Funded by the Department for Work and Pensions on behalf of the UK government, the Household Support Fund scheme supports vulnerable Kent households in need of help with significantly rising living costs.
HSF (Household Support Fund) Round 6 has now ended, and the Government has announced in the recent budget, a further 12-month extension to the HSF, meaning the HSF funding round 7 will run from April 2025 until March 2026.
The next HSF support scheme will be delivered from June to August and will offer an online public application route that enables individual self-referral, or professional referrals on behalf of individuals, to be made.
The Summer scheme will offer food voucher only support, to the value of £90, a winter scheme will follow later in the year and applicants will then have the additional option to choose between energy, food, or a combination of both energy and food support.
The Summer Food support scheme will open for applications from 12pm Tue 24 June 2025.The scheme is expected to close at 12pm on Tuesday 26 August 2025 but may close earlier if all the available HSF funds are allocated, therefore early application is strongly advised.
There is a limited amount of funding available for this scheme and funds will be distributed on a first come, first served basis, with only one award per household.
Who is eligible?
There is an expectation for professionals to complete due diligence checks of applications to ensure that beneficiaries meet the revised eligibility criteria for this scheme as set out below.
We will be conducting counter fraud checks which include cross-checking applicants’ details against the DWP database and applicants that self-refer may be required to submit further evidence to prove that they are a Kent resident, within an eligible Kent district, at the point of application.
Key eligibility changes for this round are the removal of the £1000 savings threshold and a reduction in the household income threshold to £33,000 from £40,000 for those applicants not in receipt of a means tested benefit.
Applicants must
- be Aged16+
- be a Kent Resident, permanently living within one of the 12 local authorities covered by Kent County Council (this excludes Medway, Bromley, and Bexley)
- be in receipt of a means tested benefit, or where a means-tested benefit is not being received a household income before tax of£33,000per year or less.
- not be eligible for Free School Meals HSF support*
(*Free School Meal eligible families will still receive a food voucher and holiday support, funded by HSF, for each eligible child via their child’s school, outside of this scheme.)
Note:
Residents with no recourse to public funding are still eligible for the scheme. If a National Insurance number is not available, please email kcc-hsffoodandenergysupport@kent.gov.uk with circumstances and reasons why the applicant should receive this support (please attach all supporting evidence to the email).
Application link:
If this support is required because of the increase in cost of living, please apply for the Household Support Fund on the following link:
Household Support Fund – Kent County Council (application form link will not appear until the scheme opens at 12pm on Tuesday 24th 2025)
All applications must be completed online
Citizens Advice will also provide support to applicants who struggle to make online applications by calling the Citizens Advice freephone helpline on 0300 304 8003 (Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm – this line opens Tuesday 24 June until scheme closure) they will submit online applications on behalf of applicant.
Additional Queries
If you have any additional queries regarding this scheme, please contact the team at kcc-hsffoodandenergysupport@kent.gov.uk or via our direct contact number 03000 412424