Emergency assistance
Should you find yourself in a crisis situation, then your Personal Advisor may provide emergency assistance of up to £100 per year.
This could include:
- Shopping vouchers, or a foodbank referral
- Clothing
- Credit put on gas/electricity meters
- Transport passes/travel warrants
- Assistance with Dental treatment
- Assistance with Prescriptions
Money will only be issued in exceptional circumstances, and your personal advisor can also complete work with you around budgeting to support you to manage your money in the future.
Any other emergency assistance would be considered on a needs led basis.
If there are significant debt issues, you will be supported to access specialist debt advice, through the Citizens Advice for example.
Incentive allowance
For care leavers who reside in residential or semi-independent accommodation, to encourage attendance in education or training post year 11, we will provide a financial incentive of up to £20 per week. This would be in addition to any other allowances you receive. If you are engaged for 8 hours or less then you will receive £10 per week. If you attend for more than 8 hours then you will receive £20 per week. Education providers may also provide an additional allowance in addition to our allowance. Your financial incentive will continue to be paid up until your 19th birthday if you attend education, training or employment consistently and can demonstrate good attendance.
In exceptional circumstances, a financial incentive may be paid to someone who lives at home with their parents. This will need to be discussed with your social worker prior to turning 18 and documented in your Pathway Plan.
Birthday allowances
If you are under 21, you will receive an annual birthday allowance of £25. This will be paid direct to you as a lump sum or we can provide you with a gift to the value of £25, you can speak to your personal advisor about this. Birthday allowances will be paid to all young people in semi-independent or independent accommodation on their 16, 17 18, 19, 20 and 21 birthdays.
Religious festival allowances
If you are under 19 and live independently, you will receive an annual religious festival allowance up to the value of £50.
If you have no-one to spend your religious festival with we will actively look for someone for you to spend the day with.
‘Setting Up Home’ allowance
All ‘former relevant’ care leavers are entitled to a maximum of £3000 in relation to setting up home costs (formerly known as the Leaving Care Grant). This allowance is to help you to purchase items for your new home such as furniture and white goods. This is not paid as a cash sum but is allocated on a needs led basis.
The allowance can be accessed up to age 25; even if you are no longer have an allocated Personal Advisor.
Local travel
You are eligible for a free bus pass to travel on local services if you are aged between 18 and 22. To get this you need to apply through your personal adviser.
Once your bus pass has been ordered, we’ll email you some information which includes where you can travel and what to do if your pass is lost, stolen or damaged. The information can be found on our Better By Bus webpage.
Driving lessons
We will agree to ‘match fund’ driving lessons for those who can show the ability to purchase any further lessons up to a value of £675. This means we will pay for half of your driving lessons until you pass your driving test up to this amount. We will also pay for one theory test and one practical test. We will also purchase a provisional driving license which will act as a form of photo ID.
Passport
All children in care should have a valid passport. We will ensure that when reaching 18, yours is still in date. If not then we will purchase one for you. Any additional passports needed after your 18th birthday should be discussed with your personal advisor who will consider your circumstances and we may then provide this for you.
16 to 19 Bursary Fund
16 to 19 Bursary Fund: Eligibility - GOV.UK
There are 2 types of 16 to 19 bursaries both funded through your education provider.
Vulnerable student bursary – You could get a bursary worth up to £1,200, depending on your circumstances and benefits.
Discretionary bursary – You could get a discretionary bursary if you need financial help but don’t qualify for a vulnerable student bursary. Your education or training provider decides how much you get and what it’s used for.
Apprenticeship Bursary - For apprentices starting their apprenticeship on or after 1 August 2023, the bursary will be £3,000. It is payable in instalments over the first year of the apprenticeship.
Access to Higher Education
A bursary of £2,000 will be available to support care leavers through at least one course of further or higher education. How this is allocated will be discussed with your Personal Advisor and recorded in your Pathway Plan.
A computer/laptop to the value of £200 will be provided to assist in the completion of course work if you do not have one and there is no scope for providing one through the education provider.
We will fund the holiday accommodation charges as agreed in the Pathway Plan. The funding of the accommodation will be set at the mid-range point for student accommodation in the area they are living.
Activities
Prior to turning 18, your Social Worker should ensure that you have access to a range of hobbies/leisure activities. Details of any such activities will be agreed in your Pathway Plan. Post 18, your personal advisor can help you to budget which can then help you to continue with any hobbies or leisure interests you may have.
All Care Leavers are offered ‘free’ membership at Warrington’s Youth Zone. Please speak to your PA regarding how you can access this.
Costs associated with special needs
Advice and support, including financial assistance, may be provided for care leavers with additional needs. You may be able to claim PIP/ESA, but this will be discussed with you individually and advice sought as necessary.
Spending time with Family and those who are important to you
Assistance to attend interviews
We want to encourage all our care leavers to access education, training or employment. According to your individual needs, we will provide travel costs for interviews and suitable interview clothes if you do not have any.
Doorstep lending
We strongly advise against any form of doorstep lending. If you consider you have become the victim of a ‘loan shark’, we will support you to report this to Action Fraud, telephone 0300 5552222, or to the police on 101. If your immediate safety is at risk then you should call 999.
Local support scheme
The Local Support Scheme replaced Crisis Loans and Community Care Grants, which were ended by the government in 2013.
Household support fund
Household Support Fund | warrington.gov.uk - The government has announced a further extension to the Household Support Fund, to cover the period from 1 April 2025 to 31 March 2026.
Other possible avenues of support include:
www.turn2us.org.uk – Turn2us is a national charity that helps people in financial hardship gain access to welfare benefits, charitable grants and support services.
www.moneyadviceservice.org.uk – This provides free and impartial money advice, set up by the government.
www.britishgasenergytrust.org.uk – The Trust contributes to the relief of poverty, with a particular focus on fuel poverty, helping those who are struggling to pay for their consumption of gas and electricity get back on their feet and remain debt free going forward.
www.citizensadvice.org.uk – Citizens Advice provide the advice people need for the problems they face and improve the policies and practices that affect people’s lives. They provide free, independent, confidential and impartial advice to everyone on their rights and responsibilities.
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) are awarding Short Term Benefit Advances (gov.uk) and Budgeting Loans (gov.uk). If you are not in crisis or an emergency situation, you need to call 0845 608 8526 to check your entitlement.
The Buttle Trust is the largest grant awarding charity in the UK that focuses solely on children and young people in need.
Beacon Counselling Trust - support relating to gambling related harm.