Home›Household Support Fund›Councils›Cheltenham

Cheltenham: Household Support Fund & Crisis and Resilience Fund

What Cheltenham’s local crisis scheme covers, how to apply, and whether it was open when we checked.

Written by the benefitmoney.co.uk editorial team · Last reviewed 14 September 2026

Cheltenham Borough Council runs its local crisis help as the Crisis and Resilience Fund. It is a grant — not a loan: help with essentials, nothing to repay. This is a summary; Cheltenham’s own page (linked below) is the authority and the current position.

What Cheltenham’s scheme covers

Who qualifies: Must be receiving housing benefit or the housing costs element of Universal Credit and need help with rent shortfall, advance rent, moving costs or a deposit
How to apply: Complete an online claim form; supporting evidence sent by email or post
You will need: Evidence of any ill health or disability, outstanding debts, and steps being taken to improve the situation
Not covered: Does not cover certain services included in rent such as meals, water, gas or electric, or benefit shortfalls caused by sanctions or overpayment recovery
Government allocation: £124,412 for 2026-27

Cheltenham Borough Council is one of 6 district councils in Gloucestershire. In a two-tier area the county council runs crisis payments and the district runs the housing side of the fund — rent shortfalls, a deposit, rent in advance. Gloucestershire County Council was allocated £6,324,525 for 2026-27; Cheltenham Borough Council was allocated £124,412 of its own. If what you need is help with food or energy rather than rent, start with the Gloucestershire scheme.

What Cheltenham itself says

Who qualifies. “receiving housing benefit or the housing costs element of Universal Credit”
How to apply. “To make a claim for a housing payment you will need to complete an online claim form”
You will need. “proof of any ill health or disabilities, debts outstanding and what steps you are taking to improve your situation”
Not covered. “certain services included in your rent such as meals, water, gas, electric”

Quoted from Cheltenham’s own page↗, checked 14 September 2026. Nothing on this page is paraphrased into a rule the council has not published. The government allocation is from Annex A of the Crisis and Resilience Fund grant determination 2026 to 2027↗.

Apply on Cheltenham’s website

Applications are made on the council’s own site — this page collects nothing. If the link has moved, search the council site for “crisis and resilience”, then “household support”, then “welfare assistance”.

Open the Cheltenham scheme page

Source: Cheltenham Borough Council — Crisis and Resilience Fund. Opened 10 September 2026.

Where this money comes from

Central government funds it; the council sets the rules. A payment does not affect your benefits. How the fund works nationally.

Other help you may qualify for

Budgeting Advance or Budgeting Loan — interest-free from the DWP.
Credit union loans — the cheapest borrowing, capped at 3% a month.
DWP phone numbers — which line to call, and for what.
Borrowing while on benefits — what it costs and what it does to your award.

Not in Cheltenham?

See the other councils we have checked, or find yours via GOV.UK’s Get help with the cost of living from your local council↗.

Outside England the scheme has a different name: the Scottish Welfare Fund in Scotland, the Discretionary Assistance Fund in Wales, and Discretionary Support in Northern Ireland.

Recently checked elsewhere: Cheshire East, Guildford, South Ribble — see all 141.

Find your council by postcode

Not in Cheltenham? Enter a postcode and we will point you at the right council’s Crisis and Resilience Fund page.

We look the postcode up with the free postcodes.io service to find your local authority. Nothing you type is stored.

This page is independent. It is not run by Cheltenham Borough Council, the Department for Work and Pensions or GOV.UK. Council schemes change without notice; the council’s own page is always the current position.