Household Support Fund Community Grant

Organisations can apply for grants of up to £15,000 to help residents with the cost of food and energy this spring.

Community groups have been instrumental in supporting residents with the cost of living challenges.

We have received funding from the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) to provide direct financial support to residents related to food and energy costs.

We are looking to distribute this Household Support Fund to community groups to improve the reach of the funding, to help more households in need. To do this, we have set up the Household Support Fund Community Grant.

Purpose of grant

This grant offers a single, one-off payment to help community groups provide crisis support to vulnerable households in most need of support. It is to help with the continued increase in living costs.

Applicant organisations must use the funds to directly support residents with energy costs, food, or essential household items. You could provide this support through vouchers, payments, direct food (such as food at breakfast clubs) or energy provision. Items associated with food and energy are also permitted such as:

• cooking equipment
• food packs
• ‘warm boxes’
• energy efficient light bulbs
• coats
• blankets

This approach aims to increase the distribution of the Household Support Fund more widely to residents experiencing financial hardship and allows greater flexibility.

Priority areas for funding

There are 6 areas for which funding is available:

• energy costs 
• food costs
• essentials linked to energy and water 
• wider essentials such as clothing and toiletries 
• advice services
• housing costs in exceptional circumstances

Work targeting energy costs, food costs and essentials linked to energy and water will be given priority.

Eligibility

You can apply for the grant if you are any of the following and you are working to support people in Bracknell Forest experiencing financial hardship:

• registered charity 
• voluntary and community group which is charitable in purpose
• not-for-profit organisation such as a community interest company (CIC), PTA or residents' association with a clear social purpose
• national charities
• faith groups, where the project is accessible to the wider Bracknell Forest community

If you are a CIC and your organisation generates a profit, you must reinvest them to support your community work.

If you are a national charity, your local branch must be independent and set up locally. The project must be locally driven and accounted for. Funding awarded must be used to support work that benefits the people of Bracknell Forest.

Find out more about charitable purposes on GOV.UK.

For your organisation to be eligible you must have the following:

• a management committee or board of trustees of at least of 3 unrelated people - who are responsible and make decisions
• a signed governing document or terms of reference
• a bank account in the name of your group which requires 2 signatories
• a financial policy (a document which explains how you manage money and payments)
• an equal opportunities policy or statement
• a safeguarding policy if you work with children, young people or vulnerable adults

What we can fund

All applications must provide support within the scope of the DWP's Household Support Fund guidance on GOV.UK.

We can award grants to many types of community activity or projects as long as they're for charitable purposes. This means they must meet the priority areas and meet immediate needs to help those who are struggling to afford energy and water bills, food, and other related essentials.

Activities or projects could include:

• energy bill payments 
• food support 
• essential items linked to energy and water - such as warm clothing, blankets, purchase of equipment such as fridges, freezers, ovens, slow cookers, and other energy efficiency measures
• wider essentials such as clothing, toiletries and essential transport-related costs

What we cannot fund

We are not able to fund:

• for profit businesses
• national programmes without a specific benefit to Bracknell Forest
• faith groups where the project is only for the benefit of members or for acquiring members
• councils, parish councils, or schools - however, parent and teacher associations set up as a charity can apply
• projects based outside of Bracknell Forest, unless serving borough residents
• projects that have already taken place, or items purchased before or during a grant application
• unspecified expenditure for general appeals or fund-raising events or activities
• CICs limited by shares
• requests to build reserves
• funding for statutory obligations
• political activities
• more than one application per organisation
• core or essential running costs

Conditions of grant awards

Any grant award is made with the following conditions:

1. Any funds awarded must only be used for charitable purposes or community good.
2. The award must only fund the items specified in your application and should be recorded as restricted income in your accounts.
3. If the project or activity changes in any way from the original application, you must notify us immediately. Significant variations may result in the grant value being altered or withdrawn.
4. Grants must be used by the 30 September 2024. Any unused funding must be returned. If you have not begun to use the grant within 2 months of receipt or cannot use it for it's original purpose, you must contact the Head of Welfare, as soon as possible. They will notify the panel and seek a position on how to proceed.
5. Public information about grant awards may be shared in open datasets. Information that identifies you will not be published. 
6. The receiving organisation must submit the request monitoring information which will be shared with the DWP.

Available funding

We are offering grants of up to £15,000 for eligible projects. The panel will review applications within 1 week of the application closing date.

How to apply

Fill in the form below and email it to lwp@bracknell-forest.gov.uk.

Key dates

The deadline for applications is 11pm on Tuesday 21 May 2024.

Other key dates:

• application scheme opens Wednesday 1 May 2024
• 11pm Tuesday 21 May 2024 - deadline for applications
• week commencing 28 May - panel to review applications
• mid-June 2024 funding payment transfers
• 30 September 2024 - funding expires

How we make funding decisions

Make sure you have provided all requested supporting documents. If we are happy that your application meets the initial eligibility criteria, we will pass your application and documents to the assessment panel.

The panel will check your application against the following measures:

• evidence and extent that the application meets the funding priorities
• evidence of community need
• risks associated with the project
• evidence your group is financially competent
• application demonstrates an appropriate delivery mechanism

The decisions that the panel can make are as follows:

• reject application
• make recommendations and suggest a resubmission
• make an award but impose added conditions to the standard grant conditions
• make an award without added conditions
• offer a lower award

Notifying you of our decision

We will inform you of our decision and tell you the next steps within 5 working days of panel.

If we reject your application, the panel will seek to give you feedback.

End of project reports

If we award you a grant, we will ask you to provide a brief end of project report.

You should record the differences your project is making from the start.

You will also be required to provide a quarterly data return with the following information that we must report to the DWP. A template table will be provided.

How much of the funding you have distributed to households with:

• children
• pensioners
• a disabled person
• other 

The number of awards you have made to households with:

• children
• pensioners
• a disabled person
• other 

How much of the funding you have used for:

• food
• energy and water
• essentials linked to energy and water
• wider essentials
• housing costs
• advice services

The number of households you have helped with:

• food
• energy and water
• essentials linked to energy and water
• wider essentials
• housing costs
• advice services

Where this may not be possible, for example through the provision of non-financial support, you must provide an estimate for each of the above.