WARWICKSHIRE HOUSEHOLD SUPPORT FUND

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Warwickshire Household Support Fund

Help with energy and heating costs

 

 

Does your household . . .

  1. Live in the following district council areas – Warwick, Stratford-upon-Avon, Rugby, Nuneaton and Bedworth or North Warwickshire?
  1. Have a combined gross household income of no more than £31,000.00 per year?
  1. Have no household savings?
  1. Have someone living with a vulnerability?

If your household satisfies each of the 4 criteria above, you can apply for support through the Warwickshire Household Support Fund.

 

So what help may be available to you?

Subject to funding and eligibility criteria, this fund could offer qualifying residents across the county of Warwickshire one the following:

  1. Financial support toward current energy debts only
  2. Assistance to repair or replace broken boilers and heating systems
  3. Financial support to top up an oil or LPG tank (not bottles)

 

What do we mean by vulnerability?

  • Long term diagnosed and treated health conditions e.g., COPD
  • Self-employed individuals who have been unable to work or whose income has been impacted by specific situations
  • Households with unmanageable debt
  • Recently made redundant
  • Pregnant
  • Disabled and in receipt of DLA or PIP
  • In receipt of free school meals
  • Other vulnerabilities disclosed by household’s not on the list but accepted at AOE’s discretion

 

SUPPORT EXPLAINED

1.  Financial support towards Energy Debts only – subject to funding

This is open to the following utility types:

  • Electricity
  • Gas

This will require the applicant to:

  1. Complete a separate paper application form for debt relief (to be provided by Act on Energy after online self-certification application is submitted.)
  2. Provide evidence to Act on Energy supporting their application (the evidence required will be explained in the paper application form).
  3. Agree & accept that at the discretion of the Household Support Fund Team it may be a condition of assistance that you are referred to a debt advice service (Step Change) to assist you with budgeting and debt management.

2. Assistance to repair, service and replace broken boilers and heating systems – subject to funding

This support is only offered to the following tenures of housing:

  • Owner Occupiers:
    • Must have owned the property for a minimum of 12 months.
    • The property must not be on the market for sale or due to go on the market for sale.
  • Shared Ownership households who have a contracted duty to repair:
    • Must have owned the property for a minimum of 12 months.
    • The property must not be on the market for sale or due to go on the market for sale.
  • Long term private rented tenants who have a contracted duty to repair.

This support is open to heating systems of all fuel types and covers the following:

  • Replacement of boilers (all fuel types) beyond economic repair / or replacement of parts/ repair.
  • Replacement or repair of other types of heating systems e.g. storage heaters
  • Installation of first-time heating systems where a gas supply is present
  • Replacement of broken warm air systems to gas fired wet radiator systems
  • Repair/ replacement/ installation of standard or smart heating controls
  • Servicing

This will require the applicant to both:

  1. Complete a separate paper application form (to be provided by Act on Energy after online self-certification application is submitted.)
  2. Provide evidence to Act on Energy supporting their application (the evidence required will be explained in the paper application form).

 3. Financial support to top up oil/LPG (tank only)

Support can be given to those who fit the eligibility criteria AND:

  • Have an oil or LPG tank (not bottles)
  • Have a customer account with a supplier NOT an online broker/buying club (e.g. Boiler Juice)

HOW TO APPLY

Before applying please note:

  1. There is no guarantee of support.
  2. This is not an emergency scheme.
  3. If you were successful in receiving support through the previous Warwickshire Household Support Fund, you can apply again. However, you will not be able to receive the same type of help through this scheme. For example, if you received financial support e.g. towards repaying an energy debt, you will not be able to receive that support again but you could apply for help with a broken heating system.

Referrals:

  • We accept referrals from both Professional Referrers and friends or family members.
  • The process to refer is the same as applying (see below).

To register your interest, please complete and submit the ‘Online Self Certification Application / Expression of Interest form’ available by clicking this link or the button below:

 

APPLY HERE

 

 

TERMS OF THE SCHEME

Please note that you will be emailed or posted a separate application form. You will need to complete it and return it alongside all your supporting evidence before your application can be considered.

Evidence needs to be emailed to warwickshirehsf@actonenergy.org.uk or sent to:

Warwickshire Household Support Fund, FREEPOST RUAY-JCSS-GLCC, Act on Energy, Unit 2 Lauriston Park, Pitchill, EVESHAM, WR11 8SN

 

How long will it be before I receive help?

The Household Support Fund is not an emergency service! Applicants applying for Fuel Debt Relief or Physical Intervention will be required to complete an application form and return it with all required evidence; once approved, fuel debt payments will be made within ten+ working days. Installations of boilers, etc., are subject to quotations and approval. Unfortunately, work is not guaranteed to take place but once approved this process can take up to four weeks, sometimes longer, depending on the measures and availability of contractors.

 

TOLERANCE

We understand that people may feel frustrated during the application process but if those feelings escalate into verbal abuse and aggression towards our staff, we consider that to be unacceptable and will not be tolerated. Please respect our staff – they are here to help and will be doing everything they can to bring your case to a satisfactory conclusion. Please note that funding is discretionary and could be withdrawn if deemed necessary. All applications are processed on a first come first served basis.

 

 

This webpage has been last updated: 19.10.2023, 11:15 (GMT+1)