The Winter Food & Energy Support Scheme

This scheme is currently scheduled to run from 9 January to 5 March 2025 or until all funds are allocated.

This Winter support scheme will be launched early January and will be available to members of the public and professionals following checking of scheme eligibility. This scheme will operate using an on-line application form that will be available from the main KCC HSF landing page: www.kent.gov.uk/householdsupportfund

The application form enables the person completing the form to either make a self-referral for support or complete an application on behalf of another person. For clarification purposes any person working or supporting another individual must use the professional route within the application.

The application form will allow applicants to determine the type of support they receive. The award valuation is pre-determined at £100 however, the applicant can choose to have this towards food, energy or a combination of food and energy as follows:

· £100 Supermarket food voucher

· Or £100 Energy voucher/card

· Or £60 supermarket food voucher and £40 Energy voucher/card

This scheme is available to Kent residents that received support from the previous HSF5 schemes as well as residents that did not, providing they meet the stated eligibility criteria:

Who is eligible for the Winter Food and Energy support?

This criterion has been set to maximise reach to those most in need, including people in employment.

· Aged 16 or over.

· A Kent resident, permanently living within one of the 12 local authorities covered by Kent County Council (this excludes Medway, Bromley, and Bexley).

· Responsible for paying the household energy bill (only one award per household) if applying for energy support.

· Combined household income (including both benefit and employment payments) less than £40,000.00 per annum.

· Are not in receipt of FSM support during school holidays*.

· Have not received support through the Pensioner Just Missing Out scheme

* Any household in receipt of Free School Meal (FSM) holiday support will not be eligible to receive support as all eligible FSM households should receive a voucher valued at £10 per eligible child per week (covering 6 Holiday weeks October/Christmas/February/Easter) plus an additional one off £40 supermarket food voucher at Christmas via their child/children’s school. If a household is in receipt of means tested Free School Meals and does not know if they are eligible for this support, please signpost them to contact the Free School Meal team at [email protected]

Residents with no recourse to public funding are still eligible for the scheme.

If successful, support will be provided in one of the following denominations depending on what the beneficiary requested:

· £100 energy voucher/e-card card to be used to pay for energy costs to the household.

· £100 supermarket food voucher used to pay for food costs.

· £60 supermarket voucher & £40 energy voucher/e-card

There is a limited amount of funding available for this scheme and funds will be distributed on a first come, first served basis, with only one award per household per scheme.