Discretionary Housing Payments (DHPs) provide financial support to help with rent or housing costs.
You can apply for a DHP if you currently get either:
- Housing Benefit
- The housing element of Universal Credit and need more financial support with housing costs
DHP funding can help people with housing costs, including those affected by:
- The benefit cap
- Removal of the spare room subsidy in the social rented sector
- Local Housing Allowance (LHA) rates
You may get a DHP to cover housing costs for:
- A rent shortfall
- Rent deposits
- Rent in advance if you need to move home
DHPs cannot cover council tax, even if you get Local Council Tax Support.
You can apply for DHPs through your local council, which you can do here.