We recognise that people might be worried about money at this time due to the cost of living and/or a number of other issues. The Council of the Isles of Scilly can offer support or signpost to organisations that can support you, please see the information below:
Household Support Funding:
The Household Support Fund (HSF) has been made available by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) to support those in need and who require crisis support to help with global inflationary challenges and the significantly rising cost of living.
It is available especially to those struggling with the cost of food, energy (heating, cooking, lighting and simple energy efficiency measures such as draft excluders, light bulbs etc), water bills and wider essential costs. Its objective is to provide support for vulnerable households in most need of support and the fund will mainly be used to provide one-off payments to help with the increased cost of living.
Our Adult Social Care and Children’s Services teams will work with the community and support them to be able to maintain their wellbeing by alleviating financial hardship and food poverty. Members of our community on Scilly can apply for this funding, please see information below:
Eligibility:
This fund is available to those who are residents on the Isles of Scilly. Households in need include people who live alone and applicants do not need to be in receipt of benefits to be eligible. There is a cap to the amount this fund can pay out in each application, the maximum amount is £250. However the fund can be applied for more than once by a household. Other non-financial support is available, please engage with the Council of The Isles of Scilly so that we can help signpost you to other forms of support such as signposting to organisations that can help reduce outgoings
Application process:
To apply for support from this fund please contact Adult Social Care on 01720 424 470 or asc@scilly.gov.uk
If you are eligible then you will be supported to apply for financial support of up to £250 per application.
Further information on available government support can be found here:
Cost of living support: Overview - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Winter Wellbeing:
- Our Isles of Scilly Winter Wellbeing booklet has also been produced and has a wealth of useful information and contact details for supportive organisations, hard copies are available at the Health Centre and Library and a link to the booklet can be found here: Winter wellbeing_2022-23 A5 (cornwall.gov.uk)
There are a number of other departments and organisations that can help you to make your money stretch further:
- Citizens Advice: They offer a wide range of support including debt and benefit advice. To speak to an advisor contact the Customer hub team for help booking a digital appointment, more information here. National Citizens Advice also has a page of useful links and information, around things like benefits, debt, help with essential costs, and some mental health helplines as well. There is also a leaflet about grants and benefits that are available to help people pay energy bills. https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/debt-and-money/get-help-with-the-cost-of-living/ andhttps://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/consumer/energy/energy-supply/get-help-paying-your-bills/grants-and-benefits-to-help-you-pay-your-energy-bills/
- Council Tax: Any resident who has difficulty in paying their Council Tax, should contact the Council tax collection team on: 0300 1234 105 revenues@scilly.gov.uk
- Housing: You can contact our housing team by email or phone at the following details: housing@scilly.gov.uk or 01720 424440
- Inclusion Cornwall - the Inclusion Cornwall Resource library has a host of specific Resource Sheets, including – Debt and crisis funding, Families, Transport, Health, wellbeing and disabilities, Household goods, Food, clothing and wood banks, and more. Detailed support in those specific areas can be found. See https://inclusioncornwall.co.uk/library. Inclusion Cornwall ; 01872 326440, hello@inclusioncornwall.co.uk, www.inclusioncornwall.co.uk
- Community Energy Plus - A social enterprise that provides energy solutions to help householders in Cornwall to enjoy warmer, more energy efficient homes. They have extensive factsheets around a variety of energy-related subjects, including “Saving energy and Money” and “Support with rising living costs”, as well as other useful advice: https://www.cep.org.uk/resources/factsheets-and-leaflets/ Freephone 0800 954 1956 or email advice@cep.org.uk
- CRCC - Help with switching provider, fuel debt, payment options accessing grants - 01872 273952 www.cornwallrcc.org.uk
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Cornwall Council and a selection of major charities and organisations in Cornwall have produced a leaflet for those who are struggling to make ends meet. You can download ‘Worrying about money? From the Cornwall Council’s website: worried-about-money-cornwall-leaflet.pdf
Please also contact Children’s Services if you have concerns or questions that relate to children or young people's well being. More information can be found here:
Children's Services | Council of the ISLES OF SCILLY
Government:
- There have been a series of announcements from the government regarding support with energy bills, extra support for people with disabilities, Cost of Living payments and more. The information about all these, and any new help that is announced, or changes to existing help, is on the government’s Help for Households hub. There is also information about help with transport costs, childcare payments, finding work, energy-saving tips, etc: https://helpforhouseholds.campaign.gov.uk/
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Money Helper, formerly the Money Advice Service, also has some helpful advice and calculators or tools, particularly around debt, budgeting and pensions guidance. https://www.moneyhelper.org.uk/en
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For information about the Cost of Living payment, and how people receive it, see the Department of Work and Pensions. There is full information there. Scammers have been attempting to take advantage of the confusion around this payment, and there is advice on this page about how to avoid scams. The real payment will not ask you to DO anything, whether call, click a link, email, or fill in a form in order to receive cost of living payments. They are made automatically.
You can read the details of how payments will be made here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/cost-of-living-payment
Ensuring you claim all the benefits you’re entitled to:
- For older people, claiming Pensions Credit (if you are entitled to it) is important. It opens the door to a lot of other help. For others, especially if you’re on Universal Credit, there is further support available. Various organisations offer ‘entitlement checkers’ to help people find out what they can be claiming: 'Entitled To': https://www.entitledto.co.uk/help/cost-of-living; 'Turn to us' - benefits calculator: https://benefits-calculator.turn2us.org.uk/; 'Age UK': https://www.ageuk.org.uk/information-advice/money-legal/benefits-entitlements/pension-credit/ 'Good Law Project'; https://goodlawproject.org/news/empowered-bill-support-discounts/; https://goodlawproject.org/news/empowered-claiming-welfare-benefits/
Energy & financial support resources:
All energy and water providers are obliged to keep a ‘priority services register’ of vulnerable customers. This could include people who are elderly, disabled, or require electricity for medical equipment. They are required to give special service to those people, and will prioritise reconnecting them in the event of a power cut or outage. Contact your provider for information. Many local banks are also offering support for people experiencing financial difficulties. See your bank’s website for advice. Support in this area also available from Community Energy Plus – CEP (see above for contact details), Citizens Advice (see above) and Age UK.
Mental Health
People are also reminded that there is a wealth of support available for anyone struggling with their mental health.
If you are worried about your own or someone else’s mental health call the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly 24/7 NHS mental health response line on 0800 038 5300. It's free to access by anyone, any age, any time, day or night.