Moorlands MP Karen Bradley has welcomed an extra £5.3m of funding to help local councils support services throughout the Coronavirus pandemic.

An extra £5,164,264 will be provided for Staffordshire County Council, with an extra £138,920 also being given to Staffordshire Moorlands District Council.

The extra money will help the local authorities pay for their response to Coronavirus, as part of a £500 million Government package of additional support for councils around the country.

It's hoped that the extra £500 million – which brings Government's council support funding up to a total of £4.3 billion - will ensure councils in England can continue to deliver crucial frontline services and support those most in need throughout the pandemic.

In total, since the pandemic began, Staffordshire County Council will have now received an additional £42,923,599 and Staffordshire Moorlands District Council an additional £1,160,514.

This additional support forms part of a package of Government support to help councils respond to the pandemic, including a new scheme to help councils recover lost income, including from car parks and museums, which have been shut during the lockdown.

In addition, the Government has announced a co-payment scheme that will compensate councils for irrecoverable income losses from sales, fees and charges. Government is also allowing them to spread their tax deficits over three years rather than the usual one.

Karen said: "The staff at our Councils have played a heroic role in coordinating the local response to Coronavirus and I'm sure everyone in our community will join me in thanking them for everything they've done under extraordinary circumstances.

"Our Conservative government said at the beginning of this crisis that they would stand behind our councils and I'm delighted that they have done, protecting local services and ensuring councils come through this difficult period with stable finances.

"This additional £5,164,264 and £138,920 shows they've continued to listen to local concerns and will protect local services in the Moorlands on which we all rely."

Also commenting, Communities Secretary Robert Jenrick added: "Councils are playing a vital role in our national fight against coronavirus, providing a lifeline for so many and supporting communities at a time when they need it most.

"That's why we are giving them an extra £500 million – taking our total additional funding provided to £4.3 billion – and today I am setting out how this will be allocated to councils fairly based on the pressures they have told us they are facing.

"This comes on top of the co-payment scheme announced last week that will compensate councils for irrecoverable income losses from sales, fees and charges."