Worcester residents on low incomes who are told to self-isolate because of Covid can apply for a £500 support grant from the City Council.
Unfortunately around a third of applications for the Council's discretionary grant scheme are being rejected because people are not able to produce all the supporting information that's needed.
Now the City Council is appealing for people to check the full list of information needed before they apply, so that they can make sure they have it all to hand and be confident their application for a grant will be successful.
Councillor James Stanley, Chair of the Council's Communities Committee, said: "We want to help people and we don't want to be turning down applications. Our Housing team is pulling out all the stops to help Worcester people who are self-isolating on low incomes, but there is a legal process here and it has to be followed.
"If you are on a low income and are told to self-isolate please check the full list of information required at www.worcester.gov.uk/coronavirus before you apply for a self-isolation payment."
The information required to apply for the scheme is:
- Your National Insurance (NI) number
- Your eight-digit NHS Test and Trace ID number
- Proof of benefit entitlement
Residents claiming Universal Credit, Working Tax Credits, income-related Employment and Support Allowance, income-based Jobseeker's Allowance, Income Support, Pension Credit or Housing Benefit will, in most cases, automatically qualify for a grant.
The City Council is also making discretionary grants to Worcester people who meet all the other criteria, but are not claiming one of these benefits and are still facing severe financial hardship as result of having to self-isolate.
If you are employed you will also need:
- A recent bank statement (within the last two months)
- Proof of employment (for example wage slip)
- Evidence showing a reduction in your wage from your employer (for example, a letter, email or notice from your employer).
If you are self-employed you will also need:
- A recent bank statement (within the last two months)
- Proof of self-employment (for example, evidence of self-assessment returns, trading income)
- Proof that you cannot deliver services without social contact.
The full rules of the scheme and the application form can be found at www.worcester.gov.uk/coronavirus.
So far the City Council has paid out 160 automatic grants to Worcester residents and a further 106 under the discretionary scheme.
