Grants to Individuals

Who can apply?

How can the Trust help?

The Trust can help you with:

• debts of domestic gas/electricity charges
• other essential domestic bills and costs. You can apply for such help even if you do not apply for help with your gas/electricity debts

You may also be eligible for help from other trust funds:

The EDF Energy Trust is administered by Charis Grants alongside a number of other utility Trust Funds, namely the British Gas Energy Trust (an applicant must be a customer of British Gas or Scottish Gas), the Anglian Water Trust Fund (an applicant must have their sole or main home within the Anglian Water or Hartlepool Water region) and the Eos Foundation (an applicant must be a customer of one of the donating companies namely Bournemouth and West Hampshire Water, Folkestone and Dover Water, Mid Kent Water, Portsmouth Water, South East Water and Tendring Hundred Water.)  All four Trusts operate within a shared scheme with a common application form and assessment process.  So it is possible to arrange for energy debts water, and / or sewerage to be cleared at the same time.

By signing the EDF Energy Trust application form you give your consent to be considered for assistance from any of the trust funds administered by Charis.

See also the Shared Programme of Giving page.

The Trust cannot give you a loan or give you help with bills you have already paid or items you have already bought.

What the Trust cannot help with:

• Fines for criminal offences
• Overpayments of benefits
• Educational or training needs
• Business debts
• Debts to central government departments e.g. tax and national insurance
• Catalogues, credit cards, personal loans and other forms of non-secured lending
• Medical equipment, aids and adaptations
• Deposits to secure accommodation
• Holidays

How to apply for help

If you would like to apply to us for help, you will need to fill in our application form.

You will also need to send us proof of the amount of income you have and where it comes from e.g. wages, benefits, etc.

If you are asking for help with your gas/electricity debts, we will contact the company to confirm how much you owe them.

We treat all applications in the strictest confidence.

You can download an application form by clicking here. Please note that you will have to print off the application form in order to sign it and send it to us together with the proof of your income.

Alternatively, if you would prefer us to send you an application form, click here.

A copy of the application form can be obtained by writing to:

Freepost RLXG-RBYJ-USXE
EDF Energy Trust
PO Box 42
Peterborough
PE3 8XH

If you think you may have difficulty in completing the application form, a local advice centre such as a Citizens Advice Bureau may be able to help you fill it in.

When filling in the application form, please read page 7 carefully to see what information you need to send into us with your completed application. Don't forget to sign the application form on page 7 - if the form is not signed we cannot assess your application.

Sending in your application

Once you have completed and signed your application, you should send the form and necessary information about your income, medical condition, etc. to:

Freepost RLXG-RBYJ-USXE
EDF Energy Trust
PO Box 42
Peterborough
PE3 8XH

How will we deal with your application?

When we receive your application, we will send you a letter. This letter will either say:

• that you have sent us everything we need and that we are able to assess your application,
or
• there is something missing or information is unclear. Once you send us the information or explain the situation, we will then begin to assess your application.

If you are asking for help with your gas/electricity debts, we will contact the company so that they can confirm how much you owe.

If, whilst we are assessing your application, we believe we need more information from you, we will write to you.

How will you know if you have been successful?

If we are able to help you with your gas/electricity debts, a payment will be made directly to the company. We will write to you to let you know that the payment is being made.

If you are asking for help with other bills and costs and we are able to help, we will write and let you know how the award will be paid.

If we are unable to help you with either kind of payment, we will write to tell you this.

Can I apply to the Trust again?

If you receive an award from the Trust, you cannot apply to us again for two years.

If you do not receive an award from the Trust, you can apply again after six months.

Can I find out why my application was unsuccessful?

We regret that the Trust cannot disclose to applicants why applications for help with gas/electricity debts and/or with other bills and costs are unsuccessful.

However, the following may give you some guidance on why we are unable to help everyone.

• The Trust aims mainly to help those struggling with energy debts and has only limited funds for other households debts (Further Assistance Payments).  The Trust receives many more applications for help than they can award so each month difficult decisions have to be made about who can be helped. If you are in debt to a company such as your water or energy supplier you should contact them either directly or through an agency like your Citizens Advice Bureau and they will help you to set up a plan to manage your debts. Some have company schemes and special tariffs to assist those struggling with debt. Or you could ring the Home Heat Helpline on 0800 33 66 99.
• The Trust aims to make a long term difference to a person's situation. It will therefore want to make sure any grant will enable the person applying to get back on their feet and not just be a short term fix for a long term problem. For example:
  • If your application shows that you have lots more money going out than you have coming in, the Trust is unlikely to make a payment since it looks likely that you will get into difficulties again with the same bills very soon.
  • In cases like these, where you are experiencing ongoing difficulties in paying your bills and debts have built up we would recommend that you seek the help of an agency such as the Citizens Advice Bureau. They will be make sure you are claiming all the money you are entitled to and also work with you to establish a manageable budget.
  • Once the financial situation is more stable, you can apply again to the Trust after six months ( Providing that you have not received an award.)
• The Trust needs to be sure how the debts have arisen
  • Where you are looking for help with gas/electricity debts, the Trust will always look for a full explanation of how the debts have arisen.
  • Sometimes applicants do not fully explain how the debts have come about. It is difficult for the Trust to consider making a payment if it cannot see how the debts have arisen and how an award will make a long term difference
  • Similarly, where it is a bill like rent, water or sewerage, the Trust will need to understand how and why the debts have built up.
• We do not have the information to enable us make the decision
  • To enable us to make fair decisions we must ask for the same information from everyone who applies. We recognise that sometimes it is not easy to get information such as proof of the money you have coming in, but if for example you are on benefits you can contact you the office that you deal with and they will help you obtain this information.
  • We will write out to you for this information but if you do not supply it then the Trust is unable to process your application.
• Why was my application timed out?
  • When we write to you for information we will give you 4 weeks to find that information. If you do not reply then we will close the application because we will assume that you no longer want to continue with the application. If you have difficulty in obtaining the information ( for example you have requested it and it has not yet arrived) please write to us before the four weeks and let us know and we can extend the timescale to enable you to forward us the details we have asked for.