What Is A Social Loan

[JGJ]

To cut a very long story short can someone explain to me what a social loan consists of etc.

This is in response to a close friends request as to how, what, when and for what you can apply for the said loan and is there a statutory repayment period.

 

The applicant is single, with a child under 12 months of age unemployed and surviving with absolutely loads of financial aid from the parents.

Unfortunately no support from the father (financial), not homeless but needs to move from present (private accom) and needs furniture for the move hence the loan.

 

Any advive comments will be gratefully passed to my close friend.

 

"EXEMPLO DUCEMUS"

[ErikaPNP]

A loan from the Social Fund can be a Crisis Loan or a Budgeting loan.

 

For a Crisis Loan to be paid, it has to be demonstrated that she cannot obtain the resource any other way and that there would be a serious risk to her health and safety or that of her family if she didn't receive the Crisis Loan. There is no qualifying benefit requirement.

 

To claim a Budgeting loan, she would need to have been in receipt of a qualifying benefit for 26 weeks or more. The qualifying benefits are:

 

Income Support

Income Based Jobseekers Allowance

Income Related employment and support allowance

Pension credit

 

If she has had a loan from the social fund before, it could affect the amount she could get. As she has a son, she is considered a "family" and can claim up to £812.00 for a Budgeting loan.

 

The current consensus is to have the amount paid back within two years. Both types of loan are interest free. Can't advise you on what the repayments will be as this can vary from one person to the next - everyone has different circumstances.

 

On the other hand, she could apply for a community care grant, which is non repayable. Again she would need to be receiving a qualifying benefit as listed above, but she doesn't have to have been recieving it for a certain time period. Unless she is at risk of going into care, or has a planned resettlement programme with a support organisation, then she is unlikely to get a grant unless she can demonstrate that it would ease exceptional pressures on her and her family.

 

For the Crisis Loan or Community Care Grant, she would not get any help for moving or purchasing furniture until she had a tenandy agreement on the new property and could produce a copy to the Social Fund. Budgeting loans are far easier to get if she meets the criteria but she would not receive more than £812.00 for a budgeting loan and this amount could be less if she has any current outstanding loans from social fund.