The leader of Oldham Council and colleagues have appealed to Chancellor of the Exchequer for a continuation of the Household Support Fund (HSF).
The borough has had millions of pounds from central government to use on support for the vulnerable since the scheme started more than two years ago.
Recently, in the Autumn Statement, the Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt made no reference to the scheme, of which the fourth round runs to April 1, 2024.
The leader of Oldham Council, Arooj Shah, as well as colleagues including Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham, Greater Manchester deputy mayor Kate Green and all of the other council leaders in the region have appealed to Mr Hunt for a continuation of the HSF in a letter to the Conservative Chancellor this month.
The letter said: "Your recent Autumn Statement made no reference to the continuation of this fund from April 1, 2024. In 2023/2024 the allocation to Greater Manchester local authorities totalled £54 million."
It said: "The fund is a safety net for families and individuals facing the greatest hardship and [we] are not in a position to plug the gap if the government proceeds with the decision to end the Household Support Fund."
The authorities are allowed to spend the allocation from the HSF at their discretion although these authorities are asked to focus on energy bills and food bills in particular.
A spokesperson for the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), which is responsible for the HSF, said its response to the cost of living crisis is always "under review".
The spokesperson for the DWP said: "We have invested over £2 billion into the fund over the last two years with almost £800 million already paid to families with children to help with the cost of living. The fund is available up until March 2024 and it comes on top of a record cost of living support package.
"This includes increasing benefits, increasing State Pension and increasing Local Housing Allowance to help renters on Housing Benefit or Universal Credit save £800 on housing costs. We have halved inflation to help everyone's money go further and cut taxes for hardworking people at the Autumn Statement."
This article was written by Jack Tooth. To contact him, email jack.tooth@newsquest.co.uk or follow @JTRTooth on Twitter.
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