You apply for a Community Care Grant or a Budgeting Loan on a form which you get from your local Jobcentre Plus office. Someone there should help you with the form.

Even if you meet all the conditions to get a Social Fund grant or loan, you may find that you are refused. Each area only has a fixed amount of money for the payments and it is possible that they won’t have enough to meet all the claims.

If you are refused a Social Fund payment or loan you can ask for a revision, and, if necessary, appeal against the decision to a Social Fund Inspector. It is often worth doing so. Get advice from SeniorLine or your local  Citizens Advice Bureau.

The details in this section should be correct from 7 April 2008 to 6 April 2009.

However, things do change, so it is always a good idea to seek expert advice on your personal situation. You can check if there have been changes by calling our free advice service SeniorLine.