Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what discussions his Department has had with relevant stakeholders on the Crisis and Resilience Fund and rural areas.

My Department have actively engaged with stakeholders on design for the new Crisis and Resilience Fund through a structured co-design process. This has involved a representative group of local authorities —including a mix of urban and rural areas, third-party organisations and academics. The process culminated in a concluding event on 22 October 2025, attended by over 750 stakeholders.