Guidance

Crisis and Resilience Fund (1 April 2026 to 31 March 2029): management information (combined) reporting requirements

Updated 21 January 2026

Applies to England

Delivery plan reporting requirements

1. Unitary Authorities, Metropolitan Councils, London Boroughs and County Councils are required to complete a delivery plan to outline their intentions for The Fund and how they intend to allocate their funding. District Councils are not required to complete a delivery plan for the department. The delivery plan for the Fund duration (1 April 2026 to 31 March 2029) should be submitted to the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) by 1 July 2026. We will request information on actual spend, activities and any measurable outcomes (for example, as a result of Resilience Services) throughout and at the end of the scheme.

2. It is the responsibility of Unitary Authorities, Metropolitan Councils, London Boroughs and County Councils to provide compliant delivery plans to DWP. The delivery plans must be returned on the delivery plan template provided. No local versions or PDF copies are acceptable and any provided will be returned to the Authority.

3. Compliant delivery plans must be signed by your Section 151 Officer or Chief Finance Officer (CFO) and submitted to DWP, copying them into the return email. A typed signature is required. If the delivery plan is incomplete, incorrect, not signed by the Section 151 Officer or CFO, does not include their email or the Section 151 Officer or CFO is not copied into the return email, it will be returned to the Authority by DWP for correction. This should then be resubmitted and must also be copied to your Section 151 Officer or CFO. If you are unsure as to why your delivery plan is showing as non-compliant and require assistance, contact DWP.

4. Details of the responsible Cabinet Member who has approved your delivery plan must be included in your delivery plan template for it to be deemed compliant. They do not need to be copied into the return email.

5. Authorities should use the delivery plan template provided, which forms part of the Statement of Grant Usage.

6. The different elements of the delivery plan template are described, together with guidance on how to complete them.

7. All grey cells are locked for editing and will auto populate.

8. A traffic light system has been implemented across the delivery plan template to enable Authorities to check returns are compliant before submission. All traffic lights must display a green circle with a white tick. If there are any red circles with a white cross, the delivery plan is non-compliant. Please make any necessary amendments before submitting your return. Further guidance can be found on each tab of the delivery plan template. Images provided are indicative and will be confirmed when the final templates are shared.

Delivery plan workbook Tab 0 – Guidance

9. Basic guidance, including the deadline date and return format can be found in this section.

10. Details of the traffic light system can also be found on this tab. The traffic light guidance system is used throughout the workbook to help inform the user(s) of any outstanding required inputs.

The green circle with a white tick means that the adjacent table is compliant.

The red circle with a white cross indicates the adjacent table is non-compliant.

Delivery plan workbook Tab 1 - Governance

Table 1 – Local authority details

Local authority – select your LA from the drop-down list.

11. ONS code – this will auto-populate once you have selected your LA as above.

12. LA type – this will auto-populate once you have selected your LA as above.

13. The traffic light next to Table 1 will turn green with a white tick once the table is compliant.

14. Once the delivery plan is fully compliant, the traffic light ‘Has the return been completed in full?’ will display a green circle with a white tick. Only then can the delivery plan be submitted.

Table 2 – Reporting period

15. Reporting period – this has been pre-populated and does not need to be amended.

16. Report type – this has been pre-populated and does not need to be amended.

17. Return date (dd/mm/yyyy) - enter the date the delivery plan is being submitted. This must be entered as dd/mm/yyyy as any other format will prompt an error message. If you are resubmitting a plan, this date must be updated to reflect the date of the resubmission.

18. The traffic light next to Table 2 will turn green with a white tick once the table is compliant.

Table 3 – Section 151 Officer sign off

19. Section 151 Officer signature – your Section 151 Officer or CFO should complete with their name, as their signature, to provide assurance that they are agreeing with the correctness of the anticipated spend. A typed signature is required.

20. Section 151 Officer’s email – enter your Section 151 Officer or CFO’s email. This will be checked against DWP records.

The traffic light next to Table 3 will turn green with a white tick once the table is compliant.

Table 4 – Governance

21. Cabinet Member (name) – enter the name of the Cabinet Member who has approved the delivery plan.

22. Cabinet Member’s email – enter your Cabinet Member’s email.

23. Has the Cabinet Member approved this plan? – for your return to be compliant you must select yes (dropdown). By doing this, you confirm that the Cabinet Member has reviewed and agreed the delivery plan reported.

24. Is the Section 151 Officer or CFO copied into the return email? (dropdown) – for your return to be compliant you must select yes and copy your Section 151 Officer or CFO into the email return. If the delivery plan is incomplete, incorrect or the Section 151 Officer or CFO is not copied into the return email it will be returned to the Authority by DWP for correction. This should then be resubmitted and must also be copied to your Section 151 Officer or CFO.

25. The traffic light next to Table 4 will turn green with a white tick once the table is compliant.

Table 5 – Totals

26. Table 5 will auto populate once the relevant information has been input elsewhere on the delivery plan.

Delivery plan workbook Tab 2 – Planned activity and spend

27. All data must be in numerical format (for example, 123.00). Any other format will generate an error message. Please ensure that any spend figures you provide are presented to 2 decimal places.

Table 6 – Anticipated spend split by Crisis and Resilience Fund strand

28. Anticipated spend for crisis scheme – enter your anticipated spend for the crisis strand for the duration of the reporting year (1 April 2026 to 31 March 2027).

29. Anticipated Housing Payment costs – enter your anticipated Housing Payment costs for the duration of the reporting year (1 April 2026 to 31 March 2027). For County Councils, this is likely to be zero, although if you anticipate topping up District Council(s) allocations please record this figure here.

30. Anticipated resilience building investments – enter your anticipated resilience building investments for the duration of the reporting year (1 April 2026 to 31 March 2027).

31. Anticipated Community Coordination – enter your anticipated Community Coordination spend for the duration of the reporting year (1 April 2026 to 31 March 2027).

32. Anticipated admin costs – enter your total anticipated admin costs across all CRF strands for the duration of the reporting year (1 April 2026 to 31 March 2027). This includes any costs for scheme evaluation.

33. The traffic light next to Table 6 will turn green with a white tick once the anticipated spend split by CRF strand has been entered.

34. Administration costs – this includes reasonable costs incurred administering The Fund. These costs may include but are not limited to:

• staff costs
• advertising and publicity to raise awareness of The Fund (this includes costs to make material more accessible, such as translation costs or providing diverse formats)
• data and analytics for targeting support
• web page design
• printing application forms
• management information (MI) reporting costs
• small IT changes, such as to facilitate MI production
• limited evaluation costs
• costs for administering Housing Payments (for Unitary Authorities, Metropolitan and London Borough Councils)
• investment in activities that connect and enhance the local support landscape (for Community Coordination)

The nature of the CRF’s Community Coordination strand may present overlap with the CRF’s administrative costs. Authorities should differentiate between the two by considering whether the purpose of the expenditure is to enable delivery of existing services or improve efficiencies between them. As a rule of thumb, an Authority can ask themselves the following questions:

• Does the expenditure enable more efficient Resilience Services? If yes, this should be categorised under Community Coordination
• Does the expenditure enable the business-as-usual delivery of Crisis Payments or Resilience Services? If yes, this should be categorised under administrative costs.

Table 7 – Planned activity for each CRF strand

35. Written explanations are required for each of the separate strands for CRF. All response boxes need a written response. If you have no planned activities for one of these strands, this needs to be specified. For example, if you have no planned spend on ‘resilience strand – increase savings’, write ‘N/A’ in this box. Failure to provide any written information in any of the response boxes will cause the traffic light next to the table to display a red circle with a white cross. This information is important to DWP to evaluate how The Fund will be providing support across each strand. Please provide any additional details, context or caveats that you wish, to help us to understand your rationale and approach.

36. Planned activity for crisis scheme – provide detail on your crisis scheme including applications methods, how accessibility is being ensured, eligibility requirements for crisis support and any other relevant information.

37. Planned activity for Housing Payments – provide detail on your housing element including how you intend to manage the transition from Discretionary Housing Payments to CRF between 2026 and 2029 and any other relevant information.

38. Planned activity for resilience strand – Reduced experiences of material deprivation – provide detail on this resilience strand, including services being provided, support and expected outcomes. Please detail how spend in this area will support CRF’s outcomes.

39. Planned activity for resilience strand – Reduced need for emergency food parcels – provide detail on this resilience strand, including services being provided, support and expected outcomes. Please detail how spend in this area will support CRF’s outcomes.

40. Planned activity for resilience strand – Increased access to appropriate and quality advice services – provide detail on this resilience strand, including services being provided, support and expected outcomes. Please detail how spend in this area will support CRF’s outcomes.

41. Planned activity for resilience strand – Increased savings – provide detail on this resilience strand, including services being provided, support and expected outcomes. Please detail how spend in this area will support CRF’s outcomes.

42. Planned activity for resilience strand – Reduction in debt, especially priority debt – provide detail on this resilience strand, including services being provided, support and expected outcomes. Please detail how spend in this area will support CRF’s outcomes.

43. Planned activity for resilience strand – Maximisation of individuals’ incomes – provide detail on this resilience strand, including services being provided, support and expected outcomes. Please detail how spend in this area will support CRF’s outcomes.

44. Planned activity for resilience strand – Decreased need for Crisis Payments and Housing Payments – provide detail on this resilience strand, including services being provided, support and expected outcomes. Please detail how spend in this area will support CRF’s outcomes.

45. Planned activity for Community Coordination strand – provide detail on how you plan to bolster community level support, including increasing referral of crisis support applicants to appropriate services. Please detail how spend in this area will support CRF’s outcomes.

46. Planned admin spend – please detail what the anticipated admin spend will cover, including any evaluation costs. Please see paragraph 34 for examples of administration costs.

47. Further information – please provide the following information:

• What measures are in place to ensure the allocation will last for the duration of the funding period?
• How will you ensure all eligible individuals are targeted?
• Are there particular groups that you are targeting and, if so, what is the rationale for this?
• What checks are in place to verify the identity and eligibility of residents?
• If working in collaboration with Third Party Organisations (TPOs), how will progress be monitored?
• Does your Authority have a separate local welfare assistance scheme and, if so, how does this tie in with your CRF delivery?

48. To ensure enough relevant detail is provided in Table 7, in your responses follow a ‘who, what, when, why and how’ structure.

49. Who – Specify who the planned activities are targeted towards and how this eligibility is being defined. For example, all adults or only families or available to only those in priority debt.

50. What – Specify what the planned activities are going to be. In your response, detail on what basis you have calculated figures. For example, £35,000 to fund debt advice provision to be co-located at different community locations (e.g. GP surgery, libraries, family hubs)

51. When – Specify the timeline in which this support will be provided. For example, this could be annually or specific months (e.g. from September to November).

52. Why – Provide rationale around why this support is being provided. For example, to reduce priority debt or to maximise budgets for vulnerable households during winter months.

53. How – Specify how this support will be provided. For example, face to face debt advice provided on an appointment basis to those eligible.

54. The traffic light next to Table 7 will turn green with a white tick once the table is compliant.

55. When each table on the planned activity and spend tab is compliant the ‘Has the planned activity and spend tab been completed correctly?’ will become green with a white tick.

56. When allocating spend, please ensure that the anticipated total is equal to or less than the funding allocation of your Authority. It is not necessary for you to report your Authority’s contribution. Delivery plans where the total anticipated spend is greater than the relevant allocation will be shown as non-compliant and a red cross will show in the traffic light check until this is rectified.

57. Once the return is fully compliant, the traffic light ‘Has the return been completed in full?’ on Tab 1 – Governance will become a green circle with a white tick. Only then can the return be submitted to DWP. This return must be copied to your Section 151 Officer or CFO. Returns must be submitted by 1 July 2026.

MI Reporting requirements

58. All Authorities are required to complete two six-monthly MI returns. The relevant sections required for the different Authority types will be specified in the MI template.

59. The CRF Reporting Requirements are designed to mature over the course of The Fund. This progressive approach aims to adopt learnings from Authorities delivering CRF to inform long-term reporting requirements. The objective is to build a robust evidence base demonstrating the impact of CRF both at a national level to support future funding decisions and a local level to support Authorities’ own governance processes. Collecting the right data enables Authorities to identify scheme successes, gaps in provision and opportunities to redistribute funding to improve outcomes. This supports the continuous improvement of CRF schemes over The Fund period.

60. Several MI fields in the CRF Reporting Requirements are optional to accommodate the differing system capabilities across Authorities. However, we strongly encourage Authorities with the capability to collect the relevant data to complete these sections of their returns. This will further support and strengthen the development of a robust evidence base to support CRF. This approach, over time, ensures consistency across Authorities, enabling evaluation of like-for-like schemes. In collaboration with Authorities, these optional data fields will be refined to ensure that data collected is useful to both the Authority and DWP.

61. Authorities are encouraged to consider post-engagement follow up with CRF recipients to understand their experiences following CRF support, for example using an optional survey.

62. To enable evaluation activities, Authorities should consider gaining permission from recipients of The Fund at the point of application or award to be contacted in future for evaluation activities to enable collection of relevant contact details.

63. Authorities are required to make two six-monthly Statements of Grant Usage and MI returns, as per scheme guidance. The deadlines for completing these returns are shown in the table below. Compliant MI returns must be signed by your Section 151 Officer or CFO and submitted to DWP, copying them into the return email. A typed signature is required. If the MI return is incomplete, incorrect, not signed by the Section 151 Officer or CFO or the Section 151 Officer or CFO is not copied into the return email, it will be returned to the Authority by DWP for correction. This must then be resubmitted, which must also be copied to your Section 151 Officer or CFO.

64. One interim MI return is required by the deadline date as shown below. The interim MI return will be used to determine eligible spend and grant usage for the relevant reporting period.

65. A final MI return is required by the deadline in the table below, showing total spend for the year. We will request information on your actual spend activities and any measurable outcomes (for example, as a result of Resilience Services) throughout and at the end of the year.

MI	Deadline
Year 1 Interim (1 April 2026 to 30 September 2026)	29 October 2026
Year 1 Final (1 April 2026 to 31 March 2027)	6 May 2027

66. Authorities should use the standard MI reporting template provided, which incorporates the Statement of Grant Usage.

67. It is the responsibility of Authorities to provide compliant MI returns to DWP. Failure to return the MI by the deadline may result in remedial action. No local versions or PDF copies are acceptable and any provided will be returned to the Authority.

68. Where Authorities issue awards directly to individuals, they should either obtain information at source or through information or data they have access to, in order to complete the breakdown of spend and number of awards across the reporting categories. For example, awards to support children and pensioners, food, essential item or wider essentials, rent or housing crisis and priority debt. Whoever delivers support, whether this is Authorities directly or through TPOs or Voluntary and Community Sector partners, must collect data to support and meet the MI requirements.

69. The different elements of the MI template will follow, together with guidance on how to complete.

70. All grey cells are locked for editing and will auto populate. Yellow cells are optional, but we strongly encourage you to complete where possible (please see paragraph 60).

71. A traffic light system has been implemented across the MI return. For the return to be compliant, all traffic lights must display a green circle with a white tick. If there are any red circles with a white cross, the MI return is non-compliant. Please make any necessary amendments before submitting your return. Further guidance can be found on each tab of the MI return.

MI workbook Tab 0 – Guidance

72. Basic guidance, reporting periods and deadline details can be found here.

73. Details of the traffic light system can be found on this tab. The traffic light system is used throughout the workbook to help inform the user(s) of any outstanding required inputs.

The green circle with a white tick indicates that the adjacent table is compliant.

The red circle with a white cross indicates that the adjacent table is non-compliant.

MI workbook Tab 1 – Governance and admin

Table 1 – LA details

74. Local authority – select your Authority from the drop-down list.

75. ONS short code – this will auto-populate once you have selected your Authority as above.

76. LA type – this will auto-populate once you have selected your Authority as above.

77. Tabs to complete – this will auto-populate once you have selected your Authority and specify which sections of the template you must complete. District Councils are only required to complete Tab 3.

78. The traffic light next to Table 1 will turn green with a white tick once the table is compliant.

79. Once the return is fully compliant, the traffic light ‘Has the return been completed in full?’ will become a green circle with a white tick. Only then can the return be submitted.

Table 2 – Reporting period

80. Reporting period – select the relevant reporting period that the MI return reflects using the drop-down list.

81. Report type – this will auto-populate once you have selected the relevant reporting period as above.

82. Return date (dd/mm/yyyy) - enter the date the MI return is being submitted. This must be entered as dd/mm/yyyy, any other format will prompt an error message.

83. The traffic light next to Table 2 will turn green with a white tick once the table is compliant.

Table 3 – Section 151 Officer sign off

84. Section 151 Officer signature – your Section 151 Officer or CFO should complete with their name, as their (typed) signature, to provide assurance that they are agreeing with the correctness of the reported spend. A typed signature is required.

85. Section 151 Officer’s email – enter your Section 151 Officer or CFOs email. This will be checked against DWP records.

86. The traffic light next to Table 3 will turn green with a white tick once the table is compliant.

Table 4 – Governance

87. Is the Section 151 Officer or CFO copied into the return email? (dropdown) – for your return to be compliant you must select yes and copy your Section 151 Officer or CFO into the email return. If the MI is incomplete, incorrect or the Section 151 Officer or CFO is not copied into the return email, it will be returned to the Authority by DWP for correction. This must then be resubmitted, which must also be copied to your Section 151 Officer or CFO.

88. LA’s single point of contact (SPOC) – enter the email of your SPOC. If the Section 151 Officer or CFO is also the SPOC for the scheme, please input details in both response fields.

89. The traffic light next to Table 4 will turn green with a white tick once the table is compliant.

Table 5 – Admin expenditure

90. Crisis, Resilience and Community Coordination Scheme admin costs – enter your admin for the reporting period selected at Table 2. This should also include any evaluation costs.

91. Scheme evaluation costs – if you have undertaken evaluation activities for the scheme, please record the scheme evaluation costs here. Any evaluation should be undertaken as set out in the CRF guidance and findings must be shared with DWP.

92. Housing Payments admin cost – enter your admin spend for Housing Payments (covered in Tab 3 – Housing Payments) for the reporting period selected at Table 2. It is assumed this will be zero for County Councils.

93. Total admin costs (including Housing) - this will auto-populate once you have completed the admin expenditure entries within the table.

94. Administration costs – this includes reasonable costs incurred administering The Fund. These costs may include but are not limited to:

• staff costs
• advertising and publicity to raise awareness of The Fund (this includes costs to make material more accessible, such as translation costs or providing diverse formats)
• data and analytics for targeting support
• web page design
• printing application forms
• MI reporting costs
• digital or IT costs for referral systems
• small IT changes, such as to facilitate MI production
• limited evaluation costs
• costs for administering Housing Payments (covered in Tab 3 – Housing Payments)
• investment in activities that connect and enhance the local support landscape (for Community Coordination)

The nature of the CRF’s Community Coordination strand may present overlap with the CRF’s administrative costs. Authorities should differentiate between the two by considering whether the purpose of the expenditure is to enable delivery of existing services or improve efficiencies between them. As a rule of thumb, an Authority can ask themselves the following questions:

• Does the expenditure enable more efficient Resilience Services? If yes, this should be categorised under Community Coordination
• Does the expenditure enable the business-as-usual delivery of Crisis Payments or Resilience Services? If yes, this should be categorised under administrative costs.

95. The traffic light next to Table 5 will turn green with a white tick once the admin cell has been completed.

Table 6 – Totals

96. Contribution to Housing Payments from Core CRF funding – Where CRF Funding has been diverted from County to District Council(s) the County Council should record the amount diverted in the relevant cell in Table 6. Only County Councils are required to complete this section.

97. The remaining cells in Table 6 will auto populate once the relevant information has been inputted elsewhere on the MI return.

Table 7 – Notes

98. A free-text notes field has been included for you to record any relevant information or details regarding the MI return, including any issues you may have experienced in collecting of the MI. Please ensure to include a link to your Council’s CRF webpages within this field. For County Councils which have contributed to Housing Payments for District Council(s), we request that you provide a breakdown of these contributions for each District here.

MI workbook Tab 2 – Crisis support

99. All data must be in numerical format (for example, 123.00). Any other format will generate an error message. Please ensure that any spend figures you provide are presented to 2 decimal places and any volumes to whole numbers. If this is not followed, your MI return will be returned for completion. This tab is not to be completed by District Councils

100. All data relating to applications should be collected and reported based on the recipient’s characteristics, needs and circumstances. Where an application has been made by an appointee or any route that includes an intermediary, the Authority should still report on the basis of the crisis support recipient.

Table 8 – Crisis strand total spend

101. Input the total Crisis Payment spend for the reporting period selected at Table 2. This should include both application based and non-application based spend.

Table 9 – Number of applications (volumes)

102. Input the number applications received, awarded (or which have been successful) and those refused (which have been unsuccessful and not proceeded to a payment award). These figures should include both application based and non-application based awards. A figure should be entered for each category to ensure the table is compliant. Please exclude any applications awaiting decision and applications that have been accepted but not yet awarded.

Table 10 – Application routes (volumes)

103. Input details of the applications awarded, specifying the route the application was made (online, phone, in-person and other). You do not need to record information on refused (or unsuccessful) applications. The total should equal the awarded figure at Table 9, including both application based awards and non-application based awards. A figure should be entered for each category to ensure the table is compliant. If there are zero to report for an application route, enter 0 as a number.

104. By ‘online applications’, we mean applications submitted through a digital platform or website, using an internet-connected device such as a computer, tablet or smartphone. This includes forms completed and submitted through official portals or web-based systems.

105. By ‘phone applications’, we mean applications completed verbally over the telephone with a representative or through an automated phone system, where the applicant provides required information during the call.

106. By ‘in-person applications’, we mean applications completed face-to-face at a physical location, such as an office, service centre or community or partner organisation setting, where the applicant interacts directly with staff or uses on-site facilities to submit their application.

107. By ‘other’, we mean route to application that does not fall into the other three application routes.

108. Total - this will auto-populate, calculating the total number of awards for all application routes.

Table 11 – Spend by support type

109. Input application based spend and non-application based spend for the reporting period selected at Table 2. The total should equal the figure recorded at Table 8. A figure should be entered for each category to ensure the table is compliant. If there is nil spend to report, enter 0 as a number.

110. By ‘application based spend’, we mean any spend made through successful application for support made by or on behalf of eligible recipients to the Authority or through TPOs who run self-referral support services on behalf of the Authority.

111. By ‘non-application based spend’, we mean any spend made through alternative routes other than through an application, such as direct targeting of support.

Table 12 – Time from application to award (volumes)

112. Input details of the number of applications awarded (excluding in-kind goods) specifying the relevant time period within which the award was made (48 hours or less and longer than 48 hours). This only relates to application based awards. For clarity, time of crisis award means the time that payment was made to the applicant from when their application was submitted. Authorities should aim to process awards within 48 hours for non-in-kind goods. For the purpose of this template, ‘48 hours’ refers to two full consecutive calendar days from the point the application is received. We recognise that some Authorities and partner organisations may not operate during weekends or public holidays and therefore, in such circumstances, it may not always be possible for all awards to be processed within 48 hours or less. You do not need to record information on refused (or unsuccessful) applications. A figure should be entered for each category to ensure the table is compliant. If there are zero volumes to report in either category, enter 0 as a number.

113. Total - this will auto-populate, calculating the total number of awards for all time from application to award entries.

Table 13 – Volume of recipients by number of previous awards

114. Input details on the number of repeat awards (no previous awards, 1 previous award, 2 or more previous awards). This includes both application and non-application based awards, made over the previous 12 months. You do not need to record information on refused (or unsuccessful) applications. A figure should be entered for each category to ensure the table is compliant. If there are zero repeat awards, enter 0 as a number. The breakdown should only be recorded for the relevant reporting period (whether this is over Year 1, 2 or 3 of The Fund). For example, if at the end of the reporting period for Year 1, an individual has had two or more awards in the previous 12 months, a single entry should be recorded in ‘2 or more previous awards’.

Table 14a – Awards by presenting crisis (volumes)

115. Input details on the number of awards made by the presenting crisis (disaster, accident or health emergency, household relationship breakdown, essential item breakdown, unexpected loss of income, other). The total should equal the awarded figure at Table 9, including both application based awards and non-application based awards. A figure should be entered for each category to ensure the table is compliant. If there are zero awards to report, enter 0 as a number.

116. By ‘disaster’, we mean a significant event causing severe disruption or damage to a person’s living situation, such as fire, flood, storm or other natural or man-made incidents that result in urgent need for support.

117. By ‘accident or health emergency’, we mean unforeseen incident or sudden medical condition that creates an immediate financial or practical crisis, such as hospitalisation, serious injury or urgent treatment needs.

118. By ‘household relationship breakdown’, we mean the end of a domestic or family relationship that requires one or more individuals to leave the property and secure alternative accommodation, often at short notice.

119. By ‘essential item breakdown’, we mean the failure or loss of key household items necessary for basic living standards, including but not limited to, bed, table, chairs, sofa, wardrobe or drawers, carpets or flooring in living rooms and bedrooms, curtains or blinds, washing machine, refrigerator and freezer, cooker or oven.

120. By ‘unexpected loss of income’, we mean a sudden and unforeseen reduction in financial resources, such as loss of employment, reduction in working hours, benefit sanctions or other circumstances leading to a significant drop in income.

121. By ‘other’, we mean a presenting crisis that does not fall into one of the other five categories.

122. Total - this will auto-populate, calculating the total number of awards by presenting crisis.

Table 14b – Spend by presenting crisis

123\ . Input details on spend by the presenting crisis (disaster, accident or health emergency, household relationship breakdown, essential item breakdown, unexpected loss of income, other). The total should equal the spend figure recorded at Table 8. Presenting crisis category definitions can be found at paragraphs 113 to 118. A figure should be entered for each category to ensure the table is compliant. If there is nil spend to report, enter 0 as a number.

124. Total - this will auto-populate, calculating the total spend (£) by presenting crisis.

125. By ‘Other’ we mean presenting crisis that does not fall into the other five types of presenting crisis.

Table 15a – Awards by support method (volumes)

126. Input details on the number of awards made by support method (cash, voucher, in-kind, other). The total should equal the awarded figure recorded at Table 9, including both application based awards and non-application based awards. A figure should be entered for each category to ensure the table is compliant. If there are zero awards to report, enter 0 as a number.

127. By ‘cash’ we mean digital or physical cash payments or ‘cash out vouchers’ that allow the recipient to withdraw cash from an ATM, Post Office, PayPoint or similar services.

128. By ‘voucher’ we mean a cash equivalent that is restricted for use in supermarkets, local shops, other retail venues or through online shopping platforms.

129. By ‘in-kind’ we mean goods or services provided directly to the award recipient as an alternative to cash or vouchers.

130. By ‘other’ we mean anything that does not fall into one of the three other support methods.

131. Total - this will auto-populate, calculating the total number of awards by support type.

Table 15b – Spend by support method

132. Input details on spend by support method (cash, voucher, in-kind, other). Definitions for the different support methods can be found at paragraphs 124 to 127. The total should equal the total spend figure recorded at Table 8. A figure should be entered for each category to ensure the table is compliant. If there is nil spend to report, enter 0 as a number.

133. Total - this will auto-populate, calculating the total spend (£) by support type.

Table 16a – Awards by crisis need (volumes)

134. Input details on the number of awards made by type of crisis need (food, essential item or wider essentials, furniture or appliances, rent or housing crisis, essential transport, priority debt or bills crisis, essential utilities, other). The total should equal the awarded figure recorded at Table 9. A figure should be entered for each category to ensure the table is compliant. If there are zero awards to report, enter 0 as a number.

135. Total - this will auto-populate, calculating the total number of awards by crisis support type.

136. By ‘food‘, we mean support for the purpose of obtaining food and other essential sustenance items (such as baby milk or formula).

137. By ‘essential item or wider essential’, we mean support for the purpose of obtaining items such as period and hygiene products (e.g. soap and toothpaste), household cleaning products (e.g. washing up liquid), clothing including uniform, warm winter clothing and shoes or other physical items necessary for a minimum acceptable standard of living.

138. By ‘furniture or appliance‘, we mean support for household furniture and appliances, including but not limited to, beds and bedding, washing machines, window coverings and carpets, fridge-freezers and ovens.

139. By ‘rent or housing crisis’, we mean support to enable someone to be, or continue to be, housed. This could include support for a rent or mortgage shortfall or short-term emergency accommodation costs. This excludes Housing Payments captured in Tab 3.

140. By ‘essential transport’, we mean support to ensure someone can access essential transport. This could include support for fuel, public transport, bike repair or other support that facilitates essential travel.

141. By ‘priority debt or bills crisis’, we mean support for urgent debt or bills which have serious consequences for non-payment. This could include money owed to government bodies (unpaid court fines, income tax or National Insurance), child maintenance, gas and electricity arrears or housing arrears. Please exclude current bills or prepayments in relation to utilities or housing costs. These should be categorised under ‘essential utilities’ or rent or housing crisis, respectively.

142. By ‘essential utilities’, we mean support (cash, voucher or in-kind) for the payment of water, energy, gas, fuel, oil or other utilities necessary for a minimum acceptable standard of living and to prevent individuals falling into arrears.

143. By ‘other’, we mean any support (cash, voucher or in-kind) provided that does not fit within any of the categories detailed above.

Table 16b – Spend by crisis need

144. Input details on spend by type of crisis need (food, essential item or wider essentials, furniture or appliances, rent or housing crisis, essential transport, priority debt or bills crisis, essential utilities, other). The category definitions can be found at paragraphs 133 to 140 (see Annex A for reporting examples). The total should equal the spend figure recorded at Table 8. A figure should be entered for each category to ensure the table is compliant. If there is nil spend to report, enter 0 as a number.

145. Total - this will auto-populate, calculating the total spend by crisis support type.

Table 17a – Award demographics (volumes)

146. Input details on the number of awards made by individual category (awards to support children, pensioners, disabled persons, other individuals; employed recipients, recipients not in employment; benefit recipients, non-benefit recipients). The person applying for the award may not always be the award recipient. Please input an entry into those categories that apply for each award. For example, a disabled person supported by an award could also have children, be receiving benefits and not be in employment. In this scenario, an award would apply across each of these categories. A figure should be entered for each category to ensure the table is compliant. If there are zero awards to report, enter 0 as a number. Authorities should make every effort to gather information to establish the individual categories. This information is important to DWP to evaluate how successful The Fund has been in providing support to individual categories.

147. Total - this will auto-populate, calculating the total number of awards by employment and benefit status. The separate totals should equal the same figure and the awarded figure recorded at Table 9

148. For the purpose of the reporting requirements for this grant (and without prejudice to other schemes):

149. The definition of a child is a person:

• who will be under the age of 19 at the time of award or,
• for whom child-related benefit (for example, Child Benefit) is paid or free school meals are provided

150. The definition of a pensioner is any person who has reached State Pension age at the time of award.

151. The definition of disabled person aligns with the definition in the Equality Act 2010. Therefore, a disabled person is someone who has a physical or mental impairment that has a ‘substantial’ and ‘long-term’ negative effect on their ability to do normal daily activities:

• ‘substantial’ is more than minor or trivial, for example it takes much longer than it normally would to complete a daily task like getting dressed
• ‘long-term’ means 12 months or more, for example a breathing condition that develops as a result of a lung infection

152. The definition of an employed recipient is an individual who is in paid employment. This can include active zero-hour contracts or fixed-term contracts, gainful self-employment, part time and full-time employment.

153. The definition of a recipient not in employment is an individual who is not currently in paid employment. This can include, but is not limited to:

• care leavers
• individuals in full-time education or training
• those who are retired
• those who are unemployed
• individuals with caring responsibilities or other circumstances.

154. The definition of a benefit recipient is an individual receiving one of the following benefits:

• Universal Credit (UC)
• Personal Independence Payment
• Disability Living Allowance
• Pension Credit
• Attendance Allowance

Table 17b – Spend demographics

155. Input details of spend by demographic category (spend to support children, pensioners, disabled persons, other individuals; employment recipients, recipients not in employment; benefit recipients, non-benefit recipients). For example, a disabled person being supported by spend could also have children, be receiving benefits and not in employment. In this scenario, spend would apply across each of these categories. Details on demographic categories can be found at paragraphs 146 to 151. A figure should be entered for each category to ensure the table is compliant. If there is nil spend to report, enter 0 as a number. Authorities should make every effort to gather information to establish the individual categories. This information is important for DWP to evaluate how successful The Fund has been in providing support to individual categories.

156. Total - this will auto-populate, calculating the total spend (£) by employment and benefit status. The separate totals should equal the same figure and the spend figure recorded at Table 8.

157. Authorities should either gather information or check existing records they hold or have access to, in order to enter the correct spend for each individual category type accordingly.

158. The traffic lights next to Tables 8 to 17b will turn green with a white tick once the tables are compliant.

159. When each table on the spend sheet is compliant the ‘Has the crisis support tab been completed correctly?’ will become green with a white tick.

160. When reporting spend, please ensure that the total is equal to or less than the funding allocation of your Authority. It is not necessary for you to report your Authority’s own contribution. MI returns where the total spend is greater than the relevant allocation will be shown as non-compliant and a red cross will show in the traffic light check until this is rectified.

161. Tables 14a, 15a and 16a ask for award volumes to be recorded against three sets of criteria, one for each table. Table 17a requires a single entry for employment and benefit status and for all those that apply for demographic status (for example child, pensioner, disabled person or other). For example, if a cash award is made following a successful application for support due to an unexpected loss of income to an individual not in employment who is disabled and receiving benefits for essential utilities, you would record an award to ‘Unexpected loss of income’ in Table 14b, one to ‘Cash’ in Table 15b, one to ‘essential utilities’ in Table 16b, one to ‘Disabled person’, one to ‘recipient not in employment’ and one to ‘benefit recipient’ in Table 17a.

162. Tables 14b, 15b and 16b ask for spend to be recorded against three sets of criteria, one for each table. Table 17b requires a single entry for employment and benefit status and for all those that apply for demographic status (for example, child, pensioner, disabled person or other). For example, if a £100 cash award is made following a successful application for support due to an unexpected loss of income to an individual not in employment who is disabled and receiving benefits for essential utilities, you would allocate £100 to ‘Unexpected loss of income’ in Table 14b, £100 to ‘Cash’ in Table 15b, £100 to ‘essential utilities’ in Table 16b and £100 to ‘disabled person’, ‘recipient not in employment’ and ‘benefit recipient’ in Table 17b.

163. If The Fund payments are paid directly to an individual’s Council Tax Account in lieu of a different payment method, for example for Food, then the amount paid must be recorded under the intended heading, in this case ‘Food’.

MI workbook Tab 3 – Housing Payments

164. County Councils will not need to complete this section and this will be indicated in the template once the ‘Local Authority’ has been selected at Table 1.

165. All data must be in numerical format (for example, 123.00), except where comments are requested. Any other format will generate an error message. Please ensure that any spend figures you provide are presented to 2 decimal places and any volumes to whole numbers. If this is not followed, your MI return will be returned for completion.

166. All expenditure must relate to amounts actually spent in the financial year ending (FYE) March 2027 net of any recovered overpayments and not amounts committed or set aside for spending.

Table 18 – Housing Payments total spend

167. Table 18 relates to expenditure on CRF Housing Payments, excluding admin spend.

168. Total CRF Housing Payment allocation for the FYE March 2027 – this will auto populate when LA name is selected at Table 1.

169. Actual expenditure on CRF Housing Payment for the Reporting Period from allocation (excluding admin spend) – When reporting spend, please ensure that the total is equal to or less than the funding allocation of your Authority. If there is no spend to report, enter 0 as a number.

170. LA Contribution to Housing Payments above allocation (external to CRF) – if your authority has provided any funding for Housing Payments outside of CRF funding, please record the total spend figure here for the reporting period selected at Table 2. If there is no spend to report, enter 0 as a number.

171. Contribution to Housing Payments from core CRF funding (if applicable) – for Unitary Authorities, Metropolitan Council and London Borough Councils that divert CRF funding to Housing Payments and for District councils which have received contributions from their County council for Housing Payments. If there is no spend to report, enter 0 as a number.

172. The traffic light next to Table 18 will turn green with a white tick once the table is compliant.

Table 19 – Housing Payment volume breakdown

173. Table 19 relates to the number of CRF Housing Payment applications, awards, recipients and refusals, including diverted CRF funding, County Council to District Council(s) contributions and top-ups external to CRF. We ask for this information both as a total and split between Housing Benefit (HB) and UC claimants. We generally expect the sum of the figures you give for HB and UC claimants to be equal to, or close to, the total. Please add to the Data Comments (row 46) at Table 23 to explain any known discrepancies in these figures. A figure should be entered in the white sections to ensure the table is compliant. If there are nil awards to report, enter 0 as a number.

174. The traffic light next to Table 19 will turn green with a white tick once the table is compliant.

Table 20 – Housing Payments one-off and repeated awards

175. Table 20 relates to one-off and repeat Housing Payments, both the number of awards and expenditure for CRF Housing Payments, including diverted CRF core funding, County Council contributions for District Council(s) and top-ups external to CRF. A one-off award is a payment made on a single occasion, for example a rental deposit to move accommodation. A repeated award is an award resulting in multiple payments made to the same claimant, usually on either a weekly or monthly basis. If there are nil awards or spend to report, enter 0 as a number.

176. We note the potential appearance of non-compliance for Tables 20 and 22 if gross expenditure is reported for these breakdowns, while expenditure net of any recoveries is reported in Table 18. If this occurs, please add a note to explain any apparent discrepancies in the data comments box in Table 23.

177. The traffic light next to Table 20 will turn green with a white tick once the table is compliant.

Table 21 – Housing Payments time from application to award

178. Table 21 relates to the time from application to award (up to 2 weeks, 2 weeks to a month, 1 month to 2 months, more than 2 months) for Housing Payments made for CRF Housing Payments including diverted CRF funding, County Council to District Council(s) contributions and top-ups external to CRF. Applications that did not result in an award being made should not be included in this table. For returns, Housing Payments ‘award’ means the time that payment was made to the applicant from when their application was submitted. If there are nil awards to report, enter 0 as a number.

179. The traffic light next to Table 21 will turn green with a white tick once the table is compliant.

Table 22 – Housing Payments demographics

180. Table 22 relates to the demographics (private rented sector, social rented sector, temporary accommodation (TA) or moving out of TA or supported housing, other) for Housing Payments, both the awards and spend for CRF Housing Payments, including diverted CRF funding, County Council to District Council(s) contributions and top-ups external to CRF. If there are nil awards or spend to report, enter 0 as a number. The third category (‘temporary accommodation or supported housing or moving out of temporary accommodation’) should take precedent over the other categories. For example, if a recipient is moving from TA to the private rented sector, they should be recorded under the third category rather than the first. Any other expenditure related to moving accommodation should be listed under the destination tenure type.

Table 23 – Housing Payments spend breakdown

181. Table 23 relates to Housing Payments spend breakdown by welfare reform category (benefit cap, removal of spare room subsidy, local housing allowance reform, combination, other) and purpose for CRF Housing Payments, including diverted CRF funding, County Council to District Council(s) contributions and top-ups external to CRF. A figure should be entered for each entry to ensure the table is compliant. If there is nil spend to report, enter 0 as a number. Rows 46 and 47 ask for comments on data and the scheme. Please provide any information you think would help us with the data you have provided or are unable to provide. There is also a comments section for the scheme to provide more general feedback or detail on how the scheme is used by your LA and the impact it has had.

182. The traffic light next to Table 23 will turn green with a white tick once the table is compliant.

183. When information has been recorded in the mandatory cells on the Housing Payments sheet is compliant the ‘Has the Housing Payment tab been completed correctly?’ will become green with a white tick.

MI workbook Tab 4 – Resilience - data

184. All data must be in numerical format (for example, 123.00). Any other format will generate an error message. Please ensure that any spend figures you provide are presented to 2 decimal places and any volumes to whole numbers. If this is not followed, your MI return will be returned for completion.

Table 24 – Resilience total spend

185. Input the total resilience payment spend for the reporting period selected at Table 2.

Table 25 – Access route (volumes)

186. Input the number of referrals for Resilience Service by access route (referred from crisis support or Housing Payments, self-referred, proactive route, TPO, elsewhere). A figure should be entered for each category to ensure the table is compliant. If there are no referral categories to report, enter 0 as a number.

187. By ‘referred from crisis support or Housing Payments’, we mean that access to the Resilience Service originated from one of these other areas.

188. By ‘self-referred’, we mean that the applicant referred themselves to Resilience Services that were provided.

189. By ‘proactive route’, we mean any Resilience Service access resulting from the Authority proactively identifying recipients.

190. By ‘referred from Third Party Organisation’, we mean that a voluntary, community sector, partner or other organisation was the source of the referral.

191. By ‘elsewhere’, we mean any routes that do not fit into one of the other listed categories.

192. The traffic light next to Table 25 will turn green with a white tick once the table is compliant.

Table 26a – Resilience building category (number of individuals accessed)

193. Table 26a relates to the services accessed by resilience building category (reduced experiences of material deprivation, reduced need for emergency food parcels, increased access to appropriate and quality services, increased savings, reduction in priority debt, maximisation of individuals’ incomes, decreased need for Crisis Payments and Housing Payments). A figure should be entered for each category to ensure the table is compliant. If there are no award categories to report, enter 0 as a number.

194. In deciding which Resilience Services to fund, Authorities should identify from the categories listed in Table 26a with which their proposed activities and services are most closely aligned.

195. For example, Resilience Service A is funded because it will target income maximisation, supporting 1000 individuals over the reporting period. The Authority should input 1000 in maximisation of individuals’ incomes.

196. By ‘reduced experiences of material deprivation’, we mean services that have led to, or will lead to, individuals avoiding experiences of material deprivation. Material deprivation is defined as the lack of items deemed to be necessary for a minimum acceptable standard of living and captures inability to afford essentials (heating, adequate clothing, basic household goods and food). This could include a wide range of services that result in reduced experiences of material deprivation. This may include, but is not limited to, being able to pay bills without having to cut back on essentials, having three meals a day and fresh fruit or vegetables every day, having a home that is adequately warm in winter and having reliable access to internet at home. Further information on the indicators of material deprivation can be found here.

197. By ‘reduced need for emergency food parcels’, we mean services that result in individuals having greater food security. An inability to afford adequate food is a subset of material deprivation and so may include similar activities to those for reduced experiences of material deprivation but may also include more targeted food-specific services, such as community supermarkets.

198. By ‘increased access to appropriate and quality advice services’, we mean Resilience Services that facilitate access to high quality, free-at-the-point-of-use advice provision. This could include, but is not limited to, advice on areas such as debt, welfare, housing, energy or insulation.

199. By ‘increased savings’, we mean services that result in individuals having increased levels of savings. This could include services such as saving clubs and advice services.

200. By ‘reduction in priority debt’, we mean services that support debt reduction.

201. By ‘maximisation of individuals’ income, we mean activities that increase individual’s income, such as benefit checks or employment advice.

202. By ‘decreased need for Crisis Payments and Housing Payments’, we mean Resilience Services that prevent need for crisis support from the Fund.

203. By ‘other’, we mean Resilience Building services that do not fit into one of the other listed categories.

204. The traffic light next to Table 26a will turn green with a white tick once the table is compliant.

Table 26b – Resilience building category (spend)

205. Table 26b relates to spend by resilience building category (reduced experiences of material deprivation, reduced need for emergency food parcels, increased access to appropriate and quality services, increased savings, reduction in priority debt, maximisation of individuals’ incomes, decreased need for Crisis Payments and Housing Payments, other). Definitions for the different categories can be found at paragraphs 192 to 199. A figure should be entered for each category to ensure the table is compliant. If there is no spend for any resilience building categories to report, enter 0 as a number.

206. Total – this is auto-populated and should be equal to Table 24.

207. The traffic light next to Table 26b will turn green with a white tick once the table is compliant.

Table 27 – Individuals accessing services, demographics (volumes)

208. Table 27 relates to individuals accessing resilience building services by demographic category type (services provided to support children, pensioners, disabled persons, other individuals; employed recipients, recipients not in employment; benefit recipients, non-benefit recipients). Please input an entry into those categories that apply for each service. For example, a figure should be entered for each demographic category to ensure the table is compliant. If there are no Resilience Services by demographic category to report, enter 0 as a number. Please input an entry into those categories that apply for each Resilience Service provided. For example, a disabled person supported by a service could also be receiving benefits and be unemployed. In this scenario, the service would apply across each of these categories. Authorities should make every effort to gather information to establish the individual categories. This information is important to DWP to evaluate how successful The Fund has been in providing support to individual categories.

209. Total - this will auto-populate, calculating the total number of services by employment and benefit status. The separate totals should equal the same figure and the total awarded figure recorded at Table 26a.

210. The traffic light next to Table 27 will turn green with a white tick once the table is compliant.

MI workbook Tab 5 – Resilience – Outcomes

211. All entries are free text. Although entries are optional, you are strongly encouraged to do so to show your resilience building outcomes.

Table 28 - Resilience outcomes evidence

212. Table 28 relates to resilience outcomes evidence (reduced experiences of material deprivation, reduced need for emergency food parcels, increased access to appropriate and quality services, increased savings, reduction in priority debt, maximisation of individuals’ incomes, decreased need for Crisis Payments and Housing Payments). Please record details for any quantitative or qualitative data you hold that demonstrates progress in each of these resilience outcomes through your resilience activities. Further information on these outcomes and examples on how they can be monitored can be found below (paragraphs 209 to 215).

213. Reduced experiences of material deprivation: Material deprivation captures inability to afford essentials (heating, adequate clothing, basic household goods and food). By tackling the underlying conditions that prevent households from affording essentials, Authorities can support their citizens to build protection to avoid hardship. This may include information such as the number of households who can afford necessities as a result of Resilience Services.

214. Reduced need for emergency food parcels: Insufficient food is a crisis need, negatively effecting health and wellbeing if not addressed. More resilient households are less likely to experience financial crises that lead to emergency food need. This may include information such as the number of people reporting food insecurity, food bank use and repeated food bank use.

215. Increased quality and accessible advice: Access to high quality, free-at-the-point-of-use advice is a proven lever for income gains and arrears resolution and is strongly aligned to CRF’s ethos of wraparound, holistic support with clear referral pathways and a ‘no wrong door’ approach. Advice could focus on areas such as debt, welfare and housing, amongst others. This may include information such as number of advice sessions delivered, the number of positive outcomes from advice services and the number of people claiming benefit or increasing income as a result of advice services.

216. Increased savings: To build financial buffers that help prevent small shocks from becoming crises when unexpected bills or income dips occur. This may include information such as the number of people who have accessed The Fund with any existing savings and the median savings amount of those individuals, as well as the impact of The Fund on savings levels.

217. Reduction in priority debt: Rent, Council Tax and utilities arrears are the debts most likely to tip households into crisis, trigger legal action and increase health and homelessness risks. By supporting citizens to reduce these debts, Authorities create more resilient households. This may include information such as the total value of priority debt (rent, Council Tax, utilities), the number of households with priority debt and the average arrears per household.

218. Maximisation of individuals’ incomes: Authorities can support individuals to increase their household income, which can fundamentally change a household’s risk of financial crisis. This may include information such as the number of households making claims to support they are entitled to, the number of households whose income increased and the number of households where expenditure decreased.

219. Decreased need for Crisis Payments and Housing Payments: By ensuring crisis awards act as a gateway into ongoing support, Authorities can expect to see reduced crisis need over time. This may include information such as the number of repeat applications for crisis support for The Fund.

MI workbook Tab 6 – Community Coordination

220. All data must be in numerical format (for example, 123.00). Any other format will generate an error message. Please ensure that any spend figures you provide are presented to 2 decimal places and volumes are to whole numbers. If this is not followed, your MI return will be returned for completion.

221. By ‘Community Coordination’, we mean investment in activities that connect and enhance the local support landscape.

Table 29 - Community Coordination strand total spend and volume of initiatives

222. Table 29 relates to total spent on bolstering community Coordination and volume of Community Coordination initiatives. A spend figure should be recorded separately under the relevant heading, alongside the number of initiatives in the box below.

223. The traffic light next to Table 29 will turn green with a white tick once the table is compliant.

Table 30 – Community Coordination spend breakdown

224. Table 30 relates to Community Coordination spend breakdown. This is a free text box to record what spend has included and by what activity. Effective Community Coordination and entries here could include, but are not limited to:

• Administration costs outlined in paragraph 94 (please read).
• Investing in convening and coordinating capacity— partnerships that map and maintain a live directory of statutory, voluntary and community services and make this accessible to frontline staff and residents. This could involve the hiring of staff in enabling roles to facilitate this partnership working.
• Coordinating with aligned programmes and initiatives – to ensure that CRF complements, supplements and or expands on existing provisions and that duplication is mitigated. This could include the matching or pooling of funds to achieve shared outcomes.
• Partnerships with other organisations to deliver coordinated support, develop local strategies to address poverty or negotiating favourable terms for people in low incomes (negotiation of social tariffs, discounted bills, debt cancellations or accessing energy-saving grants).
• Outreach, producing and disseminating physical and digital materials – that includes information of different local services available to individuals, how to apply and where to access services. This could be done through development of Authorities’ websites or community locations such as schools, GPs and libraries.
• Digital tools and systems that enable mapping activities, coordinated working, supported referrals and feedback loops across a range of different services.
• Service design and co-production with residents and local community groups to improve outcomes and increase efficiencies for both those delivering CRF and those in receipt of its support.
• Co-location of services – different services or professional groups being situated in the same physical space or building to provide more integrated, holistic and accessible support to individuals. Co-location can occur in areas that are commonly used by communities to enable access for a wide range of groups. This could involve situating advice services in locations such as Authority services, hubs, leisure centres, Family Hubs, libraries and GP surgeries, amongst others.
• Capability building - shared protocols, training and data sharing so partners can identify need early and direct people to appropriate timely support.

225. Once the return is fully compliant, the traffic light ‘Has the return been completed in full?’ on ‘Tab 1 – Governance and Admin’ will become a green circle with a white tick. Only then can the return be submitted by email to DWP. This must be copied to your Section 151 Officer at the same time or it will be considered non-compliant.

Annex A: Reporting examples

Example 1

The Authority directly provides essential utilities support to individuals as a result of the Authority proactively identifying the recipients. These have been issued to assist these households with their utility bills. Authorities are expected to collect or verify information to establish whether the award is made to support children, pensioners, disabled person or other individuals, if recipients are employed or not in employment and if recipients are benefit recipients or non-benefit recipients.

Spend should be captured under the demographic categories that apply and under non-application based spend.

Example 2

The Authority provides funding to a Third Party Organisation (TPO) to deliver application based crisis support. This is not an award made directly to individuals by an Authority. The funding is directed to the relevant TPO.

The total value of the grant spent, the awards made by the TPO, the number of awards and the number of individuals helped should be entered in Tab 2. The Authority or TPO will need to provide the demographic breakdown to the best of their ability, whether that is based on actual data, the general understanding of the proportion of each individual being supported through this support or for which the Authority provided the funding to the TPO to deliver support.