Extra Council support payments available for people self-isolating

Blackburn with Darwen Council has introduced an additional new Test and Trace discretionary support payment to help people who have to self isolate following a positive covid test.

The extra short term fund has been added alongside the usual Test and Trace Support Payment scheme to make sure more people are eligible for the £500 financial assistance over the 10-day isolation period and to make it easier for people to be able to stay at home if they have received a positive test.

To get the Test and Trace discretionary support payment you:

• must have been asked to self-isolate by NHS Test and Trace
• must have responded to messages received from NHS Test and Trace in which you are required to provide your contact details and where you have tested positive, the details of your contacts
• be employed or self-employed
• must be unable to work from home and will lose income as a result
• must reside within the borough of Blackburn with Darwen.
• must have annual earnings of £25,225 or less if a single person, or £50,450 or less if a couple.

You will not be able to claim the payment if you do not meet these criteria. You are also not able to apply if you are isolating after returning to the UK from abroad.

For children self-isolating from school – Parents or guardians who are not legally required to self-isolate can apply for a Test and Trace Support Payment or discretionary payment if they have to take time off work to care for a child or young person told to self-isolate.

If the parent or guardian has been advised to self-isolate by NHS Test and Trace and allocated their own Test and Trace reference number they should not apply for assistance through the parent or guardian scheme.

Parents and guardians who are not legally required to self-isolate can make one application per household for the child or young person’s self-isolation period.

Applications will be rejected if there is a partner or other responsible adult within the same household that could care for the child or young person and who either does not work or can work from home.

You can find out more here:

https://www.blackburn.gov.uk/coronavirus/support-residents

Dominic Harrison, Director Public Health for Blackburn with Darwen Council, said:

We know that self-isolation throws up many challenges to people, with the main one being financial issues. Many people who are not able to work from home can find it extremely difficult to isolate for 10 days when they might not have any money coming in.

This discretionary grant will hopefully provide that extra help for people who would otherwise have struggled, not least because that apart from vaccinations, self-isolation is the biggest defence to control the spread of the virus.

By keeping isolated when asked to do so we can help to stop the spread of the virus and keep cases down. Our cases are still very high so reducing this is massively important and this new discretionary scheme will be a great help towards that.”