Charity publishes guides to help elderly on low incomes

The charity Counsel & Care has published two new guides to help older people cope financially during the recession. Counsel & Care has produced the guides in response to the increasing number of calls to the charity from elderly people who are struggling to pay for household essentials such as kitchen appliances and housing maintenance. The guides give advice on the financial assistance that is available from the Government and from charitable organisations, as well as advising how to get access to help. The first guide deals with the social fund, which is money provided by the state to help people on low incomes to deal with unexpected expenses. The fund is divided into the Regulated Social Fund, which provides money for specific costs such as winter fuel, and the Discretionary Social Fund, which provides grants or loans for other purposes. The second guide describes the different kinds of charitable funding and grants that are available. It also gives advice on approaching specific types of charity where appropriate, such as those that support ex-servicemen and women or people who suffer from a particular illness.

Both guides stress that applicants for social or charitable funding must be receiving all the benefits to which they are entitled before their application for assistance can be considered. You can read about the different state benefits and how to apply for them in Cheselden’s Factsheet 8.