Crisis & Resilience Fund (CRF)

The new Crisis & Resilience Fund

From April 2026, Derby City Council will deliver the Crisis & Resilience Fund (CRF). This is a new Government-funded programme that replaces the Household Support Fund (HSF) and Discretionary Housing Payments (DHP).

The CRF is designed to help residents who are on a low income and experience a ‘financial shock’, and to strengthen support that helps people avoid repeat crisis in the future.

The CRF provides:

• fast, flexible help when a low-income household is facing immediate financial hardship
• support to help prevent future crises by improving financial resilience
• connections to services that can help with income, debt, housing and wellbeing
• a more joined-up approach with partners across Derby so you can get the right help through a ‘no wrong door’ approach.

The CRF isn’t:

• a guaranteed payment for everyone
• a replacement for benefits, such as Universal Credit
• a long-term income support scheme
• a scheme that can clear all debts
• an emergency service for life-threatening situations (call 999 in an emergency).

Support is targeted at people who need it most, based on circumstances at the time.

What do we mean by ‘financial shock’?

A financial shock is when something happens that suddenly makes it hard to afford essential living costs, for example:

• a sudden loss of income or reduced hours
• an unexpected essential bill or cost
• a delay or change in benefits
• illness, caring responsibilities or a family emergency
• urgent housing issues that increase financial pressure.

The four parts of the CRF

The CRF is made up of four connected types of support (‘the strands’):

Crisis payments

Short-term help for people in immediate financial difficulty. This support is designed to stabilise your situation quickly.

Housing payments

Support to help people stay in their home or move safely if needed, for example help with a rent shortfall or moving costs, to reduce the risk of homelessness.

Resilience services

Support to help prevent repeat crisis. This may include help with:

• checking you’re getting the right income and benefits
• budgeting support and financial skills
• debt advice and support to reduce money worries
• help to access employment, training or wider wellbeing support.

Community coordination

This helps make local support easier to find and access by improving referral routes between the Council, community groups and local services. This supports the ‘no wrong door’ approach.

Our focus

The CRF is about more than short-term help. It also aims to support people to:

• build financial stability
• develop budgeting and money management skills
• increase household income where possible
• reduce repeat crisis situations
• strengthen confidence and independence.

This means that when you apply for crisis support, we may also help connect you to services that can provide longer-term support.

How to get help

We will publish full information on:

• how to apply
• what you may need to provide
• the types of support available
• how decisions are made
• how quickly support can be provided.

As soon as the scheme is fully approved, this page will be updated.

Help if you need support to apply

We will provide accessible ways to apply and get support, including:

• support for people who are not confident online
• help for people with disabilities or language needs
• options to apply with support from a professional or organisation.

Updates for partners

We will share updates through partner briefings and local networks as the scheme develops.