Sarah Jones, Croydon Central’s Labour MP, today begins a series of advice sessions to try to help her constituents through the cost of living crisis.
The MP is holding eight advice sessions in locations across her constituency, where she will be joined by staff from Citizens Advice and volunteers from the Food Stop. The first advice session is today, from noon to 2pm at St Francis Church, Monks Hill.
“Families and pensioners are getting in touch with me, worrying about how they are going to make ends meet this winter,” Jones told Inside Croydon.
“While the government refuses to act, I am trying to do as much as I can to point people in the direction of schemes that can help ease the pressure on their finances.”
At each session, residents will be able to get one-to-one advice to access support with the cost of living, to ensure that they have applied for the right benefits and be offered information about additional help and support schemes.
Advice: MP Sarah Jones
The cost of living is rising at the fastest rate for 40 years, with the Bank of England forecasting inflation to reach 13per cent in the last quarter of this year. With energy bills expected to be subject to massive increases again in October, it is low-income households who are hardest hit.
“My constituents deserve better than this,” Jones said.
“Labour’s fully-funded plan to freeze the price cap will make sure households don’t pay a penny more this winter, saving £1,000. The government should get behind this plan now.
“I am grateful to Citizens Advice and local volunteers for joining me at these sessions. If you have an issue that you need help or advice about, please do come along and we will do our best to support you.”
The Croydon Central MP’s advice sessions are as follows:
- Friday 2nd September, St Francis Church, Monks Hill, CR2 8AH noon–2pm
- Friday 30th September, New Addington Library, Central Parade, CR0 0JD 11.15am–1.30pm
- Monday 3rd October, Longheath Community Centre, CR0 7TD 6pm–8.30pm
- Thursday 6th October, the new Family Centre, Fieldway, CR0 9AZ noon-2.30pm
- Friday 7th October, Shirley Library, CR0 8BH 2.30pm-4.15pm
- Thursday 13th October, Shirley Community Centre, Shrublands, CR0 8JA 10.30am–1pm
- Friday 14th October, Sarah Jones MP’s office, 43 Blackhorse Lane, CR0 6RT 2pm-4.30pm
- Friday 21st October, Forestdale venue TBC, 10.30am-1pm
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The cut to Council Tax benefit in Croydon made by the Croydon Labour councillors needs to be reversed.
This cut came at the wrong time with food and energy prices rising. Since then energy prices have increased a further 80%. The ONS say that “Rising food prices made the largest upward contribution to the change in both the CPIH and CPI annual inflation rates between June and July 2022.” Food, energy and rent make up a much larger share of lower income earners’ expenditure than others. The Resolution Foundation yesterday spoke of another 3 million people in the UK being cast into poverty.
There is an urgent need for the council to measure just how much of the £4.7million savings they expected to make from cutting Council Tax benefit are actually being realised.
I expect that there are no savings. Worse, I expect that the cut is net costing the council in temporary housing costs (temporary housing costs are extortionate in SE England) for those evicted as they can’t afford the rent after the cut in council tax benefit and in increased care packages as informal carers take extra work to cover the lost benefit and seek the care support they can no longer provide.
The cut for some is proving to be higher than we were advised likely with residents reporting £200 a month loss.
The timing of the cut was foolish and cruel.
I lost the Labour whip for voting against this public policy error so you can tell that Labour felt strongly in favour of making the cut.
It makes the decision of the Labour councillors – including several who were councillors on Tony Newman’s pay-roll and remain on the council, such as Stuart King, Callton Young, Sean Fitzsimons and Clive Fraser – to raise council rents by 4% this year appear particularly callous.
Getting Croydon’s poor to pay for their crass mismanagement of the council.
Hard to believe that a privately-educated MP on £90,000 a year plus is qualified to give advice on housing hardship. Luckily it seems she’ll have help from people who do know about hardship and benefits.