One family is set to receive an extra £900 monthly boost in benefit payments following Chancellor Rachel Reeves's decision to scrap the controversial two-child benefit cap in the Budget.
Lisa White, 31, and her partner David White, 35, from Monmouth, south Wales have estimated they will receive up to £2,770 a month in Universal Credit and Child Benefit payments.
After her partner was signed off from work due to mental health issues, Ms White has relied on benefit support to help take care of her five children and currently receives £1,990 a month from the DWP.
Earlier this week, the Chancellor revealed the benefit cap, which currently impacts more than 1.5 million children in the UK, will be abolished from April next year.
One family estimates they will receive £2,770 a month in Universal Credit after DWP two-child benefit cap axe
|GETTY
Speaking to the mirror, the mother-of-five described the Labour Government's decision as being "very beneficial" for her children which will allow them to attend extracurricular activies
Under the DWP two-child benefit cap, which was introduced by the previous Conservative Government in 2017, parents are restricted from claiming Universal Credit or tax credit for their third children onwards.
Amid the ongoing cost of living crisis, Ms White's family has been forced to contend with "astronomical" prices for groceries and utilities with the extra benefit support in recent years.
She explained: "The cap being removed will improve my kids' lives and open so much up for them.
The DWP is making dramatic changes to its services, including to Jobcentres | PA"Money has been tight since Dave had to leave work, and now the food bill is where the main chunk of our money goes. My son Marley, nine, has really wanted to do football club. Now we'll be able to pay for him to do that.
"The cap won't be massively beneficial for me personally, financially, but it will let me see my children doing things that they love to do."
Reacting to the Chancellor's decision to remove the benefit cap, budgeting app Marygold & Co Matthew Parden broke down what the likely impact will be on thousands of families across the country.
He shared: "The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) confirms that reversing welfare cuts and removing the two child limit in Universal Credit will add around £3billion to spending by 2029 30 and increase benefits for around 560,000 families.
Universal Credit is the primary benefit administered by the DWP | PA"The Budget also includes lower household energy bills, which will provide welcome breathing room. These measures offer support, although they do not offset the drag from rising taxes and frozen thresholds."
Thomas Lawson, CEO of anti-poverty charity Turn2us, added: "350,000 children across the country get their childhood back, thanks to the scrapping of the cruel two-child limit.
"Scrapping the two-child limit ends an unjust policy that pushed thousands of families into years of unjust hardship. This is not only the right thing to do, giving children a fair start strengthens Britain’s future prosperity.
"But the job is not finished. The decision to retain the benefit cap means thousands of the UK’s poorest families will not benefit from this change. Removing it must be the next step, so no child is left behind."
LATEST DEVELOPMENTS
Defending the move during her Budget statement, Ms Reeves asserted the benefit cap "pushes kids into poverty more than any other" and had "made almost no difference to the size of families".
She addeed: "[The Conservatives] said they were punishing parents' choices – but it's kids who have paid the price for the policies of a party which opted for cynical gimmicks over real savings in the welfare system."
Furthermore, the Chancellor claimed axing the benefit cap "fully funded" due to the Government's efforts to tackle fraud and error in the welfare system.
The two-child benefit cap on Universal Credit payments will no longer be DWP policy from April 2026.
More From GB News