Summer Voucher Scheme for the Kent Household Support Fund 2024

The Household Support Fund program, funded by the Department for Work and Pensions on behalf of the UK government, provides assistance to vulnerable Kent families who are in need of assistance with considerably rising living costs.

HSF Round 4 ( Household Support Fund ) has now come to an end, and the government has requested a further six-month extension of the HSF, making HSF Round 5 will run from April until October 2024.

KCC will implement the next scheme from June through September, and it will provide an online people application process that enables individual self-referrals or professional recommendations on behalf of individuals.

Food and Energy Support Scheme

The system will provide power and/or food support, with applicants ready to choose between energy, food, or a 60/40 combination of both energy and food support.

Online programs for the program may begin at noon on June 11, 2024.

The program will end at 12 p.m. on Wednesday, September 4, 2024, but it may end sooner if all of the HSF funds are allocated. So, earlier application is advised.

If successful, applicants choosing power help may be provided in the following manner, depending on how much money they are willing to pay for their strength bills:

£100 ( or £40 if combining with food voucher ) virtual energy card* to be used to pay directly to energy providers for electricity, gas, or water bills. Energy suppliers including British Gas, EDF, Eon, Bulb, Octopus and many more. &nbsp,

*This card is issued by GVS Prepaid Ltd, contrary to contract by Mastercard International Incorporated&nbsp,

All applicants for digital energy cards will need to go through the process of registering and activating the card online, and those without internet access will need professional referral assistance, or they can access their native gateway service. &nbsp,

Candidates who use a key or cards to top up in-store and are required to do so will get a PayPoint or PayZone energy voucher that can be used at their neighborhood kiosk.

During the application process, applicants who choose to use food vouchers will be able to pick a store from a list of selected merchants.

Those candidates who choose to apply for a split Energy/Food award option may receive a £40 energy support package as well as a £60 supermarket Food Voucher.

There is only one award per household for this system, and only a minimal amount of funding is available for this program. The money may be distributed on a first come, first served schedule.

Who is ready?

Professionals making the appointment are expected to conduct due diligence checks on applications to make sure that recipients meet the eligibility requirements set out below:  

Professional referrers will need to ensure the applicant’s residency and ensure the lawyer’s energy transaction method; if not, find “food voucher support” rather than “energy.”

At the time of application, all self-referee applicants must provide evidence that they are the household’s energy bill payer ( only if requesting energy support ) and that they are a resident of Kent and live in a passable Kent district. &nbsp,

&nbsp, Candidates has:

• remain aged 16 or over&nbsp,
• be a Kent resident, permanently living within one of the 12 local authorities covered by Kent County Council ( this excludes Medway, Bromley, and Bexley ) &nbsp, &nbsp,
• have a household income less than £40, 000 per annum ( £3, 334 per month ) before tax ( including any means tested benefits ) &nbsp,
• hardly have saving above £1000&nbsp,
• *not be able to help their household’s free school meals.

*Families who qualify for Free School Meal may receive a meal ticket for each eligible child through their child’s school outside of this program. &nbsp,

Residents who lack access to public money are also eligible for the program. &nbsp, If a National Insurance range is certainly available, choose internet kcc- hsffoodandenergysupport@kent.gov. uk with circumstances and justifications for the applicant’s need for this support ( please attach all supporting documentation to the email ).

Application connection: &nbsp,

The Household Support Fund accepts applications for assistance with rising living costs via the following website: &nbsp.

Household Support Fund – Kent County Council

Processing timescales&nbsp,

We do try to send the appropriate Energy (virtual ) cards and Food tickets as soon as possible, typically within 10 working days of receiving an application successful, but we do anticipate that there will be a high initial level of demand for support, which could have an impact on timeframes. The applicant and referral ( if appropriate ) will receive email confirmation of the application results.

Potential Communications&nbsp,

Please feel free to share this information with your own professional networks, or pass on the subscription link, https ://forms .office .com/e/2aKaNrjwBi, to our HSF communications mailing list to receive the latest news and updates on the scheme.

Further Queries&nbsp,

Any more answers can be directed to kcc- hsffoodandenergysupport@kent.gov. uk or via our direct email number 03000 412424&nbsp,

Source: sandgatepc.org.uk