1. Who the request is for (not necessarily the name but a unique identifier for use in correspondence about the request) and their age and gender
2. Where they live - this does not need to be their full address but should give the area so we know whether they live in Staffordshire or Sandwell. If they don’t live in Staffordshire or Sandwell then some other substantial connexion with the area will be needed (e.g. that they grew up in Sandwell or work in Sandwell). Useful additional information would be how long they had lived in Sandwell and the type of accommodation they were in.
3. Their family circumstances: who else lives with them and, in particular, if there are any children (with ages) or elderly persons.
4. If the applicant or any dependants have any disabilities or health issues.
5. Their financial circumstances. This information must be sufficient to establish that they do not have the financial resources to meet the expenditure they are requesting help with and must include:
   • what their income consists of, whether or not they are on, or have applied for state benefits, and/or local council help including Budgeting Loans/Advances or Local Welfare Provision. We would expect them to have tried these routes first.
   • If the request relates to help with debt we need to know about any debt repayment arrangements and we may need to have a financial statement.
6. What they will use the money for: we need to know what they would spend a grant of £100 to £1000 on; if they want significantly more than this, then we would need to know what they, or you on their behalf, were doing about raising the balance required.
7. Any other relevant circumstances. For example, if the request is for specific items of furniture we need to know why i.e. what happened to any previous items they had, if they have moved home what were the circumstances of the move.
8. Your role: if you, and your organisation, will be giving help to them in any relevant way e.g. helping them spend the money in the most effective way or other support to help them improve their circumstances.

We are conscious that the grants we are giving are fairly small and we do not wish to be too intrusive into the potential recipients’ lives, nor to make applying too burdensome for you. However, we are anxious to make the best possible use of limited resources, to give each request appropriate priority and to direct grants where they can be most effective.

See the Foundation’s Privacy Statement for how we use personal data from grant requests.