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Gloucester: Household Support Fund & Crisis and Resilience Fund

What Gloucester’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

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

What Gloucester’s scheme covers

Award: Cannot exceed the value of the rent
What you get: Paid by BACS; rent arrears are usually paid directly to the landlord or their agent
Who qualifies: Must be entitled to Housing Benefit or Universal Credit including a housing costs element; owner-occupiers excluded
How often: Normally awarded for a period of 13 weeks
How to apply: Apply electronically through the council's online service; paper forms available
Decision: Written notification of the outcome within 14 working days of receiving complete information
You will need: Evidence of income and outgoings required, plus landlord proof for rent arrears claims
Funding period: Housing Payments scheme runs from 1 April 2026 to 31 March 2028
Government allocation: £219,955 for 2026-27

Gloucester City 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; Gloucester City Council was allocated £219,955 of its own. If what you need is help with food or energy rather than rent, start with the Gloucestershire scheme.

What Gloucester itself says

Award. “The amount of Housing Payment paid cannot be more than the value of the rent”
What you get. “usually paid directly to the landlord or their agent”
Who qualifies. “entitled to Housing Benefit or Universal Credit”
How often. “Housing Payments will normally be awarded for a period of 13 weeks”
How to apply. “electronically through the Council's website using the Council's online service”
Decision. “The customer will be notified in writing of the outcome of their application within 14 working days”
You will need. “evidence of income and outgoings”
Funding period. “The scheme commences on 1 April 2026 and ends on 31 March 2028”

Quoted from Gloucester’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 Gloucester’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 Gloucester scheme page

Source: Gloucester City 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 Gloucester?

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: Gloucestershire, New Forest, Waverley — see all 141.

Find your council by postcode

Not in Gloucester? 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 Gloucester City 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.