In response to the cost of living crisis, the Government has launched a support package targeted at those most vulnerable households.
The support available includes:
Essex County Council
Essex County Council may be able to help individuals to pay for things like:
This help is known as ‘welfare assistance’ or the ‘Household Support Fund’.
Basildon Borough Council
Cosaraf Charitable Foundation – Hardship Grants
Grants of up to £2,000 are available to charities, housing associations, schools and social services providing support for individuals and families across the UK who are in financial need.
The Cosaraf Charitable Foundation’s Hardship Grants will support individuals and families who have exhausted all other sources of funding and are struggling with everyday costs, such as basic living expenses, household items and utilities, work- or education-related expenses, or rent arrears.
Priority will be given to the most financially excluded people, families over individuals, those with caring responsibilities, and to items that will make the most difference to the individual/family’s long-term future.
Applications can be made at any time and are assessed every six weeks.
https://www.cosaraf.org/apply-for-funding/hardship-grants/
Henry Smith Charity – Strengthening Communities Programme
Grants of between £20,000 and £70,000 per year for up to three years are available to community-led charities and not-for-profit organisations working to support communities in the most deprived areas of the UK.
The Henry Smith Charity’s Strengthening Communities programme focuses on supporting the running costs of organisations working at grass-roots level, to ensure that funding reaches the most disadvantaged areas, targeting places that are economically marginalised and affected by poverty.
Funding could be used to increase existing service provision, take on a new staff member, improve sustainability or cover small capital costs.
Applications can be submitted at any time and decisions are usually made within 6 months.
https://www.henrysmithcharity.org.uk/explore-our-grants-and-apply/strengthening-communities-grants/strengthening-communities-overview/
Cash for Kids – Cost of Living Fund
A new £1 million fund has been launched to support the UK’s most vulnerable families during the cost-of-living crisis. The Cash for Kids Cost of Living Fund will target families who have a genuine need for support and are suffering from disadvantage due to the crisis, allowing them to apply for grants of £50 per child which can be used for basic essentials such as food, heating, clothing, and school uniform.
Service providers who support vulnerable children, including schools, social services, health professionals and charities, can apply on behalf of the families they work with. Applications will close when all funding has been allocated.
https://cashforkids.org.uk/grants
BBC Children in Need Emergency Essentials Programme
BBC Children in Need Emergency Essentials Programme supports children and young people who are facing exceptionally difficult circumstances, and is delivered by Family Fund Business Services. The programme provides items that meet a child’s most basic needs such as a bed to sleep in, a cooker to provide a hot meal and other items or services critical to a child’s wellbeing. Applications can be made at any time.
All applications must be made by a registered referrer.
https://www.familyfundservices.co.uk/emergency-essentials/
Beatrice Laing Trust
The Trust funds projects concerned with the relief of poverty or distress, particularly those relating to children, and the advancement of the evangelical Christian faith, both at home and abroad. The Beatrice Laing Trust offers grants to UK registered charities working throughout the UK, in developing countries and overseas. Grants are generally awarded on a one-off basis for capital purposes such as the purchase or construction of new premises, building extension, redevelopment or refurbishment, or the purchase of equipment and vehicles.
This grant is open to applications. Applications can be submitted at any time.
http://www.laingfamilytrusts.org.uk/
Benefact Trust – General Grants Programme
The Benefact Trust (formerly known as the All Churches Trust) offers grants to Christian charities and organisations across the United Kingdom and Ireland that aim to help communities thrive and tackle social issues such as helping vulnerable families, homelessness and poverty to climate change and cultural cohesion. Through the General Grants Programme the Trust supports the repair, restoration, protection and improvement of churches, cathedrals and other places of Christian worship where changes support wider community use and enable greater impact.
This grant is open to applications. Applications can be submitted at any time.
https://benefacttrust.co.uk/which-grant-is-for-me/general-grants
British Gas Energy Support Fund
The Trust has launched a new energy support fund to help the most financially vulnerable British Gas customers who are struggling to pay their energy bills. This fund has been set up in response to the increasing cost of living and rising inflation, including Ofgem’s most recent price cap increase. Through the fund eligible British Gas customers with fuel debt of £250 to £750 can apply for grants to help pay their energy bills over the coming months.
The fund will remain open until all the money invested has been awarded.
https://britishgasenergytrust.org.uk/grants-available/
Buttle UK – Chances for Children Grants
Grants of up to £2,000 are available to support the needs of vulnerable children and young people who have experienced a recent crisis or change in life that has had a significant impact on their social and emotional wellbeing and their education. The funding is being made available through the Buttle UK’s Chances for Children Grants. Support might include items and activities to support learning and development such as laptops, books, wi-fi, educational toys, tuition, etc; clothing and school uniforms; and social, sporting and leisure activities; and items for children/young people’s bedrooms. Buttle UK will only accept applications from frontline professionals (from a registered charity, housing association or public sector organisation).
Applications can be made at any time.
https://buttleuk.org/apply-for-a-grant/chances-for-children-grants/
Dischma Charitable Trust
The Dischma Charitable Trust provides grants to organisations in England and Wales that require funding for projects that fall into the following categories: Education/training; The Advancement Of Health Or Saving Of Lives; Disability; The Prevention or Relief of Poverty; Overseas Aid/famine Relief; Arts/culture/heritage/science; Animals; Environment/conservation/heritage.
This grant is open to applications. Applications can be submitted at any time.
https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/charity-search/-/charity-details/3963161/charity-overview
EDF Customer Support Fund
The EDF Customer Support Fund awards grants to vulnerable customer households. It aims to provide customers with a fresh start and financial stability. It can help households stay out of fuel debt and better able to afford ongoing energy costs. The Fund also offers grants to buy essential energy efficient white goods such as cookers, refrigerators, or washing machines.
Applications can be submitted at any time.
https://www.edfenergy.com/for-home/help-centre/faq/extra-support-when-you-need-it?steps=23147#chapter-23146-3
E-On Next Energy Fund
The aim of the E.ON Next Energy Fund is to help E.ON Next customers who are experiencing financial hardship and struggling. There are two ways this fund can help:
The first option is to help with paying gas and electricity bills through grants, helping individual to become financially stable and to get back control of their finances.
The other option is to provide a replacement appliance such as a cooker, fridge, fridge-freezer or washing machine if yours has broken or poor condition.
Applications are open to individual customers of e-on and application can be submitted at any time.
https://www.eonnextenergyfund.com/
Friends of the Elderly – Grants for Older People
Friends of the elderly provide support for older people affected by loneliness and grants for those living on a low income. Through the Grants for Older People programme they provide grants of up to £400 to older people who are of/over state pension age and have savings of less than £4,000. Funding is currently being provided through four schemes: Home Essentials to help with the cost of replacing everyday items, small home repairs and mobility adaptations; Digital Connection to help older people get online; Financial Support to help with unexpected bills; and Essential Living Costs including clothing, food, medicines and books. Applications must be made via a third-party Referral Agent such as charities, local authority and social services representatives.
This grant is open to applications. Applications can be submitted at any time.
https://www.fote.org.uk/our-charity-work/grants-2/
Henry Smith Charity – Improving Lives
The Henry Smith Charity is one of the largest independent grant making trusts in the UK. The Improving Lives grant programme provides grants to charitable organisations that help people in need when other sources of support have failed, are inappropriate, or are simply not available. Funding of between £20,000 and £60,000 per year for a maximum of three years is available to established organisations delivering services directly to beneficiaries. One of the key areas of the Improving lives programme is to support:
People have the support, information and advice to address their financial issues.
People are able to navigate the benefits, migration and asylum systems and claim their rights and entitlements.
People have improved financial literacy, are more able to understand their finances and have greater confidence when budgeting and managing their money.
This grant is open to applications. Applications can be submitted at any time.
https://www.henrysmithcharity.org.uk/explore-our-grants-and-apply/improving-lives-grants-programme/improving-lives-grants-programme-overview/
Magic Little Grants
Localgiving has teamed up with the Postcode Community Trust to provide the Magic Little Grants programme. The fund provides small charities and community groups with grants of £500 for projects that address a range of community, social, environmental and health issues including preventing or reducing the impact of poverty.
Applications can be submitted at any time.
https://localgiving.org/magic-little-grants/
OVO Energy Fund
The OVO Energy Fund is a fund that helps people who’ve fallen behind with their energy payments to OVO. To qualify, individuals need to be in receipt of one of the following: Income Support, Job Seekers Allowance, Pension Credit, Employment and Support Allowance, or Universal Credit (but only if not working). In addition to qualify the energy debt on the energy account needs to be at least £150 and the annual household income is £16,190 or less.
https://www.ovoenergy.com/help/debt-and-energy-assistance
Persimmon Community Champions
Persimmon Homes Charity Foundation is providing grant funding of up to £1000 to registered charities, clubs, schools and other organisations which have already raised vital funds themselves towards projects to enhance their local community. The total available each month to support local good causes is £60,000. The type of projects supported to date have included support for foodbanks; projects within schools; and sports projects; etc.
This grant is open to applications. Applications can be submitted at any time.
https://www.persimmonhomes.com/community-champions
Royal British Legion’s Everyday Needs Grants Programme
Grants of up to £2,400 are being made available to help UK Armed Forces veterans and their families who are struggling to pay their bills due to the cost-of-living crisis. The funding is being made available through the Royal British Legion’s Everyday Needs Grants Programme to support people who need help with everyday essentials such as kitchen appliances, clothes, and energy costs. The initiative will provide non-repayable emergency grants of up to £200 a month for up to twelve months.
Applications can be made at any time and should be assessed within five days of submission.
Tesco Community Grants Programme
The Tesco Community Grants Programme will use the money raised from the 5p bag charge in Tesco stores across England, Wales and Scotland to pay for a large number of local projects. Tesco Community Grants fund thousands of local community projects across the UK, helping to fight holiday hunger, tackle mental health, support young people, host community events and much more. Since 2016 the scheme has supported over 40,000 community groups with more than £90 million in grants. Tesco Community Grants is open to charities and community organisations to apply for a grant of up to £1,500. Every three months, three local good causes are selected to be in the blue token customer vote in Tesco stores throughout the UK.
This grant is open to applications. Applications can be submitted at any time.
https://tescocommunitygrants.org.uk/