Council Tax Reduction in 2026: Practical approaches to policy reform and supporting the most vulnerable

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Test webinar (CRF) The 2025 Spending Review contained a welcome announcement on new long term funding for local crisis support in England. The Crisis and Resilience Fund (CRF) is set to replace the Household Support Fund (HSF) from April 2026, for three years.

The CRF is an opportunity to reset local crisis support in England, following over a decade of patchwork provision and the short term funding rounds that have characterised the HSF.

Together with anti-poverty charity Trussell, we have published a report, Resetting local crisis support in England, presenting new analysis and recommendations intended to inform delivery across the three key elements of the CRF:

1. Provision and access to effective crisis support
2. Improving the financial resilience of individuals and local communities
3. Bolstering community level support

Speakers will include the Department for Work and Pensions and the authors of the report:

- Ashleigh Naysmith, Senior Policy Advisor at the DWP
- Beatrice Orchard, Head of Programme at Trussell
- Zoe Sydenham, Community Empowerment Organisational Lead at Plymouth City Council
- Deven Ghelani, Founder and Director at Policy in Practice
- Francisca Torres Cortés, Head of Research at Policy in Practice

Join us at this webinar to learn more about our recommendations and explore practical examples focused on:

- Delivering a cash-first approach to local crisis support
- Using the CRF to build financial resilience for people most at risk of financial crisis
- Developing a systematic approach to monitoring and evaluating outcomes

The webinar is open to any organisation with an interest in the CRF. It will be particularly relevant to local authorities, as well as voluntary and community sector organisations involved in supporting people at risk of financial hardship.

19/1/2026

2:30pm GMT

1 hour

CRF: Resetting local crisis support in England The 2025 Spending Review contained a welcome announcement on new long term funding for local crisis support in England. The Crisis and Resilience Fund (CRF) is set to replace the Household Support Fund (HSF) from April 2026, for three years.

The CRF is an opportunity to reset local crisis support in England, following over a decade of patchwork provision and the short term funding rounds that have characterised the HSF.

Together with anti-poverty charity Trussell, we have published a report, Resetting local crisis support in England, presenting new analysis and recommendations intended to inform delivery across the three key elements of the CRF:

1. Provision and access to effective crisis support
2. Improving the financial resilience of individuals and local communities
3. Bolstering community level support

Speakers will include the Department for Work and Pensions and the authors of the report:

- Ashleigh Naysmith, Senior Policy Advisor at the DWP
- Beatrice Orchard, Head of Programme at Trussell
- Zoe Sydenham, Community Empowerment Organisational Lead at Plymouth City Council
- Deven Ghelani, Founder and Director at Policy in Practice
- Francisca Torres Cortés, Head of Research at Policy in Practice

Join us at this webinar to learn more about our recommendations and explore practical examples focused on:

- Delivering a cash-first approach to local crisis support
- Using the CRF to build financial resilience for people most at risk of financial crisis
- Developing a systematic approach to monitoring and evaluating outcomes

The webinar is open to any organisation with an interest in the CRF. It will be particularly relevant to local authorities, as well as voluntary and community sector organisations involved in supporting people at risk of financial hardship.

21/1/2026

10:30am GMT

1.3 hours

Overcoming the data disconnect in safeguarding: Evidence and impact from South Wales and West Midlands Too often, vulnerable people are only identified when it is already too late. Safeguarding professionals are forced to make decisions with only part of the picture, as crucial information is spread across disconnected services and systems. This makes it harder to spot risks, see patterns or act early, leading to delayed or inappropriate support.

In this webinar, we’ll explore how councils and safeguarding partners are tackling this challenge by improving the way data is shared and used. You’ll hear about practical approaches to using daily, structured data feeds to inform decisions, identify concerns earlier and support coordinated prevention work across teams.

Join us to hear from:

• Mohammed Ali, Business Intelligence Technical, Walsall Council, will discuss how bringing education data into MAST provides a deeper understanding of a household's situation, leading to more tailored support.

• Linzi Margetson, Principal Officer for Safeguarding, Performance & Transformation, Swansea Council who will talk about real life examples of how better access to safeguarding data is already helping them to take timely, more targeted action, and how they are evidencing impact.

• Jennifer Downie, MAST Project Manager, and Paul Garlick, Head of Operations, from Policy in Practice will also share insights into how local authorities and safeguarding partners are improving safeguarding practice through better use of data and linkages

28/1/2026

10:30am GMT

1.3 hours

Council Tax Reduction: Practical approaches to policy reform and supporting the most vulnerable In recent years, Council Tax arrears in England have hit a record £6 billion.

As we move into 2026, the design of local Council Tax Reduction (CTR) schemes remains one of the most powerful levers councils have to protect low income residents from falling into arrears.

Join us at this webinar to explore practical solutions focused on:

• Trends in council tax support schemes: Preparing for LGR and the April budget changes
• Streamlined collection: Aligning CTR scheme design to make it simple to administer, and combine this with flexible, effective and sustainable debt management practices
• Local government reorganisation: Best practices to harmonise disparate schemes and be ready for the transition
• Efficiency through automation: How South Norfolk & Broadland councils are working to increase take-up while reducing the administrative burden of Universal Credit fluctuations through income-banded schemes and automated modelling

The policy landscape is shifting rapidly. The government’s new Child Poverty Strategy introduces statutory requirements for councils to ensure their schemes actively reduce inequality and align with supportive collection practices, while LGR and changes to local government funding impact on scheme design.

Deven Ghelani (Director) and Rory Ewan (Senior Policy and Data Analyst) of Policy in Practice will discuss the impact of these policy changes and practical approaches based on our analysis of over 150 schemes. We will also be joined by Lindsay Sayer who will share her experience of CTRS redesign in South Norfolk and Broadland, and harmonisation across the districts.

This webinar will aim to provide Heads of Revenues and Benefits, Revenues Managers, Finance Directors and policy leads with the tools to navigate complex legislative changes and design data driven, resilient schemes.

By acting now, councils can turn these policy challenges into an opportunity to deliver fairer, more efficient support.