Discretionary assistance fund: September 2025 to March 2026
For the period September 2025 to March 2026, discretionary assistance fund statistics, analysed by age and local authority.
This file may not be fully accessible.
In this page
Introduction
The Discretionary Assistance Fund (DAF) is a programme introduced by the former Welsh government which provides payments to people in crisis or who need help to live independently. Payments are split into two types depending on which category they fall into.
- Emergency Assistance Payments (EAPs): cash payments to help pay for essential costs, such as food, gas, electricity, clothing or emergency travel.
- Individual Assistance Payments (IAPs): white goods and/or furniture help people live independently in their home or a property that they are moving into.
To ensure the timely reporting of DAF figures the number and values of payments in this report refer to approved applications not applications which have been paid. This means the value of payments in this report may differ from the final amount paid to recipients. The most up-to-date data on the DAF, as well as additional monthly breakdowns, can be found on StatsWales. To help users interpret the data, more information on data quality can be found in the DAF quality report.
Following consultation with users on how we report DAF data, we have decided to publish these statistics twice a year, in spring and autumn, typically covering the previous six months. This change aims to improve the accuracy of published figures, by reducing the likelihood and size of revisions.
For this release, we are publishing data for the seven months from September 2025 to March 2026 individually on StatsWales. The seven month period is an exception to include previously unpublished data for the 2025 to 2026 financial year.
This summary report compares the seven months’ worth of data (September 2025 to March 2026) with the equivalent period in the previous financial year. Future releases will cover a six-month period and will be published in May and November.
Main findings
- For the period April 2025 to March 2026 there were 220,000 DAF payments with a combined value of £31,062,000.
- Between September 2025 and March 2026 there were 129,200 payments with a total value of £18,779,000.
- 122,200 of these payments were EAPs with a value of £10,248,000.
- 7,000 of these payments were IAPs with a value of £8,531,000.
- The average (mean) value of an EAP was £84 and the average value of an IAP was £1,220.
Figure 1: value of Emergency Assistance Payments and Individual Assistance Payments for September 2025 to March 2026 and for the same period in prior two years
Description of figure 1: this bar chart shows the value of EAPs and IAPs in September 2025 to March 2026 and for the same period in the previous two years. There was 10.2 million pounds of EAPs in September 2025 to March 2026 an increase of 3.8 million compared with September 2024 to March 2025 and 8.5 million pounds in IAPs, an increase of 2.4 million. There was comparatively less change when comparing the most recent values with September 2023 to March 2024.
Source: NEC Software Solutions UK data September 2025 to March 2026 (collected on behalf of Welsh Government).
As an emergency fund for those in financial crisis with no other means of support, fluctuations in the amounts awarded under the DAF occur from year to year.
The number and value of DAF payments, by month, on StatsWales
The differences in the total values of EAPs and IAPs between periods was driven by a change in the number of payments. For EAPs there was 49% increase in the number of payments in September 2025 to March 2026 compared with the September 2024 to March 2025. For IAPs there was a 35% increase.
Local authority
Figure 2: value of Emergency Assistance Payments and Individual Assistance Payments in each local authority between September 2025 and March 2026
Description of figure 2: this bar chart shows the total value of EAPs and IAPs paid in each local authority between September 2025 to March 2026. The total value of EAPs paid varied between £1,208,000 in Cardiff to £126,000 in Ceredigion. For IAPs the total value of payments varied from £1,432,000 in Cardiff to £93,000 in Ceredigion. Note that these results have not been adjusted for the difference in population between local authorities.
Source: NEC Software Solutions UK data September 2025 to March 2026 (collected on behalf of Welsh Government)
The number and value of payments, per month, for each local authority can be found on StatsWales.
The average value of a payment varied between £107 in Ceredigion to £79 for Newport for EAPs and from £1,359 in Bridgend to £943 in Ceredigion for IAPs.
Age of recipient
Figure 3: value of EAPs and IAPs by age group between September 2025 and March 2026
Description of figure 3: this bar chart shows the value of EAPs and IAPs awarded by age group between September 2025 to March 2026. The 30 to 39 year old age group received the highest value of EAPs with the 40 to 49 year age group the second highest. For IAPs the 16 to 29 year age group received the highest value of IAPs. Note that these results have not been adjusted for the difference in population between age groups.
Source: NEC Software Solutions UK data September 2025 to March 2026 (collected on behalf of Welsh Government).
The number and value of payments, per month, for each age group can be found on StatsWales.
Those aged 30 to 39 received, in total, £3,853,000 from EAPs and £2,443,000 from IAPs. Those in the 16 to 29 age group received £2,354,000 and £2,444,000 from EAPs and IAPs respectively and those aged 70 and over received £124,000 from EAPs and £159,000 from IAPs. Note that these results have not been adjusted for the difference in population between age groups.
For EAPs the value of the average payment varied between £105 for those aged 70 and over and £75 for those aged 50 to 59. For IAPs the value of the average payment varied between £1,299 for those aged 30 to 39 and £929 for those aged 70 and over.
Quality and methodology information
The average EAP values are rounded to the nearest pound, average IAPs are rounded to the nearest 10 pounds and all other monetary values are rounded to the nearest 1,000 pounds. Number of payments are rounded to the nearest 100. The data presented in this report has not undergone the same level of quality assurance as official statistics and the data may be revised in future. Further information on what to keep in mind when interpreting these statistics can be found in the quality report.
In addition to these statistics Welsh Government published an annual analytical report looking into more detail at:
- the recipients of DAF in terms of their age, how individuals access DAF payments and the number of times the DAF is used per individual
- the DAF payments in the 22 local authorities in Wales to see if there are any emerging patterns in specific economic indicators that might help explain the number of payments in each local authority
The most recent DAF analytics report covers the period May 2024 and April 2025.
Please note that the more detailed datasets summarised in that report cover different periods and were extracted at different time points than the regular statistics, therefore there may be small differences in numbers.
For broader context on the cost of living please see the Understanding the cost of living Dashboard (Data Cymru).