The Crisis Fund can provide immediate support in the form of food or energy vouchers, to those with an identified crisis need.
This fund is not a replacement for normal casework. Applications can be made to the Grants Team regardless of whether or not a case is in progress on Mosaic. The referrer must however demonstrate that the immediate need is a Crisis which cannot be met in the required timescales through the normal casework process.
Any eligible SSAFA beneficiary who has an identified immediate need for crisis support.
A Crisis need is defined as: Someone unable to feed or clothe themselves or their family; or provide energy in their homes.
The following Teams can make direct applications for crisis support:
• Regional Offices
• Mentoring Team
• Glasgow’s Helping Heroes (GHH)
• Gurkha Services Team
The Grants Team do not deal directly with any beneficiaries. SSAFA Volunteers who wish to access the fund for their clients should contact their local Regional Office who will complete the Application Form (the latest version can be found in the CA & RCM Channel Teams files) and email the completed form to: [email protected] .
Regional Office staff are reminded to record all requests on Mosaic In line with SSAFA policy retrospective payments cannot be made.
Before an application is submitted, the referrer must:
• Have undertaken the usual casework due diligence.
• Confirm that all other immediate support options should have been investigated e.g., food banks, Local Authority Provisions
• Approached any relevant Regimental fund that provides a system of immediate support, e.g. RLC, The Rifles, RNBT etc. See the Finance section of Compass.
The Crisis Fund Application form must be fully completed, and background information provided with as much detail as possible to avoid unnecessary delays.
It is vital that the client has email access in order to receive the vouchers. The Grants Team acknowledge that there will be situations where clients are facing digital poverty, and so where an email is not available, please contact the Grants Manager directly.
Vouchers will be sent by the Grants Team to the referrer via email, they must then go directly to the Client and not to a third party.
Food vouchers can only be used in-store and not on-line.
Food Vouchers retain the remaining credit balance and do not have to be spent in one go.
The Grants Team will not reissue food/energy vouchers once the code has been emailed to the client.
One food voucher and one energy voucher can be provided per beneficiary within a 12-month rolling period (these can be separate applications). If the referrer is unsure if a voucher can be issued to a beneficiary due to this restriction, an email can be sent to the Grants Team at [email protected] to confirm this.
SSAFA are obliged to ensure that the payments we administer are going to those who are eligible for such assistance. In view of this, every effort should be made by the referrer to secure client Verification/Proof of Service (VoS/PoS).
The following will be acceptable as suitable evidence for VoS/PoS:
- Discharge Documents
- Armed Forces Pension Documents
- Armed Forces Compensation Scheme Documents
- MOD 90 Serving personnel ID Card
- MOD100 Veterans ID Card
- Emergency Proof of Service – confirmation email
If there is already an open case on Mosaic, the client’s VoS can be obtained from this.
If none of the above can be provided or obtained from the client, the referrer needs to discuss the case with the Grants Manager.
SSAFA Grants Team can gain an Emergency Proof of Service from Veterans UK for those in Crisis. All such requests must be submitted via email to the Welfare Team on the ‘Proof of Service’ form.
The fund provides assistance with:
- Food vouchers – Awards of between £50 and up to £200 will be made on a case-by-case basis. Vouchers are available for the following outlets: Tesco, Asda & ALDI. If an Iceland or Sainsbury voucher is required, please email the Grants Team at [email protected]. Please note it may take at least 48 hours to organise these vouchers.
- Energy Vouchers/Grants –Vouchers can only be awarded to beneficiaries with prepayment keys or cards (gas and electric) in order to restore power or heat in their homes. Beneficiaries who are not on prepayment cards/meters and require assistance with energy bills, heating oil etc should have a case submitted on Mosaic via the usual almonisation process. A maximum top up of £49 will be awarded per application.
- PayPoint can only process energy payments for the providers listed on their website at: https://consumer.paypoint.com/energy.
- It is important that address/postcodes are input correctly on all applications placed for PayPoint energy vouchers.
- Once processed, an email will be sent by the Grants Team to the referrer with a document attached in PDF format. This document is the energy voucher containing a barcode, which can be printed or displayed on a smartphone screen. The voucher will contain the beneficiary’s name & address, together with the value of the award & instructions on how the voucher can be used. The beneficiary will also be required to provide proof of their ID along with the voucher.
- Acceptable forms of ID are a passport, driving licence, or any recent bank statement, council tax bill, or utility bill.
- The beneficiary has 31 days to use the voucher, or it will be cancelled.
- PayPoint store locator can be found here.