A big hello to you all from CSPA HQ in Croydon!
The leaves are starting to turn and I’ve even seen some Christmas items in the shops, all clues that Autumn is now upon us. Thought that made it a good time to share some of the latest news and updates from us here at HQ.
Winter Fuel Payment
Chancellor Rachel Reeves surprised many on the 29th July by announcing swingeing changes to Winter Fuel Payment arrangements as part of the Treasury’s initial spending review. Ministers insist that painful measures are needed to address the “black hole” left in public finances by the previous Government’s “£22 billion pound overspend” before the July elections. These payments have been made to all pensioners tax-free in recent years but are to be restricted to those on Pension Credit and other means-tested benefits so around 10 million pensioners are likely to miss out this winter.
To make matters worse, on the 23rd August, the energy regulator OffGem announced a 10% hike in the Energy Price Cap, adding around £149 to average annual gas and electricity bills, in a move likely to tip many more pensioners and others into energy poverty.
We know that over 800,000 pensioners eligible to receive Pension Credit payments have not applied for them – for a whole host of reasons – and we have called on the Government to widen the net significantly to ensure that all those in need of additional support can heat their homes this Winter. In a press release published on the 20th August, the DWP urged pensioners to check their eligibility to receive Pension Credit and to apply for it in order to secure the Winter Fuel Payment, but we agree with our partners at Age UK, Independent Age and the NPC that there will be around 2 million more pensioners with means just above the stipulated thresholds who are likely to face hardship without Winter Fuel support this year.
Save the Winter Fuel Payment for struggling pensioners
Millions of struggling pensioners won’t receive up to £300 they rely on to pay their bills.
The Government should halt their proposed change to the Winter Fuel Payment and think again.
Sign Age UK’s petition to save the winter fuel payment for struggling pensioners.
Tax thresholds
The increasing burden of tax on pensions income is also a pressing concern for many CSPA members and we are calling on the Government to review the personal tax threshold (frozen at £12,570 since 2021) to mitigate the effects this has on older people, who the Institute for Fiscal Studies has acknowledged are worst affected. We are pleased to be promoting this campaign with the National Pensioners Convention to ensure that the voices of hundreds of thousands of pensioners are heard.
We must keep speaking up about the importance of maintaining the Triple Lock commitment to increase State Pensions in line with average earnings and inflation so that the new Government honours pre-election pledges this Autumn and beyond.
Social Care
We are concerned by indications that wide-ranging reforms to national social care provisions may be delayed subject to yet another lengthy review process when time is of the essence. CSPA has promoted the Care and Support Alliance’s “Show Us You Care” online campaign, giving members opportunities to find out what is good, and what is not so good, about the provision of social care in their local areas. CSPA members are urged to engage with their MPs and Local Authorities about the provision of social care and support for carers in their constituencies, to make the point that this is a national, and not a localised, issue to bring about urgent improvements.
You can find out more about our campaign with CSA here – What’s care like near you? – CSPA
CSPA AGM
Our next Annual General Meeting on the 9th and 10th of October is approaching rapidly, and CSPA Groups and Branches have drawn attention to a range of issues of concern to members in submitting over 50 motions for debate this year, across a range of topics from pensions to health, social care, public transport, and pensioner taxation. We appreciate the work of active members who participate in CSPA nationally and locally and look forward to some lively discussions in Kenilworth once again this year.
All CSPA members can play their part in letting the people they are in touch with know about the valuable work that we do to ‘protect what you have earned’. Please do encourage your friends and former colleagues to join up if they are eligible.
We warmly invite every CSPA member to consider becoming more actively involved if they are not already participating in their Local CSPA Group or Branch – they can be assured of a friendly welcome, ongoing comradeship, sociable gatherings and a chance to make a real difference to our national agenda and important campaigns on behalf of all CSPA members and others in later life.
We're on the move
Our landlords here in Croydon have notified us of their intention to sell the building that our offices are in, and we will be moving the Head Office team to alternative premises in early November. We will keep you posted on any changes to our contact details to minimise any inconvenience. I continue to appreciate the ongoing commitment and hard work put in by our HQ team to support all CSPA members.
Head Office Staff Changes
As you might have spotted in The Pensioner, our Office Manager, Marion McAuliffe has taken partial retirement by reducing to two working days a week.
She retains a key role in our team as Finance and AGM Manager, and she is still responsible for all matters relating to membership subscriptions and the administation of our AGM event.
We are pleased to welcome Lorraine Lydon as our part-time Office Manager. She is working with Marion to look after our office sytems and administrative functions, as well as helping to publish and distribute our group newsletters.
It’s been a busy summer full of activity and it looks like it will be an equally full last quarter of the year. We are looking forward to seeing some of you at the AGM next month.
