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Checking what financial support is available
in difficult times PHA UK has set up a new partnership with Turn2us, a national charity that helps people in financial hardship in the UK.
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urn2us provides a number of free services which help people to gain access to welfare benefits, charitable grants and other financial help, and these will soon be available via PHA UK’s website. Here Turn2us tells us more about how these services can help anyone with pulmonary hypertension (PH) and those who care for them, who may be struggling financially or are unsure of what support could be available. Check your welfare entitlements People can experience financial hardship at any time for many different reasons, and it is often an unexpected event that can have the greatest impact. We know that having a serious illness like PH, or caring for someone with PH, can cause financial difficulties and place a huge strain on household income. Welfare support exists to help those affected by these issues, but awareness tends to be low and the perceived complexities of the system often deter people from accessing this vital help.
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Turn2us has a free and easy-to-use online Benefits Calculator to check what welfare benefits, tax credits and other support you could be entitled to. It also tells you the amounts you should receive and how to make a claim. The benefits you may be eligible for depend on your household income and situation. Even if you have checked your entitlements to benefits before, it is worth checking again, especially if you have recently experienced a change in your circumstances. Penny is just one of many people that we have helped to access welfare support. When Penny’s husband started experiencing mental health problems, he had to take leave from work. Then making things even harder, Penny’s own long term health condition became worse and she too was forced to stop work. Initially the couple’s situation was manageable as Penny was receiving full sick pay in the first instance. However, over time this amount was reduced by half. With this being the only income coming into the household, the family started to
struggle. Barely able to cover their absolute essentials including food, Penny didn’t know what to do, and the stress started to mount. After finding out about Turn2us from a friend, Penny used the Benefits Calculator and was pleasantly surprised to find out she was eligible for Working Tax Credit and Employment and Support Allowance. In total Penny receives £600 per month through these benefits – income she says took a lot of stress off the family at a very difficult time. See if you’re eligible for a charitable grant There is generally low awareness of charitable grants, and research by Turn2us found that nine out of ten people on low incomes had no idea that this help exists. Turn2us has a free Grants Search featuring over 3,000 charitable funds that give grants to individuals with a number of different needs and circumstances. The Grants Search also includes details of each fund’s eligibility criteria and how to apply.
