Greens in plea over child payment

MORE needs to be done to help struggling families claim the Scottish child payment as applications open for the new benefit, the Scottish Greens have said.

The social security scheme will initially pay eligible families £ 10 per week for each child under the age of six as part of efforts to reduce child poverty in Scotland.

Payments are then due to be fully rolled out for all eligible children under the age of 16 by the end of 2022.

The Government planned to introduce the payment before Christmas but delayed it until February 2021.

As the application process for the new benefit opens, the Scottish Greens have called on ministers to ensure all eligible families are aware of the payment to maximise take- up.

The party’s co- leader at Holyrood, Alison Johnstone, cited estimates that 39,000 families with under sixes – more than a fifth of all those who are eligible – could miss out on the payment.

The Scottish Fiscal Commission forecast predicted the benefit will be claimed for 155,000 children of the 194,000 who are believed to be eligible.

Johnstone said: “It is good to see the application process for this badly- needed support open, but we should be seriously concerned that there are still a fifth of families who may not claim this because they are not aware of it. That figure doesn’t even include those who don’t claim qualifying benefits.”

Applications for the benefit can begin from November 9, and parents with a child under the age of six who claim another benefit such as Universal Credit, child tax credit, working tax credit or income support are eligible.