The Fuel Bank Foundation - Fuel Crisis Support

Contract for the partnership with the Fuel Bank Foundation will deliver direct financial support and practical help to maintain a safe and warm home to vulnerable households identified via a network of community support partners and where required by direct referral from the funding networks.

Through the partnership and directly provided by the Fuel Bank Foundation existing and new organisations requiring support for financially vulnerable households will have a pathway to access immediate or next day emergency fuel funds and the provision of additional support services to address long term debt and poverty. The provision of support will be tailored to meet household need with the overall ambition to provide immediate help but not a long-term dependency on aid to maintain a safe and warm home.

The partnership aims to;

• Provide emergency fuel vouchers to households in fuel crisis so they can access immediate financial support and where needed ongoing assistance to increase financial resilience and avoid dependency on emergency funds
• Broaden the network of organisations working to identify households in crisis based upon a growing need in the community in partnership with the regional gas network
• Introduce a referral pathway for gas networks to refer into the Fuel Bank Foundation where they identify a household in crisis
• Provide an audit on the allocation of funds allocated to ensure that household level usage is monitored to avoid creating a dependency on the scheme and to mitigate the fraudulent use of the scheme
• Introduce the provision of CO safety information and a pathway to access CO alarms where required
• Make a positive social impact as we work together to alleviate the pressures on community organisations and the NHS, reducing the need to use key care services