Household Support Fund

The Department of Work and Pensions has provided additional funding from 1st of April - 30th September 2024, so that we can provide support to Kingston residents who are struggling to afford food, utilities and other essentials during this financially difficult time. 

Voluntary and Community Sector Organisations have received over £370,000 through previous rounds of the fund to support residents through initiatives such as warm hubs, free lunch clubs, meal boxes and care packages.

Kingston upon Thames has been allocated over £862,867.15 between April 2024 - September 2024 to meet the needs of the most vulnerable. Therefore, we need the support of Voluntary and Community Sector (VCS) organisations to reach people in the most need. The Council propose to do this by:

1) direct applications
2) through our excellent voluntary sector and their innovative projects
3) by providing vouchers to vulnerable families known to the Council such as those receiving Free School Meals 

In terms of voluntary sector projects, we are inviting organisations to apply for projects that will help people stay well, and access meals and equipment and support. Where possible, we are keeping administration costs to an absolute minimum so that more of the fund may be used to support local people’s direct needs.   

As part of Kingston’s partnership response to the Cost of Living Crisis, there is a focus on using existing buildings and spaces across the borough which are easily accessible to residents, offering warm, welcoming and safe spaces for residents to come together. The spaces could also allow for advice/signposting and activities. Therefore Voluntary and Community Sector organisations are invited to access funding to open up their building as community spaces, outside of what they currently offer, e.g. open for an additional morning. 

Organisations that have previously applied for grant funding would be eligible to apply again as long as funding supports additional activity to business as usual and meets the scheme criteria required by the Government guidelines. 

This funding will cover a 6 month period, so consideration as to how the money will be used across the summer will be expected. We are hoping to include the following: 

• nutritional meals for residents, especially clinically vulnerable residents (following NICE guidelines).
• community Spaces for residents to attend.
• support with food; energy/utility bills, and essentials e.g. boiler repairs.
• provision of household equipment to help with keeping warm, eg. electric blankets, hot water bottles and thermos flasks.

Eligible organisations

We will only fund organisations that:

• provide services or activities that benefit the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames and its residents
• have a regional or national remit, but we will only fund services or activities that benefit Kingston 
• operate as a not-for-profit, including social enterprises and Charitable Interest Companies
• successful applicants will need to evidence that all of the grants has been used as direct expenditure and return any surplus to the council as unspent grant funding
• have a formal constitution, governing document or set of rules that is signed and dated and defines how the organisation will operate
• can prove they are financially solvent - without liabilities that are more than their current assets  
• have a bank account in the name of the organisation with at least two signatories / or written authorisation from another organisation who will manage the funds on their behalf if you do not have a bank account (e.g. mutual aid group), you will need to find a partner organisation who can hold the funds on your behalf

We will not fund:

• organisations or projects where the monies will be used for religious purposes
• organisations or projects where the monies will be used for political purposes
• applications which are fundraising in nature
• retrospective funding
• projects that do not meet the eligibility of the Household Support Fund Guidance, as set out by the Department for Work and Pensions 

Accompanying documentation    

We will also ask you to provide:

• your governing document e.g. constitution (if you have one)
• your most recent annual accounts
• a safeguarding policy/statement outlining how children, young people and adults with care and support needs will be kept safe  

Please provide this by emailing householdsupportfund@kingston.gov.uk

In order to pay the grant (if successful), we will ask for the applicant organisation’s bank account details showing the organisation's name, address, sort code and account number in the form of a recent statement (last 3 months). This should take the form of one of the following:

• scanned bank statement (if you have access to this)
• bank statement downloaded from an online account

Apply for the grant

Please use the link below to complete your application. Please note, this form is for voluntary and community sector organisation grants only, it is NOT an application form for residents to apply for the fund. 

VCS Application form for the Household Fund Grant