Household Support Fund

How to apply for a grant

If you are a park home or caravan site resident

If you are a resident of a caravan site we manage or of a park home on a licensed site, and you received a voucher during the period 1 April 2023 to 30 September 2023 either due to an application during that period or a previous application, then you do not need to apply again.

Unless you advise us differently before 17 November 2023, we will assume that you are still eligible and will arrange for another £90 supermarket voucher to be made available to you to cover the period 1 October 2023 to 31 March 2024.

It is therefore important that you let us know at hsgparkhomes@centralbedfordshire.gov.uk before 17 November 2023 if you are no longer eligible (e.g. if your household income increases to £30,000 or more per year, or because you no longer reside in a park home or on a caravan site within Central Bedfordshire) so that we can remove you from the list to receive vouchers.

You should also advise us by this date of any other changes that may affect voucher delivery, such as your contact details having changed since receiving your previous voucher.

Once this date has passed and the list of households eligible to receive awards has been finalised, we will arrange for those on the list to receive either the email/text to access the voucher, or for a voucher to be sent by post. Due to the number of awards being processed, it may take several weeks from 17 November 2023 for your voucher to be ordered and delivered and we would therefore be grateful for your patience during that period.

For caravan site or park home residents who did not receive a voucher previously but are eligible due to having an annual household income of under £30,000, then a new application will need to be made. Should this be the case then please contact us at hsgparkhomes@centralbedfordshire.gov.uk and we will arrange for a code to be sent to you so that you can apply.

If you’ve received your code, you can apply now. You won’t be able to apply for a grant unless you have received your code.

If you are an eligible Council Tax Support and/or Housing Benefit claimant

We are contacting all Council Tax Support and Housing Benefit claimants who we think may be eligible for a grant. If you have received an email or letter from us, you can apply for your grant online now. Your letter or email includes a unique application code which you need to provide on your application form. If you haven’t had a letter or email, you cannot apply.

Apply for a grant

Due to the large number of applications we are expecting, we will be staggering our letters and emails. We will contact all eligible households by the end of October 2023.

After you apply, you will receive an email to tell you that we have received your application form and are processing it. Your application form will be processed within 10 working days.

If your application is successful, your grant will be paid as a supermarket voucher. We will pass your application details to our partner organisation, eVouchers.com, for payment. They will send you an email or text message asking you to choose the supermarket that you want a voucher for. Within 48 hours of choosing your supermarket, you will be able to download your voucher.

Be scam aware!

We will not ‘cold-call’ you to apply for the grant and we won’t ask you to give us your bank details. 

Find out more about scams and how to spot them.

Supermarkets accepting eVouchers.com vouchers

You can choose any of the following supermarkets:

  • Asda (in-store and online)
  • Aldi (in-store only)
  • B & M (in-store only)
  • Farmfoods (in-store only)
  • Iceland (in-store only)
  • Morrisons (in-store only)
  • Sainsbury’s (in-store and online)
  • Tesco (in-store only)
  • Waitrose (in-store and online)

You must use your voucher for groceries. Your voucher cannot be used to buy alcohol, fuel, lottery tickets or tobacco. Most supermarkets will only allow you to use your voucher in-store, not for online shopping. If you want to use your voucher online, please make sure that you choose one of the supermarkets listed as ‘in-store and online’. You cannot change your supermarket choice after your voucher has been requested.

Please use your voucher as soon as you can – we may not be able to re-issue it if you allow it to expire.

Get help with claiming and using your voucher.

If you haven’t been contacted by eVouchers.com

It will take up to 10 working days for your application to be decided, so you will not receive your email or text message from eVouchers.com straight away. If you have not received a message from eVouchers.com after 10 working days, please contact the team who are dealing with your application.

If you need help with your application – park home residents

If you applied because you are living in a park home, please email hsgparkhomes@centralbedfordshire.gov.uk. Please include your full name and address in your email.

If you need help with your application – benefits claimants

The quickest and easiest way to get your voucher is to apply online. If you need help applying, please ask a trusted friend or family member, or call us on 0300 300 8011 and press 3 (this is the option for the Business Rates team, who are assisting with grant applications). Our phone lines are very busy at the moment, so you may have to wait before you can speak to someone.

If you choose to call us, please have the following information ready:

  • your unique application code
  • your full name, address and postcode
  • a phone number for if we need to contact you about your voucher
  • your choice of supermarket that you want a voucher for

We will then order a voucher on your behalf and post it to you. This will take 3 to 4 weeks.

If you have any questions about your application, please email systemsandcontrols@centralbedfordshire.gov.uk.