Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many pauper funerals were held in England in each of the last five years for which figures are available; and whether local authorities are in all cases able to claim back the costs of those funerals through the Social Fund funeral expenses fund.

The Social Fund Funeral Expenses Payments scheme is available to people on qualifying income based benefits. It does not provide funding for local authorities.

My department does not collect data on the number of Local Authority funerals. MHCLG own the policy for Public Health (LA) funerals, but do not collect information on the number of public health funerals held.