UK Bill Help

Crisis assistance is available in the Hillingdon borough from the local welfare support scheme. This is the districts version of government welfare and the aim of the grants is to help people remain in or resettle into the community or to address an emergency. Any assistance from the council will be in the form of pre-paid cards to pay for the item or bill in question. Or the programme may have the goods delivered directly to the resident, and this is known as in-kind-support.

The council provides this scheme as a last resort. The team at the council office will first have people apply for a Short-term benefit advances (STBAs) or loans from their Job Centre Plus location. They should also seek financial assistance from their friends or family at the same time. A grant from local welfare support is when the resident is on a low-income, they have no savings and they are threatened with a crisis unless they get help.

The scheme is very limited in money available as well. While the council will not provide cash to the resident, they still do need some funds available to provide the support that someone needs. Whether it is furniture, clothing, white goods, or pre-paid cards for fuel bills, this all costs the Hillingdon Borough council money.

They have very limited resources to meet these needs. Only a small number of applications are fulfilled. All grants are solely at the discretion of the council, and there is no appeal process for those people that are not awarded help.

Uses of grants in Hillingdon borough

The key criteria assessed by the council will be the applicant’s income, whether they are on benefits, and also what their crisis is. All of these factors are assessed by the Hillingdon Council as part of the application process.

If the applicant has proof of need for say food, then if the person is approved for welfare then they will probably be given a voucher to a local food bank. Or in some cases the council office will provide an emergency parcel of groceries to last for a few days. They also partner with independent food banks such as Com Cafe in West Drayton as well as Emmanuel Church in Northwood.

Some vulnerable Hillingdon families struggle with fuel poverty. The council will want to see that the applicant entered into, or tried to negotiate, a payment plan first on the utility bills in arrears. They will also want proof of what the household did to conserve heat, and that they called the Home Heat Helpline. There are also other steps people should take for fuel costs, including find help for heating bills.

Other similar conditions are in place for other requests. If someone needs clothing, they should have turned to a charity shop first. Or furniture and household items can be obtained from recycling centres. So any grants from the Hillingdon local welfare support scheme will only be issued if the applicant has done everything else they can.

Priory for any assistance is given to people on benefits or that are applying to it. Welfare payments will also help families either move to the community, or resettle, from a hospital or nursing home. That form of aid is part of the community care grants in Hillingdon.

The main switchboard can be contacted at 01895 250111. Applications can be also be done online at internet access points in Hillingdon borough. Even if the council does not have funds, or deny an application, they will still try to signpost the resident to other services. Those options, such as budgeting, are often combined with welfare payments to begin with.