Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 14 March 2023 to Question 159058 on Social Security Benefits, what (a) advice and (b) other support his Department provides to claimants who are subject to the benefit cap and the primary carer of a child under three.

A full range of support is available to claimants, which includes work coach interviews, national and local provision. This support and advice is ongoing and can include, for example, employment support to help them find work, budgeting support, housing advice and signposting to local authorities to access to Discretionary Housing Payments

The Government clearly recognises that high childcare costs can affect parents’ decisions to take up paid work or increase their working hours, which is why the changes to the UC childcare element announced in the Spring Budget 2023 will provide generous additional financial support to parents moving into work and/or significantly increasing their working hours.