A new winter home check service is available to help vulnerable people get advice and support to keep their homes warm. There is also an extra grant available for older people which could help to help fix those small things that need doing.
The Winter Home Check Service includes:
- a full assessment of the home to identify how to keep it warm
- small preventative works such as reducing drafts, improving insulation, clearing gutters, lagging pipes and clearing chimneys
- providing additional temporary heating.
Cllr Keith Glazier, Lead Member responsible for Public Health, said: “This service will be of real lasting benefit to vulnerable people, which will not only help them to keep their home warm, but also keep them healthy and well, particularly when the weather takes a turn for the worse. I would urge people to use this service if they can”.
The Winter Home Check Service is one of the first steps which the Council, has put in place, as part of a longer-term Warm Homes strategy. This follows a Government grant of almost £250,000 earlier this month for a partnership project involving the County Council, the District and Borough Councils, the NHS and the voluntary and community sector.
To be eligible for this service (one application per household) an East Sussex resident needs to fall into one of the following categories:
- a vulnerable adult over 16 years old
- disabled (or any member of the household is registered disabled)
- a family with children on a low income.
You also have to be getting one of the following benefits:
- Income support
- Council tax
- housing benefit
- Working families/Child tax credit with income less than £16,040
- Job Seekers Allowance
- income based employment and support allowance or
- joint claim Jobseekers Allowance.
In addition, if you are aged 65 or over, and have no more than £10,000 in savings, regardless of income, you can also apply for a Handyperson grant of up to £200 to help with small maintenance or repair jobs around the home.
This could be anything from putting up shelves, clearing garden waste, plumbing, assembling flat-packed furniture and much, much more.
If you would like more information, or want to refer anyone for help, please contact: Social Care Direct by phone: 0345 60 80 191.
More information can be found on the following pages:
Reference:
3486
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East Sussex County Council