that the surviving partner of cohabitating couples with children are informed of upcoming changes to the eligibility for Bereavement Support Payments.

We are working to lay before Parliament the draft Remedial Order extending Bereavement Support Payment and Widowed Parent’s Allowance to surviving cohabitees with dependent children. Should the Order be approved, we plan to use a variety of approaches to raise awareness of this change, including updating GOV.UK and working with external stakeholders to ensure maximum reach.