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> Community Care Grant
What is a community care grant?
• Money to help with needs like household items, certain travel costs or for an emergency or disaster.
• Money to help if you or your partner are getting Income Support or income-based Jobseeker's Allowance, or you are likely to get one of these when you move out of residential or institutional accommodation
• It does not have to be paid back
When can I get it?
•If you are planning to leave residential or institutional accommodation
• If you need help to stay in your own home rather than going into residential or institutional accommodation
• If you need help to stay in your own home because of a disaster
• If you need to move home because of a disability, serious illness, disaster or other urgent reason
• If you need help because you have had an unsettled way of life and are being resettled by an organisation like a local council or housing charity
• If you need help because you and your family face exceptional pressure, such as family breakdown or someone in the family having a long-term illness
• If you look after someone who is ill or disabled, or has been released from custody on temporary licence
• If you need help with expenses such as visiting someone who is ill, or to attend a relative's funeral
You should apply for a Community Care Grant if you or your family are in this sort of situation.
Notes
Whether you can get a Community Care Grant will depend on your particular circumstances.
If you have savings of more than £500, or £1000 if you or your partner are aged 60 or over, this will usually affect the amount you can get. (partner means a person you are married to or a person you are living with as if you are married to them.)
How much is a Community Care Grant?
This is a discretionary award and not a fixed sum. The minimum amount awarded is £30, unless the award is for travelling or daily living expenses.
It is important to note that the Social Fund, from which Community Care Grants are made, has a fixed budget. Once the money in the fund has been allocated, no more will be available until the following year. So it is possible that you can qualify for an award, but still be turned down.
The Decision Maker has to award a priority level to each item or service applied for, taking into account your individual circumstances, and the nature, extent and urgency of the need. Each case must be considered in its particular circumstances. Therefore an item that is high priority on one application may be a medium or even low on another.
Decision Makers have to manage the Social Fund budget for their area to ensure that payments can be made for the most important needs throughout the year.
How to claim
You can download a claim form here. You will need to give proof of identity and may need documentary evidence to support your claim.
Alternatively, you can get a claim form SF300 from your local Jobcentre Plus office.
When you complete your application it is important to include details about the need you have and how it arose, your personal circumstances and how the lack of the requested item affects you.
If you are leaving residential or institutional accommodation and expect to get Income Support or income-based Jobseeker's Allowance, you can make your claim up to 6 weeks before you leave.