Crisis & Resilience Fund: Update 1st September 2026
The Crisis Resilience Fund (previously Household Support Fund) is now open for new enquiries and applications.
Visit the BVSC website at bvsc.org/crf for further information and updates.
What is the Crisis & Resilience Fund?
The Crisis and Resilience Fund is a one-off grant of up to £220 to Birmingham households, currently facing financial hardship, to help households with food costs and energy payments.
Who can apply?
- You must be a Birmingham Resident
- You must be able to demonstrate that your household is experiencing financial hardship, and in particular covering food and energy costs
- Your household must not have received a Household Support Fund or Crisis and Resilience Fund grant payment in the last 12 months*
Receiving a grant from this fund will not impact any other benefits you may be receiving or may be entitled to.
You may be asked to provide proof of address and proof of means-tested benefits (if you are in receipt of them) as part of your grant application.
*Each household is only eligible to receive one grant payment in any 12 month period. e.g. If you received a grant payment on 23rd April 2026, you cannot make another application until 24th April 2027. Any enquiry received before your eligibility date will be rejected.
If you have already completed the enquiry form and you have received an email confirming it has been approved, you are on the waiting list and you will be contacted by a member of your local Crisis and Resilience Fund team in the next 4-6 weeks to complete your application.
Once your application and any necessary evidence have been submitted and approved, payments take up to 10 working days to process, excluding bank holidays and weekends. The payment reference will be Birmingham Voluntary.
If you need help applying
You can book an appointment at one of our Community Hubs in Selly Oak and Hall Green. When attending your appointment, please bring proof of ID, address and any benefits you receive.
Contact us
Hall Green and Selly Oak residents can contact the GreenSquareAccord CRF team by phone on 0121 442 5080 or 07855 409582, or by emailing crisis.resilience@greensquareaccord.co.uk
Residents of all other areas should use the BVSC automated phone line on 0121 634 7100 to check on the status of your enquiry or application. Any other queries, please direct to crf@bvsc.org
Further Information
Please note that BVSC or Birmingham City Council does NOT send text messages to applicants or those on the waiting list asking you to click on a link and provide your bank details. This is a scam and is not associated with the Crisis Resilience Fund or any other CRF activity.
You do not need to pay any fee to apply for the Grant. Should any organisation request a fee from you to apply, please do not give them any personal details and contact BVSC immediately to report them.
The BVSC Grants network operates a zero-tolerance approach to abusive language, bullying and harassment. If any of these behaviours are observed during your application, with any member of our team, your grant application will not be completed.
Signposting, information and advice available for applicants:
You can find more information and resources on BCC’s Cost of Living Support Page and on the Government’s Cost of Living Hub.
BVSC can also offer additional support for those with prepayment meters for either electricity or gas. If you are interested in this, please email crf@bvsc.org
If you are a household with children and require wider support, including parenting, food and/or mental health support, you can complete a self-referral Family Connect Form by clicking here.
Grant payments are made directly into a bank account in the applicant’s name. If you do not currently have a bank account, please click the link below for details on how to open a Basic Bank Account.
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