Scottish Welfare Fund - crisis grants

You might get a crisis grant if you've experienced an emergency or disaster and cannot afford essential costs. 

You apply to your local council for a crisis grant. Grants are discretionary and depend on the local council’s budget – this means you might not get a grant, even if you’re eligible for it. 

If you get a grant, you do not have to pay it back. 

Who can get a crisis grant

To be eligible for a grant, you must be: 

• aged 16 or over 

• on a low income 

• living in the local council area, about to move there, or homeless. 

You can get a grant even if: 

• you do not have a National Insurance number 

• you’ve got a benefits sanction – the reason for the sanction doesn’t matter 

• you owe money to the local council – for example, council tax or parking fines. 

What counts as a low income

You’ll automatically be considered on a low income if you get: 

• income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)  

• income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA) 

• Income Support 

• Universal Credit 

• Pension Credit. 

There’s no exact figure used to decide if you have a low income. If you do not get one of these benefits, but your income is about the same as someone who does, it’s more likely you can get a grant. 

When assessing your income, the local council can also take other issues into account, such as:  

• homelessness 

• domestic abuse 

• if you cannot access your money 

• the health or income of your partner or dependents. 

If you're from the EU, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway or Switzerland  

If you’re a national of a European Economic Area (EEA) country or Switzerland, you can be eligible for the Scottish Welfare Fund if you have: 

• settled status or pre-settled status  

• an outstanding application for the EU Settlement Scheme. 

The EEA includes all EU countries plus Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway. 

You do not have to be habitually resident in the UK.

Who cannot get a crisis grant

You might not get a crisis grant if: 

• you've applied before 

• you have savings or can get help from somewhere else 

• you’re subject to immigration control and have no recourse to public funds. 

If you’ve applied for a crisis grant before

You cannot get a crisis grant if you've applied for the same items or services in the last 28 days, unless your circumstances have changed – for example, if you’ve had a new crisis.

You cannot normally get more than 3 crisis grants in a 12-month period, unless there are exceptional circumstances.  

If you have income or capital

The local council will consider any other financial resources you have, including benefit income for you, your partner or your dependents. 

The local council will also consider if you could get other immediate help like: 

• a DWP hardship payment – read more about hardship payments if you’ve been sanctioned

• a short-term benefit advance – read more about getting a benefit advance

• a Universal Credit advance – read more about UC advances. 

You should not be expected to take out high-cost credit like payday loans or doorstep lending to cover living expenses.

If you have capital assets over £16,000, you’ll be expected to raise money from them. You might still get a grant if you’re taking steps to do this.  

If you're subject to immigration control

You cannot get a grant if you're a person subject to immigration control who has no recourse to public funds.

What crisis grants are for

A crisis grant is to pay for immediate costs in a current emergency – not past emergencies. The reason for the emergency doesn’t matter, even if you caused it.

A crisis grant can cover:  

• living costs in an emergency – such as food and heating 

• emergency accommodation or travel  

• costs after a disaster – for example, household furniture. 

The grant must be needed to prevent serious damage or risk to the health or safety of you or your family. 

What counts as an emergency

Crisis grants can cover many situations. It might be worth applying even if you're not sure that you qualify. 

It might be an emergency if you: 

• have no money due to an unexpected expense, such as visiting a sick child in hospital 

• have lost your money or had it stolen 

• have experienced domestic abuse or relationship breakdown 

• have nowhere to stay and might have to sleep rough 

• are stranded away from home with no money for transport 

• have recently taken over care of children and you’re waiting for transfer of benefits 

• have been found fit for work in a benefit assessment and you have no income while challenging the decision 

• suddenly have less or no income – for example, due to redundancy or changes to work hours 

• are a refugee and need immediate help with costs due to a family reunion while setting up a Universal Credit claim 

• don't have enough money for living costs and there is a risk to you or your family’s health and safety. 

What counts as an emergency for one person and not for another depends on your ability to cope with the situation. For example, an able-bodied young person might be able to manage in a situation where an older or disabled person could not. 

What counts as a disaster

Disasters are normally unforeseen events which cause significant damage to possessions or property. Examples of disasters include: 

• a serious flood or fire 

• loss or destruction of possessions or property, for example due to a gas explosion or chemical leak. 

What a crisis grant cannot cover

A grant cannot be made for: 

• any expense which occurs outside the UK  

• school costs such as uniforms, travel or meals – more about help with school costs 

• court fees – more about help with legal costs 

• rent in advance or rent deposits – more about help with private renting costs 

• Debts (except pre-paid fuel meters) - more about dealing with debts 

• Medical costs – more about help with health costs

• expenses that could be covered by a Best Start Grant or a Funeral Support Payment.

How much is a crisis grant

You could get the full amount you’ve asked for or only part of what you’ve asked for.  

If you have a gap in your income and you do not know how long it will last, the local council will normally award a crisis grant for 2 weeks of living expenses. In some cases, the local council can make an award for up to 4 weeks. 

If the grant is for furniture or white goods, it should include delivery and installation or fitting costs. 

How a crisis grant is paid

You'll usually get cash or a cash equivalent, such as high street vouchers. 

You can ask to get your award as the items you need instead of cash, if this is better for you. For example, you might ask the local council to give you a fridge instead of money to buy a fridge. 

How a decision is made

Local councils give each crisis grant application a priority level:  

• high most compelling 

• high 

• medium 

• low.

Local councils decide which priority levels of application they can afford to pay each month. 

For example, a local council might decide that in some months, it can only afford to pay ‘high most compelling’ priority applications. At other times, it might also be able to pay high, medium and low priority applications. 

To decide on the priority level of your application, your local council will look at: 

• how much you need the grant 

• how vulnerable you are 

• what's likely to happen if you don't get a grant. 

Examples of factors that might increase your vulnerability are: 

• having a chronic illness 

• being disabled 

• being a single parent 

• being addicted to alcohol or drugs. 

There are many things that might count as vulnerability, so it can be worth applying and telling the local council about your situation.

When will a decision be made

Your local council should normally make a decision within 2 working days. Sometimes it might take longer if the local council is dealing with many applications. Your local council might let you know how long you’ll wait once you apply.

How to apply for a crisis grant

You should check how your local council accepts Scottish Welfare Fund applications. You might be able to apply: 

• online 

• by phone 

• by filling in a paper form. 

It's important to include all the relevant information on the application form and explain what could happen if you don't get a grant. Find out how to apply for the Scottish Welfare Fund in your local council on mygov.scot. 

If you need extra help to apply

The local council should offer the option to apply face to face if you’re vulnerable or have support needs which means you might struggle to apply in another way.

If you are disabled and cannot apply in the usual ways, the local council should consider reasonable adjustments. If they don’t, it might be discrimination. Read more about what to do if you've been refused reasonable adjustments.

Challenge a crisis grant decision

If your local council refuses your application, or you're given less than you applied for, you can ask the council to look again at the decision.  

You normally need to ask for a review within 20 working days of the original decision. You might be able to make a late request if you have a good reason. 

The local council should make its review decision within 2 working days. 

If you disagree with the local council’s review decision, you can apply to the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman (SPSO) for an independent review. You normally need to ask for an independent review within 1 month of getting the local council’s review decision. If you miss the deadline, you should contact the SPSO to explain why. You can read more about independent reviews on the SPSO website. 

How to make a complaint 

If you’re unhappy with how the local council handled your application – for example, if you feel you were treated badly or had bad service – you can complain using your local council’s complaint procedure. Find out how to contact your local council on mygov.scot. 

If you’ve used the local council’s complaints procedure and you disagree with the outcome, you can complain to the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman (SPSO). Find out how to complain to the SPSO on their website.

If you need help

You can get help from an adviser to:  

• apply to the Scottish Welfare Fund 

• challenge a decision 

• make a complaint. 

Find out how to contact an adviser in Scotland. 

If you don’t have enough money to live on, check if you can get help with the cost of living. 

If you can't manage to feed yourself or your family, you might be able to get emergency help from a local foodbank. Find out more about foodbanks.