Scottish Welfare Fund
Community Care Grants
Queries about progress of your application Please note that the Scottish Welfare Fund team are experiencing an unprecedented number of applications and queries at the current time. We fully understand and appreciate that your application may be urgent, but we would respectfully ask that you do not phone or email us about the progress of your application as this will only distract our resources which could otherwise be used to process applications. Please be assured we are processing all applications as quickly as we possibly can. We will contact you direct using your preferred method of contact. To ensure fairness to all applicants we deal with all correspondence by date of receipt.
A community care grant can help if you need money towards items that will allow you to:
- stay in your own home, rather than go into care
- set up home if you are coming out of care or prison
- set up home if you have been homeless
- help to care for a prisoner who is on home release from prison
A Community Care Grant may not be awarded if you or your partner has savings of over £700 if you are below pension age, or £1200 if above pension age.
Applicants should be aged 16 or over and should normally be entitled to or receiving:
- Income Support
- Income based Jobseeker's Allowance
- Income related Employment and Support Allowance
- Universal Credit
- Savings Pension Credit
- Guaranteed Pension Credit
- A payment in respect of one of the above benefits whilst the claim is being processed
However, whilst being in receipt of one of these benefits satisfies the eligibility test for a grant, it is not essential.
The key eligibility test is whether or not the grant is necessary to allow the applicant to retain or establish a settled way of life in the community.
How to apply
If you are applying online you may need to allow pop-ups. To do this, select 'Options' when prompted followed by 'Always Allow'.
Apply for a Community Care Grant
Alternatively you can complete the Scottish Welfare Fund application form (PDF 124KB) and send it to:
Aberdeenshire Council
PO Box 18533
Inverurie
AB51 5WX
You can also apply by telephone on 01467 537400.
View the Scottish Welfare Fund privacy notice (PDF 197KB).
Once your application is received a decision should be made in no later than 15 working days.