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The Household Support scheme can provide practical help and advice to support you with the rising costs of food, energy and other household bills.
The scheme will be run by the Council and local partners. It will help residents of Blackburn with Darwen to get food, support with energy and water bills, and other essential items.
The Government’s Department for Work and Pensions is funding the scheme and has announced the scheme will be further extended from 1st October 22 to help with the rising cost of living.
There have been significant changes to the Household Support Scheme eligibility criteria from 1 October 2022
For households not on income related benefits. One application per household.
Household support may be available for:
We may ask you about your savings. Savings must be below £16,000
You must be able to provide evidence of your total household income in the form of wage slips and bank statements, showing your name and address and upload these to your application.
If you have applied previously under the criteria “Income related benefits” you will not be eligible to apply again as of 1 October 22.
If you have recently applied for any income based benefits and will not receive any Cost of Living Payments, claims processed after 25 May 22 you may be eligible for Household support.
The funding is aimed at households who will not receive financial support under any schemes as listed below.
Please check Gov website for information on payment dates
Household support can;
If you do not meet the eligibility criteria for the Household Support Scheme, you can still complete the form and the Help Hub team will offer be able to advice or see Self help additional support.
These include:
To see if you qualify for support, you will need to complete the online referral form.
You can self-refer or alternatively, you can be referred by a family member, friend, neighbour, professional, school, or a community group.
Awards under this scheme may be taxable, but will not be subject to National Insurance contributions. You must make your own enquiries to establish your tax position, we will not take responsibility for your tax liabilities. We will make HMRC aware of all payments made to individuals.
Before applying for the scheme, you will need a MyBwD account.
Watch a tutorial on how to create an account if you do not have one.
You will need to provide evidence of your total household income with your application- wage slip, bank statement, these must clearly show your name and address for each adult in your home.
Once you have submitted your application, we will contact you within 20 working days (raised from 10 due to the current high level of demand). Please do not re-submit your application.