Benefits cash set to arrive

ELIGIBLE families will begin to receive automatic payment of certain benefits from this week, following the expansion of the Scottish Child Payment.

Those who also qualify for the Best Start early learning and school age payments will not need to apply for them separately.

Social Security Scotland will send a text message to recipients when they check for eligibility and then write to them to advise of the payment.

Some 400,000 children in Scotland are now thought to be eligible for the Scottish Child Payment, which is open to youngsters aged under 16.

The automatic award of the Best Start payments, each of which are worth just over £250, was announced in April this year in order to simplify the system.