Further help and resources

Throughout the UK there are thousands of grants and schemes available to help people in need.

They are awarded for all sorts of reasons, such as:

• replacing essential white goods
• helping with disability equipment or day-to-day living costs that cannot be met by government benefits
• home repairs and moving home
• help with the cost of a holiday
• costs relating to childcare (e.g. school uniforms)
• unexpected costs such as an unexpected bill.

Each grant and scheme will have its own award criteria. Often, they will want to ensure that you have applied for any government schemes and/or claimed all the statutory benefits that are available to you first. You will also need to show that you have a low income and no or low savings available to you. Most charities will judge applications on a case-by-case basis so don't be afraid of something that seems unusual. Grants can be awarded for a wide variety of circumstances to help those in need.

Many grants are administered by charities or trusts. There are so many and whether or not you can access them will depend on a number of different factors. This makes it almost impossible for us to list them all.

However, things to think about when looking for a grant are:

Things local to you. There are numerous local charities and trusts which help people within certain geographical locations. You can also try contacting AdviceLink Cymru for support.

Charities that focus on a particular demographic, illness or disability. There are many different charities that focus on a particular illness or disability, for example:

• the Multiple Sclerosis Society can sometimes award grants for disability equipment, short breaks and support for families
• Macmillan Cancer Support can sometimes award small one-off grants to help with some of the additional costs that a cancer diagnosis can bring
• Save the Children may be able to help with things like purchasing white goods  

Disability Grants Website

Disability Grants is a website developed by Julia Tyrrel, a mother of a disabled child who wanted to help other people find grants to help with things like wheelchairs, holidays and adaptations to the home.

It has a section that lists grants and help for people who are caring for a disabled child and includes grants for things like travel to hospital, daily living expenses, holidays, mental health support for carers, mobility aids and sensory equipment.  

Please click this link for more information

Adaptations to the home

You may also be able to access support to make changes to your home through the Welsh Government if you are older or disabled:

If you need to make changes to your home because of a disability or an older person you can apply for support from 1 or more of:

• ENABLE: support for living independently scheme
• Disabled Facilities Grant

Please click this link for more information.

Care and Repair

Care & Repair Cymru is a national charitable body and actively works to ensure that all older people have homes that are safe, secure and appropriate to their needs.

They run numerous projects to help older people in Wales, from initiatives to help those leaving hospital to ways to tackle fuel poverty.

www.careandrepair.org.uk

Turn2Us is a charity that offers advice and support for people struggling with their finances. They have a free and confidential benefits calculator on their website:

Turn2Us Benefits Calculator

They also have a function for you to search for grants in your local area by entering your postcode. Unfortunately, the search function only accepts searching via your postcode and not, for example, nationally. However, it could still be useful to use the search tool to see if there are any grants which are local to you that may be of help:

Grant search tool

You can also use an advice search function which allows you see any local services in your area which can offer advice and support to you on finances or other support for example with job searching, advice lines, groups for carers and other local, targeted support:

Advice Finder Function

If you need adaptations to help you or the person you care for get around, the Motability scheme may be helpful to you. This scheme allows people exchange their mobility allowance for an adapted car, electric scooter or powered wheelchair.

To be eligible to join the Motability Scheme, you need to receive one of the following mobility allowances and you must have at least 12 months’ award length remaining. Please note that the Attendance Allowance cannot be used to lease a car through the Scheme.

• Enhanced Rate Mobility Component of Personal Independence Payment (ERMC PIP)
  As of 11 April 2022, this allowance is £64.50 per week.

• Higher Rate Mobility Component of Disability Living Allowance (HRMC DLA)
  As of 13 April 2022, this allowance is £64.50 per week.

• Enhanced Rate of the Mobility Component of Adult Disability Payment (Scotland)
  As of 11 April 2022, this allowance is £64.50 per week.

• Higher Rate Mobility Component of Child Disability Payment (Scotland)
  As of 11 April 2022, this allowance is £64.50 per week.

• War Pensioners' Mobility Supplement (WPMS)
  As of 13 April 2022, this allowance is £72.00 per week.

• Armed Forces Independence Payment (AFIP)
  As of 13 April 2022, the mobility element of the allowance is £64.50 per week.

To find out more and check if you are eligible, please click this link

Debt advice and support– StepChange

StepChange is a UK-wide charity that provides free, impartial advice for people in debt – and can help to set up debt management plans and other ways to tackle debt, including how to deal with creditors and enforcement agents (bailiffs). They do not charge for their advice services, but there may be a fee involved if you set up certain debt management solutions with them – for example, setting up a Debt Relief Order costs £90, which is charged by the Insolvency Services to process an application. This can be paid in instalments.

They also offer help and advice with budgeting and free debt management plans.

To visit their website please click here

MoneySavingExpert

MoneySavingExpert is a website set up by Martin Lewis to support consumers. They are not affiliated with any other company and do not take advertising on their website. The site offers guides and money-saving tips, as well as up to date information and advice on areas such as energy bills.

The site also offers advice on saving money by switching providers for services, using coupons or other offers to save on areas such as shopping and ways to increase savings on areas like fuel bills by ensuring you are driving as efficiently as possible.

To visit their website please click here

Help to Save – Welsh Government support for those on a low income

Help to Save is a type of savings account. It allows certain people entitled to Working Tax Credit or receiving Universal Credit to get a bonus of 50p for every £1 they save over 4 years.

Help to Save is backed by the government so all savings in the scheme are secure. You can save between £1 and £50 each calendar month. You do not have to pay money in every month.

You can pay money into your Help to Save account by debit card, standing order or bank transfer.

You can pay in as many times as you like, but the most you can pay in each calendar month is £50. For example, if you have saved £50 by 8 January you will not be able to pay in again until 1 February.

You can only withdraw money from your Help to Save account to your bank account.

For more information and to check if you are eligible, please click this link

Build your credit score with rental payments

If you want to boost or build your credit score, you can now use a scheme through the credit referencing company Experian. This scheme incorporates rental payments into the credit file of anyone who signs up for free. This can help you to build credit and works for private and social tenants. This could help you in the future if you want to apply for certain financial services such as a mortgage or loan application.

For more information, please click this link

Bevan Foundation

The Bevan Foundation is a Welsh thinktank dedicated to tackling issues of poverty. While their work mostly centres on policy, they have a help and advice section on their website that can signpost you to further support, including accessing foodbanks and support with housing issues.

To visit the website please click this link

DEWIS Cymru

Dewis Cymru is an online directory that offers a range of searchable groups and resources to help you with our wellbeing. On their website, they describe wellbeing as ‘When we talk about your well-being, we don’t just mean your health. We mean things like where you live, how safe and secure you feel, getting out and about, and keeping in touch with family and friends.

No two people are the same and well-being means different things to different people. So Dewis Cymru is here to help you find out more about what matters to you.

We’ve got information that can help you think about what matters to you, and we’ve also got information about people and services in your area that can help you with the things that matter to you.’

To visit the site please click this link