Parents and guardians of children told to self-isolate could get £500 support payment
3 March 2021, 10:27 | Updated: 3 March 2021, 10:33
The Government's Test and Trace Support Scheme has now been extended to parents and guardians.
Parents and guardians of children who need to self-isolate during the Covid pandemic are to get a £500 payment.
Families on low incomes will receive the one-off payment from the Government after the criteria for the Test and Trace Support Scheme was extended.
The scheme was introduced back in September and offers financial help to people on low incomes who cannot work during their self-isolation period.
Speaking at the Commons on Tuesday, Work and Pensions Minister Justin Tomlinson confirmed this has been updated to include ‘a parent or guardian who is staying off work to look after a child who is self-isolating’.
Those who are eligible will be paid directly into their bank account.
You can find out more about claiming financial support under the Test and Trace Support Payment scheme on the government website.
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This comes just days before children in England and Wales will head back to school on March, 8.
If there are outbreaks of the virus in bubbles or year groups, thousands of pupils may have to self isolate, forcing parents and guardians to take time off work.
Mr Tomlinson said: "Beyond the welfare safety net, we have also introduced a number of unprecedented packages of support to put money directly into the pockets of those who are in the most need.
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"We are providing financial support to self-isolate to those on low incomes through the £500 Test and Trace Support Scheme, alongside £35m being made available to local authorities for discretionary payments to support those on low incomes who cannot work from home if they are required to self-isolate, because they have tested positive for coronavirus or have been identified as a contact of someone who has.
"We have worked with local authorities to monitor the effectiveness of the scheme since it launched in September 2020 and have listened to feedback from charities and support groups on the front line and therefore I welcome the changes to the eligibility criteria to include a parent or guardian who is staying off work to look after a child who is self-isolating.
"And we will also be making an additional £20m available for discretionary payments every month from March until the end of the scheme, which has been extended until the summer."
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