Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will extend the period of bereavement support payments beyond 18 months for bereaved spouses with young children.
Bereavement Support Payment is intended to help people with the additional costs in the acute period immediately following a bereavement, rather than providing an income replacement. Income-related benefits are more suited for longer-term assistance with everyday living expenses. Unlike the suite of bereavement benefits it replaced, Bereavement Support Payment is paid in addition to any other benefits the recipient is entitled to, thus helping those on the lowest incomes the most.