Possible delays for families waiting on new £25 weekly child payment this winter

dailyrecord.co.uk:

Parents and carers across Scotland with children up to the age of 16 can now apply for the Scottish Child Payment after a change to the eligibility rules on November 14.

The weekly payment rate has also increased from £20 to £25, giving parents £100 per month per eligible child.Social Security Scotland has announced that initial management information indicates that 89,000 applications were received between Monday November 14 and Tuesday November 15.

As a result, it has said that due to the high volume of applications and the extension of the eligible age group, it is “working hard to process these however it will take us some time to do so”.It also posted on social media: “We are working hard to process Scottish Child Payment applications including where children have been added to existing awards.

Money for the additional children may not come in the first payment after you apply but, if approved, will be calculated from the date they were added.”Social Security Scotland explained: “Clients who added an extra child to an existing payment may not see this reflected in their payment for some time as we are still required to check eligibility.“All payments will be calculated from the day that client applied or submitted a change of circumstances to add an extra child.”It also advises people that they do not need to apply again and there is no need to phone to follow up their application.Recent statistics released by Social Security Scotland indicated that the average processing times for new claims increased from 31 working days in March 2022 to 36 in June 2022.First Minister Nicola Sturgeon launched the extension with a visit to Golfhill Primary and Whitehill Secondary schools in Dennistoun, Glasgow.The First Minister