The council has a very limited fund to provide help to Knowsley residents with food and/or fuel in an emergency situation that is unforeseen, or which could not have been avoided, or where there is a potential risk to the health and safety of you or your family.
Our scheme may be able to provide some support for essential items of furniture / white goods in very specific circumstances where the resident has suffered a major upheaval.
Please be aware that we do not provide cash under any circumstances.
Before you apply for emergency support you need to:
- Check if you can get support from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), if you are claiming one of the qualifying benefits listed below.
The council’s scheme will not duplicate any support that the DWP still provides. Read the details below to see if you need to contact the DWP first.
Services provided by the DWP and Jobcentre Plus:
- Short term benefit advances, for new benefit applicants or existing claims where there is a significant change of circumstance. If you have recently applied for benefit you can apply for a short term benefit advance. Visit GOV.UK for more information.
- Budgeting loans, to help pay for essential items. You can find out more online or pick up an application form from your local Jobcentre Plus.
- Hardship payments for those who have received a benefit sanction. To claim hardship payments you will need to complete form JSA ESA10JP at your local Jobcentre Plus office, or call 0800 169 0310.
Contact your energy supplier about options to clear outstanding debts; reduce weekly debt repayments; or to get a credit on your meter to repay it on a weekly basis. The contact details and support available should be shown on your latest bill. If you do not have a bill visit their website, the main suppliers who offer pre-payment meters are listed below:
Find out more about the other financial advice and support available to you.
If you are in an emergency situation and need help with food – our scheme can provide you with a voucher for Knowsley Food Support. If you have a support worker or you are receiving support from a local agency, please speak to them in the first instance. If you do not have a support worker or the local agency can’t help you, please ring Knowsley Food Support direct on 0151 538 8243. Their phone line is open Monday to Friday 10am to 4.30pm.
If you are in an emergency situation and need help with fuel - to be considered for support under our scheme, you must:-
- Be responsible for paying the electric and/or gas bill at the property and have a pre-payment meter; and,
- Have exhausted all other possible sources of support; and,
- Be in receipt of (or waiting for) one of the following benefits
- Income support
- Jobseeker’s allowance – income-based
- Employment and support allowance – income-related
- Pension credit
- Universal credit
- Housing benefit and/or council tax reduction
If your application is successful you will receive a Paypoint voucher for a set amount which you can take to your nearest Paypoint venue. You will need to provide proof of your identity and address, along with your electric/gas key or card when you redeem your voucher. You can print the voucher or present it on your mobile phone. Find your nearest Paypoint venue.
Please note that your energy supplier may not accept our Paypoint voucher to top up pre-payment SMART meters and you will need to contact them directly about options to clear outstanding debts; reduce weekly debt repayments; or to get a credit on your meter to repay it on a weekly basis. From 31 Decemer 2019 British Gas will no longer accept our Paypoint vouchers to top up pre-payment meters.
Whether we can help you or not, we will signpost you to other support that may be available to help you to put plans in place to overcome the emergency, or to try to stop it happening again in the future.
We can consider a maximum of two awards in a 12 month period. Each award is expected to last a minimum of three days.
If you still need help after three days you must re-apply. We can consider up to a maximum of nine days support per award. Each award is based on your circumstances and is not guaranteed. Once you have reached your maximum award you will no longer be eligible for support under the scheme.
If you are experiencing an upheaval
The scheme may also support you if you need furniture / white goods to help you settle back in to the community under specific circumstances, or to avoid you having to enter institutional care.
For example:
- If you are leaving care, leaving prison, fleeing domestic violence, homeless and leaving Local Authority temporary accommodation, e.g. a hostel, homeless accommodation, or a hotel
- If you are at risk of going into institutional care, where the essential item/s would prevent you going into care
Please note: This does not include aids and adaptations or other items which would normally be provided from other sources of funding/support.
Our scheme does do not provide replacement items for broken or damaged furniture / white goods.
If you have been receiving one of the DWP benefits listed above for six months or more, before we will consider an application for support with furniture / white goods, you must have previously applied for, and been refused, support from the DWP through Budgeting Loans/Budgeting Advance (please visit www.gov.uk/budgeting-loans/). You will be asked for the original copy of the budgeting loan/advance refusal letter before proceeding with your Emergency Support Scheme application.
Applications will be accepted via your support worker, such as a social worker or probation officer. If you do not have a support worker, we may consider a direct claim from you.
Before you start your application please ensure that you have the following documents ready to upload when you submit the application. Please note this must be a .jpg, .jpeg or .png file type. Alternatively, you can upload documents at your local One Stop Shop self-serve scanning station once you have submitted your application.
- A letter from your support worker, or someone who is helping you which confirms your circumstances and supports your application.
- If you have been claiming DWP benefits for more than six months - proof your budgeting loan has been refused, or if you have an existing loan proof of the balance and the date payments will end.
- Proof you have been offered, or accepted the tenancy, e.g. a letter from the landlord, or a signed tenancy agreement.
- Any other information which supports your application.
If your application is complete, our target is to deal with it within 14 days. If you cannot provide the information/evidence at the time of your application you must provide it as soon as possible. This can be done via the self-serve scanning station at your local One Stop Shop, or by email to emergencysupport@knowsley.gov.uk. If it is not received within one calendar month your application may be treated as withdrawn or refused.
If you are eligible for support with essential items please be aware these could be reconditioned or second hand.
There is a limit to the value of support that you can receive in a three year period. Once you have reached this limit you will no longer be able to apply.
If we cannot help you, we will do our best to signpost you to somewhere we think can help. Alternatively, use this link to find out more about the other financial advice and support available to you.
How to apply for emergency support
If you think you may be eligible for emergency support for:
Food – if you have a support worker or you are receiving support from a local agency, please speak to them in the first instance. If you do not have a support worker or the local agency can’t help you, please ring Knowsley Food Support direct on 0151 538 8243. Their phone line is open Monday to Friday 10am to 4.30pm.
Fuel, or help with essential items of furniture / white goods you need to apply online:-
- Through our customer portal - register for online services or log into your account here. You must have a council tax account number, or a housing benefit/council tax reduction claim reference number to register your application via our customer portal. It is unlikely you will be able to use this to apply for essential items of furniture / white goods.
- Via our website – go to Online Services and ‘Apply for it’ or click here.
- If you do not have access to your own computer you can:-
- Use a public computer in any of our libraries. Click on
the links to find your nearest venue and opening times; or
- Ask family, friends or neighbours to help you make an online claim; or
- Ask your support worker, or any other agency you are working with, to
help you make an online claim and/or help you to improve your IT skills.
Find local courses near you.
- If you cannot apply online, you can ring our contact centre on 0151 443 3200 and one of our advisors will take your application over the phone. Lines are open Monday to Friday 9.00am to 4.30pm.
You will be informed of our decision by email or text message.
If you do not have your own email address you can ask us to email the decision to somebody else who may be helping you, but you need to agree this with them. In exceptional circumstances, you can ask to collect your decision from your local One Stop Shop, or we can send it to you by first class post. You can tell us this when you complete your application.
If we cannot help you, we will do our best to signpost you to somewhere we think can help. Alternatively, use this link to find out more about the other financial advice and support available to you.
Request a review if you are refused
If you think our decision to refuse emergency support is wrong you can ask for a review.
We cannot review your claim if you do not meet our scheme criteria.
You can ask for a review for fuel, or essential items of furniture / white goods via our customer portal (you must register first or log in), our website, or by telephone - 0151 443 3200.
You will need your application number and the date you applied and tell us why you think our decision is wrong. We will inform you of our decision in the same way as the original decision. For fuel this will be within one working day, for essential items of furniture / white goods this will be 14 days.
If you do not agree with the decision to refuse food, please call Knowsley Food Support direct on 0151 538 8243.