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Norwich: Household Support Fund & Crisis and Resilience Fund

What Norwich’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

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

What Norwich’s scheme covers

What you get: Short-term financial support with housing costs (rent, rent deposits, rent in advance, moving costs)
Who qualifies: Must receive Housing Benefit or the housing costs element of Universal Credit
How to apply: Apply online
Not covered: Cannot cover service charges not covered by Housing Benefit, rent-arrears top-ups, rent without qualifying benefit, sanction/suspension shortfalls, or Council Tax
Funding period: CRF Housing Payments replaced Discretionary Housing Payments from 1 April 2026
Government allocation: £304,090 for 2026-27

Norwich City Council is one of 7 district councils in Norfolk. 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. Norfolk County Council was allocated £14,309,555 for 2026-27; Norwich City Council was allocated £304,090 of its own. If what you need is help with food or energy rather than rent, start with the Norfolk scheme.

What Norwich itself says

What you get. “They can help with housing costs such as: rent, rent deposits, rent in advance, moving costs”
Who qualifies. “You can only apply for a CRF Housing Payment if you receive either: Housing Benefit, or the housing costs element of Universal Credit”
Not covered. “Service charges that are not covered by Housing Benefit”
Funding period. “CRF Housing Payments replaced Discretionary Housing Payments (DHP) from 1 April 2026”

Quoted from Norwich’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 Norwich’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 Norwich scheme page

Source: Norwich City Council — Crisis and Resilience Fund (CRF). 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 Norwich?

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: Nottinghamshire, Stratford-on-Avon, Cotswold — see all 141.

Find your council by postcode

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

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This page is independent. It is not run by Norwich 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.