Apply for benefits and financial support

Community care grants from the Scottish Welfare Fund allow people to live independently, or continue to live independently and avoid the need for institutional care. If you get a community care grant from the Scottish Welfare Fund, it will not affect your right to get any other benefits.

How to qualify

A community care grant may help if you're in receipt of a low income and:

• you're about to leave care, hospital or have been in prison
• you may have to go into care because you do not have the things you need to continue living at home
• you're struggling to provide a safe and secure home for your family
• you need help to get some important things like a cooker or a bed

You may still get help even if you have some income or already receive benefits.

What a community care grant may pay for

The help you may get depends on your circumstances. Some applicants get things like fridges, washing machines, furniture or carpets, which are delivered and installed.

We only provide items that are of a high priority need to your or your family. This applies if:

• your need is assessed to be immediate and severe
• you or your family are assessed as highly vulnerable
• what you have asked for will have a substantial or immediate ongoing impact in resolving or improving your health and wellbeing
• there will be significant adverse consequences if the item is not provided

How to apply

Apply for a community care grant

You can also check if you qualify, or return to a partially completed application.

If you do not want to apply online you can:

• visit a customer service centre to apply
• request a paper copy of the application form
• download the application form (PDF, 178KB)

If you need help applying you can ask us to call you:

• telephone: 030 33 33 3007
• send us a message

After you apply

It normally takes about 3 weeks to process an application, as long as you've given us all the information we need. We'll call you when we have started to look at your application.

We'll write to you when we've made a decision. If you are successful we'll call you to explain what happens next. 

To track the progress of a completed application

• check online
• telephone: 030 33 33 3000

If you do not qualify

You can ask for a review if you're not happy with the decision about your application.