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Elmbridge: Household Support Fund & Crisis and Resilience Fund

What Elmbridge’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

Elmbridge 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; Elmbridge’s own page (linked below) is the authority and the current position.

What Elmbridge’s scheme covers

Award: Housing payment capped at the shortfall between existing benefits and eligible rent
What you get: Paid together with Housing Benefit (direct to landlord in arrears/UC cases)
Who qualifies: Must already get Housing Benefit or the UC housing element and be struggling with rent (housing payment only)
How often: Awards last 13 or 26 weeks
You will need: Evidence of the last 2 Universal Credit assessment periods if claiming UC
Not covered: Cannot be used for Council Tax
Funding period: Housing payment started 1 April 2026, replacing Discretionary Housing Payment
Government allocation: £217,501 for 2026-27

Elmbridge Borough Council is one of 11 district councils in Surrey. 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. Surrey County Council was allocated £7,278,801 for 2026-27; Elmbridge Borough Council was allocated £217,501 of its own. If what you need is help with food or energy rather than rent, start with the Surrey scheme.

What Elmbridge itself says

Award. “The most you can receive is the difference between the benefits you are already receiving and your eligible rent charge”
What you get. “included with Housing Benefit payments”
Who qualifies. “already get Housing Benefit or the housing element of Universal Credit”
How often. “Awards are granted for a limited period. This can be for 13 or 26 weeks”
You will need. “evidence of the last 2 UC assessment periods”
Not covered. “We cannot award Housing Payment for: Council Tax,”
Funding period. “starts on 1 April 2026 and replaces Discretionary Housing Payment (DHP)”

Quoted from Elmbridge’s own page↗ and its application 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 Elmbridge’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 Elmbridge scheme page

Source: Elmbridge 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

Borrowing while on benefits — what it costs and what it does to your award.
Crisis Loans — what replaced them, and where to apply now.
Help with energy bills — grants and supplier schemes.
Eligibility checker — see what you could be entitled to.

Not in Elmbridge?

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: Epsom And Ewell, Maidstone, Torridge — see all 141.

Find your council by postcode

Not in Elmbridge? 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 Elmbridge 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.