More than 22,000 customers were helped by Highland Council’s welfare support team and Citizens Advice for support with welfare, debt and housing issues last year.
But despite the positive work of the welfare organisations, one Highland councillor has claimed the current benefits system is heaping the burden on the poorest and most vulnerable.
Alasdair Christie, general manager of Inverness, Badenoch and Strathspey Citizens Advice Bureau, said he does not believe the benefits system no longer acts as a safety net and warned many Highland families are at best only two pay cheques away from falling into poverty.
In the past three years numbers of people seeking help have risen by 30% overall.
End Child Poverty’s most recent report showed that poverty in Highland is most acute in the Cromarty Firth, Wick and Inverness Central.
Mr Christie said: “The eight week delay in receiving Universal Credit has placed an inhumane burden on families, especially disabled and vulnerable adults.
“And children are going to school hungry, here in the Highlands like everywhere else.
“The foodbanks are over-subscribed, with limits on the number of times people can use them.
“A lot of working people are only at best two pay cheques away from being in a similar position- that could be a business closing down, an accident, it’s a very fragile existence people have now as regards poverty.”
Mr Christie said the UK and Scottish Governments and local government voice Cosla need to get round the table and talk about how to drive poverty out.
The council’s welfare team helped 3,372 customers while 18,777 clients were assisted by Citizens Advice last year.
Financial gains for customers exceeded £22.5million, representing a £14.07 return for every £1 allocated in advice and information services by the council.
A total of £11.2 million of debt (including £2.4m relating to mortgage/other secured loans) was presented to Citizens Advice, representing a 56% decrease compared to 2016/17.
Last year also saw a 13% increase in demand for complex advice from customers accessing benefit and money advice services compared to 2017/18.
