Are you worried about money?

Your housing officer can:

• provide guidance to help you reduce your debts and manage your money
• make sure that you get in touch with the right people to help you
• refer you to free support services that can give you individual, specialised support.

It's important to get any money and debt issues under control as soon as possible, if you’d like to speak to us about accessing support, please get in touch.

There are also lots of free services available online and in your community.

You’ll find lots of links below to support agencies, tools and information to help you manage your money and make sure you’re receiving all the benefits you’re entitled to.

MoneyHelper is a free, government sponsored service that supports people in financial difficulty to get access to free debt advice.

Their website is full of information about benefits and managing debts - with easy to use tools and calculators.

And click on the 'Talk to us live' button to speak to an advisor - by phone, webchat or WhatsApp.

Find out more on their website: www.moneyhelper.org.uk

The P3 Charity offer free advice and support services, to help adults and families in Warwickshire gain, manage and maintain accommodation.

They have three support centres, known as Navigator hubs, in: Nuneaton, Stratford-upon-Avon and Rugby.

Warwickshire's Navigator hubs are available to anyone in the community who needs advice or support, as well as helping people access other services to improve their situation or circumstances.

As well as supporting with housing issues, P3 can also help with issues relating to:

• education
• employment
• sexual health
• relationships
• finances, benefits and dealing with debt.

If you need more comprehensive support, their floating support service could be right for you (see Floating support section below)

Find out more on their website www.p3charity.org

Warwickshire County Council fund services to improve the quality of people’s lives, by promoting independent living and encouraging people to build on their existing skills and capabilities.

These services include a floating support service, where a support worker visits customers in their own homes.

The floating support service provides short term interventions to:

• support people to stay in their homes
• support people to work towards living in their own home
• prevent homelessness, hospitalisation or institutional care

The services are delivered by specialist support agencies who work in partnership with the county council.

Young people aged 16 to 25

The county council work with specialist agency, St Basils, to provide floating support for people aged 16 to 25

They provide their service across the West Midlands, including Warwickshire and Solihull  - with a slightly different offer in each region.

You can find out more about the services St Basils provide and self-refer on their website.

People aged 25 and above

If you're over 25, the floating support services are provided by a different specialist agency, P3.

There can provide a package of support to manage and maintain your accommodation if it is at risk. This service will ensure people receive the right support, at the right time, and in the right place.

They can also offer a bespoke package of support, centred around you and your life, to tackle the very reasons you are struggling to maintain your home.

P3's floating support is available to you at home if:

• You're aged 25 or over (or approaching 25 within the next 6 months)
• Your accommodation is at risk, you don't feel safe where you currently live or if you are homeless / sleeping rough / sofa surfing
• You live in Warwickshire

You can find out more and self-refer on their website.

If you need support with your referral please call their freephone number: 0808 164 6220

Citizens Advice provide free, independent and impartial advice to help you find a way forward, whatever the problem.

This includes advice and information on:

• Benefits
• Debt and money
• Housing
• Health
• Consumer rights
• Family rights
• Legal support

Their network of charities offers confidential advice online, over the phone, and in person, for free.

For local support, take a look their website for your area:

Bedworth, Rugby and Nuneaton: www.brancab.org.uk
North Warwickshire: www.nwcab.org.uk
South Warwickshire: www.casouthwarwickshire.org.uk

• They also have a national phone AdviceLine: 0800 144 8848 (you'll be put through to a local adviser if one is free)
• And a dedicated debt helpline: 0800 240 4420
• Both helplines are available 9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday

The Roundabout charity distributes good quality household furniture and other domestic items to families and individuals on low incomes and in financial need. They cover some areas of Warwickshire – take a look at the map on their website for details.

To access their service, you’ll need to be referred by a caring organisation, such as us, your GP or Warwickshire County Council.

Please contact your Housing Officer on 0300 1234 009 for a referral.

There are lots of national and local benefits and grants available to help you manage your energy costs.

Find out more about what you may be entitled to.

Discretionary Housing Payments (DHPs) provide financial support to help with rent or housing costs.

They are issued through your local council and each council decides how their application process will work (see links to each Council's relevant webpage below).

They are a top-up to Housing Benefit or the Housing Element within your Universal Credit award, and are available if the Council considers that someone needs extra help with their housing costs.

DHPs are only available as short-term assistance, not a long-term solution. They are discretionary awards and do not form part of your benefit entitlement. Please be aware the council's have a limited fund for these payments, and they are often only paid in exceptional circumstances.

Could you be eligible?

You may be able to apply for a DHP if you currently claim either:

• Housing Benefit, or
• the housing element of Universal Credit
• AND need more financial support with housing costs.

You may get a DHP to cover housing costs for:

• a rent shortfall
• rent deposits
• rent in advance if you need to move home

DHPs cannot cover council tax, even if you get Local Council Tax Support, however see the section below 'Council tax reduction' for support.

How to apply

You'll need to apply through your local council:

• North Warwickshire Borough Council - Discretionary Housing Payments
• Rugby Borough Council - Discretionary Housing Payments
• Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council - Discretionary Housing Payments
• Stratford-on-Avon District Council - Discretionary Housing Payments
• Warwick District Council - Discretionary Housing Payments

Help with application forms

If you need any help completing application forms, please get in touch with your housing officer who will be able to support you on 0300 1234 009 or at enquiries@midlandsrural.org.uk

If you’re on a low income or claiming benefits, you could be eligible for a reduction or other support paying your council tax bill.

Council Tax Support (Reduction)

Find out more on the gov.uk website - you'll be asked for your postcode and directed to the relevant local authority website.

Discretionary Council Tax Support (DCTS)

This is a short term award, made at the discretion of your Council, to assist customers with shortfalls in council tax costs.

Help with application forms

If you need any help completing application forms, please get in touch with your housing officer who will be able to support you on 0300 1234 009 or at enquiries@midlandsrural.org.uk

Find out more about Universal Credit, job seekers allowance and pension credit on our benefits page.

Entiteldto’s online benefits calculator is a great tool. It's free and completely independent.

The calculator will:

• provide you with a reliable estimate of your benefit entitlements
• help you understand if you're receiving the right amount of money in your benefit claims,
• and advise if you're eligible for other types of benefits.

Find out what benefits you may be entitled to with the entitledto calculator

Turn2us is a national charity providing practical help to people who're struggling financially.

They help people in financial need gain access to welfare benefits, charitable grants and other financial help – online, by phone and face to face through partner organisations.

Their website offers:

• an online benefits calculator
• an online grants search
• Turn2us direct grant-giving funds
• links to other sources of information and help

www.turn2us.org.uk

Together for Mental Wellbeing supports people with a variety of needs including mental health issues, learning disabilities, physical disabilities and sensory impairments who are in need of short-term housing related support.

They offer:

• Support to budget effectively
• Support to understand a tenancy
• Information on resources in the community
• Support to access work, education and training opportunities
• One-to-one support to help achieve housing related goals

Find out more

For more information, or to refer yourself, please contact the service:

Website: Warwickshire Housing Related Support (includes a link to the referral form)
Tel: 02476 796 416
Email: warks-hrs@together-uk.org

A cancer diagnosis can change your financial situation. It may mean you need to stop working, or work less. It can also mean spending more money on things like hospital parking. But depending on your situation, you may be able to get benefits or other financial support.

Find out more about what you could be entitled to on the Macmillan website

Age UK offer information and advice through a free, confidential national phone service for older people, their families, friends, carers and professionals.

They can help with:

• benefits
• retirement
• wellbeing
• money issues.

Find out more on the Age UK website or call on 0800 678 1602