North Wales Assembly Member Mark Isherwood has called for a Welsh Government Statement on funding changes which could affect support providers for people with complex needs.
Mr Isherwood raised the matter in this week’s Business Statement in the Senedd after the issue was raised at the Annual Meeting of a Supporting People provider in North Wales last week.
He said: “Last Thursday, the UK Secretary of State for Work and Pensions announced that the UK Government was deferring application of the local housing allowance rates on social rents for supported housing until 2019-20 and would then be bringing in a new funding model where costs above the level of the local housing allowance rates in England would have funding devolved to local government for disbursement locally, but in Wales and Scotland an equivalent amount will be provided and it will be for those administrations, he said, to decide how best to allocate the funding.
“Having spoken at the Annual General Meeting of a large Supporting People provider in North Wales last Friday where this was raised—and also, very clearly, a concern that the Welsh Government should engage and explain its position on this over the next period of months—I’d be grateful if the Assembly could have a statement to explain how the Welsh Government proposes to respond to that.”
Speaking outside the Chamber, Mr Isherwood said: “The Leader of the House dodged the issue of a Statement to the Assembly on the key UK Government announcement of funding changes which potentially affect so many people with complex needs support providers in Wales.”