(a)

it was thought that the difference between the number of applications expected and the number of applications granted was due to –

·         the fact that people were traditionally used to going to the DWP and had initially continued to do so;

·         people were using crisis loans as a form of revolving credit;

·         people had applied to the council for funds which were still available from the DWP and had therefore been referred back;

·         the particularly good summer which has resulted in a lesser demand on many services;

(b)

there was still currently no facility in council offices to allow customers to top-up payments in respect of their gas and electricity meters, however, this was being moved forward particularly in regard to the Civic Centre;

(c)

it was acknowledged that in tough economic times more people were turning to payday loans as a means of addressing their financial difficulties and a lot of work was being done with the City’s credit unions to tackle this issue.  However, funding for this work was met from the social inclusion budget and not the Emergency Welfare Scheme.  One of the areas being discussed was the possibility of credit unions helping those with energy debt over £500 and who were prevented from switching suppliers as a result;

(d)

the EWF was about grants and not loans, recipients were not expected to pay the money back.  Staff from Money Advice Plymouth were working with Plymouth City Council staff to help co-ordinate and signpost people in crisis to the relevant agencies in order that they can receive appropriate support and advice about managing their finances better;

(e)

specific organisations and internal departments had been identified and presentation sessions run in order to promote the scheme, the council would continue to work and engage with as many agencies as possible to ensure that they understand the benefits of the scheme to their clients, this included the Foodbank where consideration was being given to allow for financial support based on the referrals actually made;

(f)

all enquiries commenced with a requirement for applicants to complete a form which would then help staff to identify areas of concern and signpost applicants on to other agencies who can provide support;

(g)

it was possible for customers to achieve savings of between £100-£150 per year on pre-payment meters and work was ongoing to raise awareness of Plymouth Energy Community and offer support to help engage with the scheme.  In addition the Council had negotiated a very favourable rate on pre-payment meters.