New Grant Launched to Help Low-income Families with School Costs

A new grant has been launched by the Scottish government with the aim of providing some financial assistance to low-income families with school-age children.

Applications are now officially being accepted for ‘School Age Payments’, which will soon start being sent to eligible parents and given out as grants of £250 per child.

The new benefit forms part of the Best Start Grant initiative, which is designed to provide additional financial support to parents who claim Universal Credit, Income Support, Housing Benefit or tax credits.

Other aspects of the same set of initiatives recently saw the government start distributing money to Scots who just started a family or are soon to become parents for the first time.

Applications for the ‘Pregnancy and Baby Payment’ opened in December 2018, while the ‘Early Learning Payment’ launched in April this year, with the aim being to give £250 to all low-income Scottish families with a child aged between two and three and a half years old.

Anyone whose child lives in Scotland and was born between March 1st 2014 and February 28th 2015 can now apply for their £250 School Age Payments.

Applications for the newly-launched grant are being accepted through until the end of February 2020, with government spokespeople saying that they really want to see as many people as possible sending in the relevant forms and making their claims for a £250 grant.

“Covering the costs of a child starting school puts pressure on family finances, and we have created this new payment to help ease that burden, putting more money into the pockets of families at a time when they need it most,” said Scotland’s social security secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville.

“We are committed to doing all we can to make sure Scotland is the best place for a child to grow up,” she added.

“We want to increase financial support to families, bringing equality to children by giving them help towards a fairer start.”

If you live anywhere in Scotland and you’re struggling with personal debts then Scotland Debt Solutions can help. Contact us any time to arrange a FREE and confidential consultation.