Kinship Care Grants For Families in Need Updated 15 August 2025 Are you a kinship carer seeking help? Find out below if you’re eligible for an FTCT grant, and if not, what other support is available to you. Our Kinship Care grants help families who are raising children of relatives or friends. Grants can help to cover set-up costs for the children or support with ongoing health and wellbeing needs. To apply for an FTCT grant, one carer/parent must work OR have recently worked in the UK fashion and textile industry, for at least 6 months within the last nine years. Find out more about our trade criteria. Our Kinship Care grants grants help families who are raising children of relatives or friends. Grants can help to cover set-up costs for the children or support with ongoing health and wellbeing needs. Quick links: Am I Eligible? What support is available? Other sources of support Am I eligible for an FTCT Kinship care grant? You may be eligible for a grant if you work or have recently worked for a fashion or textile employer and are caring for a child under 18. We help carers in many situations, including: Financial hardship due to job loss, illness or bereavement Families who are rehoused after homelessness or unsafe living conditions Low-income households struggling with long-term financial hardship FTCT grants do not need to be repaid. They’re designed to lift a little weight off your family’s shoulders in challenging times. Next steps: What support is available for Kinship carers? Our grants fund items which are essential to a child's health and wellbeing. Families applying for a kinship carer grant are encouraged to apply for either essential household items to cover start-up costs or ongoing items the children may need to support their needs. What our grants cover Essential Appliances: Fridge/freezer, washing machine, cooker/oven. Kitchen Equipment: Pots, pans, cutlery, cooking utensils, and crockery. Electrical Items: Kettle, toaster, and iron. Baby Equipment: Highchairs, safety gates, cots. Children's Bedroom Furniture: Beds, bedding, and storage furniture. Soft Furnishings: Curtains/blinds and rugs. Clothing: Seasonal clothing and school uniforms. Specialist Items: If your child has additional needs, we can help with specialist items that support their health and wellbeing. Please note: We do have capped amounts for most items, and awards are at the discretion of our grants team. Specialist support If you are caring for children with additional health or psychological needs, we can provide funding for specialist items and therapy to meet their needs, these include: Speech and language therapy Physiotherapy Psychotherapy (e.g.talking therapies or counselling) Play therapy Art therapy Music therapy Mobility equipment Specialist items Sensory items Adapted seating How to apply Use our online enquiry form to check if you're eligible. If you meet our eligibility criteria, complete our full application form and return it with your supporting documents. We’ll review your application and get in touch if we need more info. If your application is successful, we’ll send the grant directly to you, so you can buy the essentials you need. Return the original purchase receipts to us within 4 weeks of the grant being issued. Don't work in fashion and textiles? If you're sure you have never worked in UK fashion or textiles, unfortunately we won't be the right charity for you. Here’s a list of other support resources for kinship carers: Government guidance (GOV.UK) on kinship support, private fostering, and benefits https://www.gov.uk/looking-after-someone-elses-child Adoption & Special Guardianship Support Fund provide up to £3,000/year for therapy and assessments https://frg.org.uk/get-help-and-advice/who/kinship-carers/ Charities such as Family Fund offer grants for disabled or seriously ill children https://www.familyfund.org.uk/ Turn2Us grant finder to explore other funding https://grants-search.turn2us.org.uk/ Gordon's Story "All our savings had gone, because Andrea had to give up work once we took over caring for the boys, so we have just been managing on my wage. With the drop in income and five extra mouths to feed, something had to give." Find out how a kinship grant helped Gordon and his family. Read Gordon's story here. Application Requirements Some of our application requirements include: Proof of Employment: You’ll need to provide documentation to show your fashion and textile employment, such as payslips or tax documents. If you don't have these, you can obtain them from HMRC. Learn how to request your documents from HMRC. Financial Information: Our grants are aimed at families facing financial difficulties. During the application process, you will be asked to provide a recent bank statement to detail your household income and expenditures, including child benefits and other support. Have any questions? Check out our FAQ page for more on: How do I provide supporting documents? Is my employer eligible? How long will the process take? My grant has been awarded, what do I need to do now? Can I apply for another grant? How can I show employment history? See a full list of What We Fund and What We Can't Fund Ready to apply? If you think you meet out criteria, you will need to complete our online enquiry form. This is the first step on our application process. Apply Here Manage Cookie Preferences