Here2Help - help with money and essentials

If you are struggling to pay for clothing and toiletries for your children, the Children’s Storehouse is available to help.

They can provide quality, pre-loved clothing for babies, children, and young people up to the age of 18. They may also be able to provide bedding, books, and toys.

How to get help

If you are a family in need, please call:

• our Here2Help Advice Service on 0121 788 6527
• Financial Inclusion team on 0121 704 6202  financialinclusion@solihull.gov.uk

They will be able to assess your needs and make a referral to the Children’s Storehouse.

Visit our help with school uniforms webpage

Grants for families facing financial hardship while caring for a child with a serious illness.

From funding specialist equipment and creative therapies to hospital travel expenses.

For further information, see Roald Dahl’s Marvellous Children’s Charity.

From 1 August to 31 August 2026, children aged 5 to 15 years will benefit from free bus travel in England.

Find out more at GOV.UK.

Our Here2Help Advice Service brings together a range of local organisations to provide you with free information, advice and support on topics including: 

• benefits, debt and money matters   
• housing and tenancy issues   
• forms and applications   
• disability-related benefits and support   
• care and support options   
• health and wellbeing information   
• digital and online access   
• local services and community support   

How to get help

To ask for help from our Here2Help Advice Service, you must be aged 18 or over and live permanently in Solihull.

To book an appointment or find out more information about in-person venues in your area:

• call: 0121 788 6527
• visit: Citizens Advice Solihull Borough

Do you know someone of State Pension age (aged 66 years or older) who is on a low income and would welcome extra money and support with heating costs? This could be your customers, service users, a parent, grandparent, friend or neighbour.

• Pension Credit is worth on average £3,900 per year and unlocks additional support including Winter Fuel Payments, help with Council Tax, NHS dental care and, for those over 75, a free TV licence.
• Thanks to the Pension Credit backdating rules, it is possible to apply for Pension Credit and have the claim backdated by up to 3 months as long as there is entitlement during that time. This means that the latest date to apply and still qualify for a Winter Fuel Payment is 21 December 2024.

For more information visit - Pension Credit on www.gov.uk

Apply by phone

A friend or family member can call for you if you cannot use the phone.

Pension Credit claim line:

• Telephone: 0800 99 1234
• Textphone: 0800 169 0133
• Relay UK (if you cannot hear or speak on the phone): 18001 then 0800 99 1234
• British Sign Language (BSL) video relay service if you’re on a computer
• Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm

Other help with heating bills

You could also get:

• Cold Weather Payment - if you get certain benefits and the temperature drops to zero degrees Celsius or below for 7 days in a row
• the Warm Home Discount - this is a £150 discount on your bills if you get Pension Credit or live in a low-income household
• help from the Household Support Fund, if you’re eligible under your local council’s rules.

Charitable funds can include:

• Help to complete a benefit calculation
• Help to find grants
• Help to find an adviser to assist with benefits, debt, housing & legal issues
• Webchat for support with our tools

You can search for available funds by visiting www.turn2us.org.uk.

Crisis Support can help to prevent problems from escalating and help people on low incomes who are facing unexpected financial difficulties. This may be due to:

• a disaster, accident, health emergency or mental health crisis
• domestic violence
• replacement of an essential item, food and/or fuel
• a short gap in regular income

Please refer to Crisis Payments for more information.

Apply for Crisis Support

An advance of funds, designed to help people with short term need (for example, waiting for their first benefit payment or following a change of circumstances). The advance is then repaid over a short period of time. Please contact the Department for Work and Pensions:

• Employment Support Allowance/Job Seekers Allowance (ESA/JSA): 0800 169 0310
• Carers Allowance: 0800 731 0297
• State Retirement Pension/Pension Credit: 0800 731 0469
• Universal Credit: 0800 328 5644

Or go to www.gov.uk/short-term-benefit-advance.

The Big Difference Scheme can help customers who are in receipt of a low income and struggling to pay their water charges. If eligible for the scheme, you could receive up to 90% off the average Severn Trent water bill.

The scheme is open to all Severn Trent Water customers who are in receipt of a low income.

If you have a child who is eligible for income based free school meals, please apply to the scheme.

How to apply

You can apply with Severn Trent.

Apply for the Big Difference Fund

You may be entitled to a council tax reduction if you: 

• Are responsible for paying the council tax bill
• Are on a low income or claim benefits
• Own or rent your own home

Go to: council tax reduction. for more information including how to make a claim.

If you are experiencing severe financial hardship as a result of your council tax charge or have experienced a crisis or event through no fault of your own (such as a terminal illness diagnosis) you may be eligible for a reduction in your council tax. For more information please visit our council tax discretionary reductions in liability page or contact our Financial Inclusion team on 0121 704 6202  financialinclusion@solihull.gov.uk 

If you receive Housing benefit or Universal Credit Housing Costs and need help with your rent you may be eligible for a Housing Payment.

This could help if:

• your Housing Benefit or Universal Credit (Housing Costs element) does not cover all of your rent
• you have rent arrears 
• you need help with a one-off cost

You can apply for a Housing Payment if you rent from a private landlord, from Solihull Community Housing (SCH) or a Housing Association.

If you are having difficulties in paying your rent and you rent your home from SCH, you can speak to them about your rent account or about money advice.

If you are homeless or threatened with homelessness, please contact Solihull Community Housing as soon as possible. Depending on your individual circumstances, they have a range of ways of trying to prevent your homelessness and can provide you with advice and assistance. You can contact them through their online housing portal or by calling the Housing Options Team on 0121 717 1515.

If you have any concerns about paying your rent or you have rent arrears, you can also contact a number of independent and free debt organisations who will help you. For more information see the section ‘Help with Debt’.

If you are a landlord and are considering giving notice to your tenant, please contact Solihome Scheme. This is a completely free service that can assist with rent arrears, communication issues and mediation between you and your tenant. You can contact the team on 0121 717 1515 or landlords@solihullcommunityhousing.org.uk

Apply for a Housing Payment 

Although most NHS treatment is free, there is usually a charge for NHS prescriptions and other services and items such as:

• NHS dental check-ups and treatment
• sight tests
• new glasses or contact lenses
• repairing or replacing glasses or contact lenses
• NHS wigs
• NHS fabric supports - things like surgical bras, support tights and spinal supports
• travel for NHS treatment

You could be entitled to help with these costs depending on your circumstances.

Check what help you could get to pay for NHS costs

There are many sources of money advice and debt counselling.

Independent and free money and debt advice

National Debtline

Telephone 0808 808 4000 Monday to Friday from 9am to 8pm, Sat 9.30am to 1pm Visit the National Debtline website

StepChange Debt Charity

Call 0800 138 1111 (Freephone including all mobiles) or visit the StepChange website.

This national charity gives free advice on:

• managing debt
• individual voluntary arrangements (IVAs)
• applying for the Breathing Space scheme, a government scheme which could help relieve some of the pressure and stress caused by being in debt

It also runs a free online debt advice service that's available 24 hours a day and can help you to create a personal action plan. 

Money Helper

MoneyHelper is an easy way to get clear, free, impartial help for all your money and pension choices. Whatever your circumstances or plans, move forward with MoneyHelper.

• Call 0800 138 7777 (Calls are free)

Solihull Community Housing money advice team

Useful information and tools available on the Solihull Community Housing website.

Here2Help Advice Service

Our Here2Help Advice Service provides support with debt and applying for benefits to residents who are not a tenant of Solihull Community Housing.

To get in touch:

• call: 0121 788 6527
• visit: Citizens Advice Solihull Borough

Stop Loan Sharks investigates and prosecutes illegal money lenders and provides support for borrowers in the UK. 

If you have borrowed from a loan shark or are worried about someone else, their specially trained staff will provide you with emotional and practical support that is tailored to your needs.

Call 24/7 on 0300 555 2222 or start a Live Chat on the website at www.stoploansharks.co.uk

A financial not-for-profit co-operative, Advance Credit Union is ‘owned’ by the 5,000 members who save and borrow with the credit union. Unlike a conventional bank, a Credit Union is run by the people who use it. Anyone who lives or works within a ‘B’ postcode including Birmingham and Solihull Borough can join.

Offering a convenient and safe way to put some money away for the future and a cost-effective way to borrow ethically and responsibly.

Advance Credit Union

Our benefits calculator will help you find out what benefits you can claim as well as information about other help you might be entitled to.

The calculator is free to use, and the details you provide are anonymous. If you run out of time you can save the information and come back to it. You can also have the results emailed to you. To make a start please go to Benefit calculator

Use a budget planner to see where your money goes and to help you manage your personal finances

Check out these budget planners to help you take control of your finances.

MoneyHelper budget planner

Money Helper's budget planner puts you in control of your household spending and analyses your results to help you take control of your money. MoneyHelper also has a useful Beginner’s guide to managing your money

National Debtline budget tool

The National Debtline budget tool will help you work out a detailed personal budget. You can then see how much you have left over and this will help you work out the best way to deal with your debts.

MoneySavingExpert budget planner

The MoneySavingExpert budget planner focuses on the way people spend in the real-world to help you assess your finances.

Finding Your Way Forward - Four on-line tools to help people who:

• Are struggling to keep on top of their bills and payments
• Have experienced a reduction in income or squeezed budgets
• Are self-employed
• Have been or are worried about being made redundant or losing their job

Get help with savings if you’re on a low income, Help to Save is a type of savings account. It allows certain people entitled to Working Tax Credit or receiving Universal Credit to get a bonus of 50p for every £1 they save over 4 years.

The scheme is available to people who are:

• entitled to Working Tax Credit and receiving payments for Working Tax Credit or Child Tax Credit
• claiming Universal Credit and have a household income - in their last monthly assessment period - of £604.56 or more

Help to Save account holders can save up to £50 a month in their account. They will receive a 50% bonus on their highest balance after 2 years and a further bonus after 4 years if they continue to save.

People who want to take part should apply online via the how to apply page at GOV.UK.

For further information, see  Help to Save at GOV.UK.

• Money Manager for Universal Credit Claimants - an online tool claimants can use to help manage their finances.
• Money Adviser Network - This provision is for the claimant to to self-refer into regulated debt advice. Regulated debt advice is provided either by phone or digitally from Citizens Advice, Step Change or National Debt line. Work coaches must not complete the referral process on behalf of the claimant.
• Debt advice locator - This tool allows claimants to access sources of debt advice, and gives them options of telephone, face-to-face and online providers.
• Money navigator tool - For money worries due to coronavirus. The Money Navigator can gives guidance based on an individual’s particular situation.
• Budget planner - to get in control of household spending and see where money is going.