This is in two parts, the regulated social fund, and the discretionary social fund. The regulated social fund provides benefits for people in certain circumstances, such as maternity benefits, cold weather payment, funeral payments and the winter fuel allowance. There are different rules for each benefit.

The discretionary fund covers budgeting loans, community care grants and crisis loans.

Maternity payments, funeral payments and cold weather payments can only be paid if you are on certain means-tested benefits, these vary according to the SF payment you are claiming.

Funeral payments are paid based on circumstances of the person responsible for arranging the funeral, not the deceased person.

Cold Weather Payments do not have to be claimed separately, they are paid automatically if you recieve a qualifying benefit in any week, where the temperature falls below a certain level.

Winter Fuel Payments are paid to people over 60 in the qualifying week, usually sometime in September. These are not means-tested. Higher payments are paid to people over 80.

Where more than one person in the household qualifies, the payment is usually shared. Extra rules may apply to people in hospital or residential care.

Budgeting Loans are repayable and interest free, deductions are mde from your benefit to repay them. Any savings you have over £1000, £2000 if over 60, will usually affect the amount you can get.

To get a Budgeting Loan you must be claiming IS, PSCC or IBJSA. BL's are intended to help you pay one off expenses such as buying furniture, clothing, maintaining or repairing your home, costs associated with moving house, travel costs, or back to work costs. They can be used to repay other loans you may have for these items.

Community Care Grants are not repayable, you must be on one of the same benefits as for the Budgeting Loans. Savings over £500, £1,000 if over 60, usually affect the amount you can be paid.

These grants can be paid to help people leaving institutional or residential care to resettle in the community, or to avoid admission to care, relieve exceptional pressure on families, help people with an unsettles lifestyle settle in the community, provide payments to care for prisoners on temporary release, or meet travel costs such as visiting people in hospital.

Crisis loans are repayable, and are paid if you have no access to other funds in an emergency, and there is or would be a serious risk to your health. You do not have to be on benefit to get a crisi loan, but this must be your only source of help.

In addition people leaving institutional or residential care and who have been given a Community Care Grant may get a Crisis Loan to pay advance rent.

The social fund is administered by JobcentrePlus.

About us Our partners Terms & conditions Jobs at Youreable designed by