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Important change to grant reapplication timescales in Scotland

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To support the high numbers of people applying to us for grants, we have had to make the difficult decision to change how often people can reapply to our Scotland grant programme, as we did for our national grant programmes in England, Wales and Northern Ireland in 2023.

What is changing?

From Tuesday 17 September 2024, families in Scotland will be able to reapply for a Family Fund grant every 24 months instead of every 18 months.

This means that any families in Scotland who have applied for a grant from us before will need to wait 24 months from the date they last applied before being able to apply for another grant. This is already the case for families living in England, Northern Ireland, and Wales.

Why this change?

Family Fund is a charity. Our Scotland national grants programme, funded by the Scottish Government, has limited funding to cover a certain number of grants.

As we are now receiving more grant applications from families living in Scotland, with a high number applying to us for the first time, we are making this change so we can award grants to help as many families as possible.

Thank you to all the families we support, for their understanding.

Information:

Please read the FAQs below. And if you still have any questions, you can reach out to us. 

Questions and answers

If you are unsure when you can reapply, please use our application date checker.

No, although most of our grant programmes now have a similar timeline for how often families can reapply. You can see all our grant programmes, and check the ones that are currently open for applications, on our website.

No. You can make your first application at any time.

Alongside our grants, we help families find other available support across Scotland. This includes information and resources on where to go for help with money and benefits, budget planning, your children’s education, mental health and wellbeing, digital training and creative workshops. Have a look at our Wider support webpage here.

Our Your Opportunity programme supports young people aged 18 to 24 years old, and is separate from the Scotland national programme. Although the Your Opportunity grant programme is currently closed, it will re-open for applications when more funding becomes available. Please keep checking our website for the latest information.

Yes. If we received your application before we made the change to the new reapplication date, it will be considered as normal.

You can change your grant request if you have applied for a grant but have not yet been awarded one, or if you have had a grant awarded in the last 30 days but have not yet bought any items with your grant. Check the change my grant request page for information on what to do.

We expect this application timescale to stay the same, unless we are able to secure substantial new funding. We will always keep our website updated with the latest information.

We continue to work hard to secure  additional funding so we can support as many families as possible who need us. As a charity, all donations from individuals, corporate partners, trusts and foundations are welcomed at this challenging time. You can find out about this in the Get involved section of our website.

Please email our team at [email protected].

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Alongside giving grants, we offer families raising a disabled or seriously ill child, on a low income, wider support, including information and resources on where to go for help with money and benefits, budget planning, their children's education, mental health and wellbeing, digital training and creative workshops.
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