Weather disruption
Winter weather is causing disruption to services in some parts of the county. Find out what services may be affected in your area.
Volunteer Centre Dorset provides the emergency local assistance fund. The fund is for situations where individuals or families face an immediate risk to their health and safety and have tried all other types of support.
To be eligible, one of these circumstances must apply. You must:
You must also be:
You must not be:
We distribute funding through vouchers.
Your voucher can be used to buy:
You can apply for funding towards emergency utilities yourself. For essential white goods or furniture, you will need to get support from a professional or organisation. They will apply on your behalf.
Professionals and organisations include:
Because there is limited funding available, you must have tried all other support before you apply. Volunteer Centre Dorset or any professional supporting your application can help you with this.
We only accept applications over the phone.
To apply, call us on: 0330 1234 225
Opening hours: 9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday
If you are eligible, we will advise you of what funding you are eligible for and how the grant process works.
We will email or text you with your voucher details. For white goods or furniture, we will specify which retailer you can spend your voucher with.
You cannot exchange vouchers for cash. You must send us a proof of purchase for items you buy using your voucher.