Festive opening hours

We will close for the public holidays on Tuesday 24 December 2024 at 2.30pm, and remain closed for the public holidays between Christmas and New Year. 

However, we will open on 27, 30, and 31 December 2024 between 10am – 12pm and 2pm – 4pm. During these times, we will prioritise reviews of crisis grant applications. If you wish to request a review of a community care grant application, you can do so online. Alternatively, you can call us on 3 January 2025, and we will assist you over the phone.

Our normal service will resume on 3 January 2025 at 10am.

Case study

  • Date:
    May 2024
  • Category:
    When two crisis grant applications should have been treated as one

Example

C requested an independent review of the council's decision on their crisis grant application. C applied for money for food as their Universal Credit payment had been reduced due to a sanction. 

The council declined the application on the basis that C had received three awards in the last 12-month period. They did not identify any exceptional circumstances that would allow for an additional award to be made. 

We reviewed the council's file and spoke with C, noting that C had applied twice in one month for the same period of crisis. The council made two awards, each for two weeks, even though the application form indicated the sanction end date. We determined that this should have been treated as one award. 

Consequently, the applicant had only received two official awards, meeting the eligibility criteria without requiring exceptional circumstances. We instructed the council to make an award until the applicant's next benefit income and gave feedback that they had not followed the guidance.

Updated: May 21, 2024