Grant application process re-opened for Dudley residents
Grants will soon be available again to help eligible people with their everyday living costs as part of an £800,000 pot of funding for Dudley borough.
The council was awarded a total of £5.2million from round four of the government’s household support fund earlier this year, which runs until the end of March 2024.
The funding has been split into two pots, with £300,000 available in phase one – which will re-open next Wednesday after being temporarily suspended due to demand – and a further £500,000 available in phase two which will launch in October.
As in previous rounds, a majority of the money is being distributed through key council services and organisations within the voluntary sector to get help to those who are most vulnerable and they are aware of.
But the council has set aside a proportion of the money to help eligible people who contact the council directly in need of help.
Grants of £150, plus an additional £25 for people with disabilities, are available in this phase with further information about the second one available in September,
Councillor Steve Clark, cabinet member for finance, legal and human resources, said: "In April we received a high volume of applications for phase one grants, and this is why we had to temporarily pause the process.
"I’m pleased we’re now able to reopen the application process from next Wednesday, but we expect funds to be exhausted quickly. All applications will be assessed and determined based on current circumstances."
In round three of the household support fund which covered October 2022 to March 2023, the council was awarded £2.6million and set aside £400,000 to provide grants to people who contacted them in need. More than 2,500 grants were issued.
