Applying for a Community Care Grant on Working Tax Credits

[physicsgraduate]

I am about to move from a private lease to social housing and I need to apply for a community care grant to afford basic household appliances and furniture.

 

On the online form with the local council (Scotland) there is a question asking me to specify "Allowable Benefit Type" and a drop down menu that does not contain the option to select working tax credits.

 

Does this mean then that I can't apply for one of these if I am on WTC?

 

I asked the local council on the phone but they were unable to tell me.

 

EDIT. It does include WTC on the online form. I might be better just printing that off and filling it in instead.

[theronstar]

As far as I knew, community care grants were abolished and were replaced by schemes ran by individual councils.

 

You refer to an online form but is that an online form from your local council or some other place?

 

Who did you speak to at the council. Was it someone from the benefits team?

 

Try speaking with this charity in case they would accept an application from you. They have helped people with buying basic household appliances, in the past.

 

http://www.charisgrants.com/contact/

[flumps1976]

community care grants have been replace by local support which is administered by the local authority in England, Scotland and Wales.

Your local authority will then direct you to a local provision who provide low cost furniture and/or white goods.

[Nystagmite]

Have you looked at places like Freecycle?

[physicsgraduate]

Totally missed these replies, sorry. Didn't get an email alert..

 

Anyway, I've looked into this and applied. Only it takes about 4 weeks, and I'm moving in next week properly. So I could be in there for 1,2 or more weeks before I get a reply.

 

I'm out in the sticks and I need a cooker and a fridge at the very least.

 

I've asked my bank to issue me with an overdraft to sort these things out, on the basis that I should hopefully be able to pay it back fairly promptly, still waiting on a decision.

 

The thing is, I called the local council and they say they normally supply goods rather than money. But I need certain things. So if I get accepted and I've already gone and bought the things myself, even through an overdraft what will happen if they want to supply me with the goods?

 

Will they offer me cash instead, or turn round and say if I can afford to source these things myself then I don't need a grant and so therefore I wont qualify?

 

What conundrum. What am I supposed to do here?

[theronstar]

There is often a lot of Freebies on the London Gumtree page. Try looking at the free stuff available near to where you live or see if you can cover the distance to reach someone who may be giving away the items that you need.

 

The way the rules usually work with these things is that so long as you have applied for the grant prior to your purchases, they should award you the money if you are successful.

 

If you are saying that your council run scheme only offer you the actual items, then it appears you will be bound by those rules.

 

There are no hard and fast rules with these things. The schemes are ran at the discretion of the people who set it up!

 

If you can wait out the assessment of your application then do so. Though if your overdraft allows you to buy the things then take advantage of that instead.

[physicsgraduate]

I think they offer either money or the goods, and it's down to their discretion or probably whether or not they have the goods in stock.

 

If I phone them up and say, look I need these basic items and I can't sustain myself without them, if I covered the cost would they just give me the cash instead if I am succesful?

 

I really do need them. The nearest supermarket is 5 miles away, the bus service is sparse and there's nothing in the village apart from a church and a pub. There isn't even a fish and chips shop.

 

What else can I do but find a way to provide these items for myself.

[theronstar]

I am really confused what you are asking here.

 

It is pointless you considering hypothetical scenarios with us. It's something you should do with the council/charity.

 

Perhaps try asking neighbours if they can temporarily help with the stuff you need.

[honeybee13]

To add to what theronstar says, also look at freegle/freecycle in your area. There are people offering the kind of stuff you need and you can also join and ask for what you don't have for your flat.

 

HB

[physicsgraduate]

It's quite simple, what I'm saying here. If you don't understand, or want to advise me then fair enough. Thanks anyway.

 

If I can't wait to find out if I can get a grant and I go ahead and sort something out myself, at the expense of incurring debts will they agree to offer me cash instead of items.

 

Freegle doesn't need to be an option.

[honeybee13]

It's quite simple, what I'm saying here. If you don't understand, or want to advise me then fair enough. Thanks anyway.

 

If I can't wait to find out if I can get a grant and I go ahead and sort something out myself, at the expense of incurring debts will they agree to offer me cash instead of items.

 

Freegle doesn't need to be an option.

 

What do you think we don't understand please?

 

And what is the problem with freegle/freecycle? I don't understand.

 

HB

Edited September 13, 2016 by honeybee13
Typo.

[physicsgraduate]

theronstar seems confused about something. I'm waiting on a decision from my application, so there is ultimately a hypothetical nature to the question.

 

I don't need to freegle. I can't say why.

[honeybee13]

theronstar seems confused about something. I'm waiting on a decision from my application, so there is ultimately a hypothetical nature to the question.

 

I don't need to freegle. I can't say why.

 

I'm sorry, I don't understand why you need to borrow money because the timescale is wrong. If you can get what you need temporarily and free, you could make do with that for a little while and then put it back into the freegle system to help other people, once you have what you want.

 

HB

[physicsgraduate]

I can look into freegle. I just want to be as little a burden on my parents as possible. There's a lot of things to organise, it's a rather over complicated dilemma.

[flumps1976]

http://england.shelter.org.uk/get_advice/money_problems/in_a_crisis/cash_in_a_crisis

 

there are very few local authorities that award cash anymore the community care grants have been abolished and replaced by local support, so you are more thank likely going to be offered a voucher to use at one of the local assistance schemes that are in place and if you are not successful with your application you will be referred to a facility that may be able to help you such as the furniture reuse network.

 

http://www.frn.org.uk/donate.html

[physicsgraduate]

Thanks flump. I'm not sure if I am eligible for claiming a crisis loan if I am on working tax credits.

[physicsgraduate]

I don't blame them for abolishing the cash grants, too many people abusing the system, applying for grants to furnish their house and it all just ends up going in their veins. Trust me, I've seen it plenty.

[flumps1976]

There are no crisis loans available either, they were abolished with community care grants and replaced with local support, so no cash available. They would ask why you have requested the help and refer to food banks, help with gas/electric tokens and the reuse networks for help with clothing and furniture.

[physicsgraduate]

Might be easier to just go down the mum road and accept the humility of being a failure in life.

 

I'm not sure if I will get it anyway, I am technically self employed, which is the same as employed only I get paid by the government. If certain so-called grassroots publications would pay me for the work they ordered then I'd be more self sufficient. If I had a place to sleep without being disturbed every night several times I wouldn't be crippled by fatigue and then I could get up at the crack of dawn every day again, bright eyed and bushy tailed to go and earn an honest wage.

 

After how many years of this, I am now moving to the middle of nowhere and with any luck I might be able to work out if my sleeping problems are caused by noisy neighbours or if I really do have a condition like ME/MS/Dystonia/Fibromyalgia/Lyme's disease?

 

How ever many years of this and I still owe my old council so many thousand in council tax arrears, thanks to Scott & Co who I paid to leave me alone for a while again. No discount for all the community work I have done, maintaining parts of the street and road where the sweeper can't get access though. Instead I have to pay another £100 more because I'm skint and depressed.

[BazzaS]

How ever many years of this and I still owe my old council so many thousand in council tax arrears,

 

Hang on ; you are complaining that your current council don't have the money to make a discretionary grant to you, but you haven't paid a previous council money you owe them .......

 

What about the people who aren't in council tax arrears who can't get a discretionary grant from that other council (who you are in arrears to) ...... can't they blame all the people in arrears??

[BazzaS]

 

or if I really do have a condition like ........ Lyme's disease?

 

Have you been

a) at risk of a tick bite,

b) in an area that has Lyme disease endemic?

 

If NOT "a) AND b)" : why do you think you could have Lyme disease??

[physicsgraduate]

Have you been

a) at risk of a tick bite,

b) in an area that has Lyme disease endemic?

 

If NOT "a) AND b)" : why do you think you could have Lyme disease??

 

July 2006, North East Holland, kicked off a building job, good weather, took my bike and slept in the forest. Three days later, why is this black spot on my leg not scratching off. Maybe because it's a big old tick.

 

Health kinda took a dive from about there, more or less. I've been tested twice for Lyme's

 

First time in Holland, they thought I was wasting theit time and I never heard back, probably because I moved around a lot then.

 

Second time about 4 or 5 years ago in the UK. I never heard back again, and the doctor thought I was wasting his time. Apparently cannabis has no medicinal properties and I should eat more margerine.

 

I keep meaning to call them up and ask them, but I can't really be bothered any more because I have absolutely no faith whatsoever in the NHS anymore.