Get help through Hackney Money Hub

Hackney Money Hub is a new team within Hackney Council. Our friendly and non judgemental team has decades of experience supporting people who are struggling with finances, looking for extra help or advice with the benefits system.

How we can help

We’re here to help you claim what you’re owed by the benefits system.

We know our communities are missing out on £28 million a year of unclaimed benefits and we have helped many households to increase their incomes.

Find out what you’re owed using the Turn2Us calculator then fill out our short form and an advisor will contact you.

We can also work with you to make a longer term plan to manage rising costs, particularly around housing costs. Other help may be available too.

Our team is also able to help a very small number of people with one-off grants to help those in crisis situations, for example if you are unable to pay for food or fuel or where a lack of household items is causing severe hardship. We cannot guarantee support because demand is very high.

If you’re homeless and need support to find somewhere to live or are currently threatened with homelessness visit Homelessness and temporary accommodation. It’s the quickest way to access support.

Apply to Money Hub

Find out how to apply with our step-by-step guide:

Support with completing the application

Hackney Money Hub one-off grants

For some people, we can add to our benefits support with one-off grants. To provide this help we use Discretionary Housing Payments, our Council Tax Reduction Discretionary fund, Household Support Fund (funded by the Department for Work and Pensions), and Discretionary Crisis Support scheme.

Each of these schemes is discretionary so an award from any of the funds is never guaranteed. We have a limited budget which is prioritised for those who need it most. Unfortunately most people accessing our service will not receive this kind of support.

The links below provide more detail about who is eligible for each scheme and how we decide who we can pay. When you apply we will decide how best we can help you and which funds we can use to do so.

Council Tax Reduction Discretionary Fund policy (google document)

Hackney Council’s Discretionary Housing Payments policy (PDF 2mb)

The Hackney Discretionary Crisis Support scheme public policy document (PDF 224kb)

Request a review of a decision

If you do not agree with a decision made by the Money Hub, you can either ask us:

• for a more detailed explanation of our decision – called a statement of reasons
• to change the decision – called a review

If you ask us to review your decision a new officer and a manager reviews your case and the evidence. They may decide that the original decision is correct, or they may overturn it. We will notify you in writing of the outcome of your review with detailed reasons.

Request a review of a decision

If you are unable to complete the online form, call 0208 356 3111 – we will help you complete the review request over the phone.

The review decision is final – Money Hub help is discretionary, so there is no statutory right to appeal.

If, after a review, you think that we have not followed our policies correctly, or acted illegally, you can:

• submit a complaint via the council’s complaints procedure
• take the council to Judicial Review
• ask the Valuation Tribunal to decide if we have applied our Council Tax Reduction scheme correctly