Purpose

From 1 April 2026, the Council will receive Government funding
to deliver Crisis and Resilience Fund (CRF) in Lincolnshire. Top
up funding of £1,825,511 for Lincolnshire was announced on 17
March 2026. This is to be targeted to households reliant on
heating oil who are facing financial hardship because of the
increase in heating oil prices and as a result are at risk of losing
immediate access to heating or hot water. This is not a universal
offer for households that use oil.??
The government expects local authorities to provide immediate
support.
The Lincolnshire Community Foundation (LCF) is experienced in
distributing grant funding, with a focus on tackling issues which
also align with the purpose of the CRF. LCF has been utilised by
Lincolnshire district councils to distribute funding under the
Household Support Fund, this includes a heating oil support
scheme in one area.
Given the need to commence delivery urgently and the
experience of LCF if delivering an existing scheme, it is
considered that this can be mobilised at pace. The
administration of the grant includes, establishing eligibility,
assessing evidence and award of a prepaid off grid energy
voucher alongside working with individuals to establish wider
needs and supporting them to access resilience services where
appropriate. The grant amount includes the pre-paid voucher
provider fee.
Awarding a grant agreement to LCF will provide a single
countywide mechanism to deliver the Crisis Payments for oil
heating, meeting the requirements of the CRF guidance and
intent of the additional funding.

Decision

The Director of Adult Care and Community Wellbeing
approves the award of a grant agreement with a value of
£238,110 to Lincolnshire Community Foundation for the
period from 1st April 2026 to 31st March 2027.

Alternative options considered

Consideration has been given to undertaking a competitive
procurement process to identify a suitable provider to deliver
the requirements under a contract for services, however, the
conditions and proposed use of the funding are such that a
Grant Funding Agreement is an appropriate and suitable
mechanism through which to achieve the required funding
outcomes. In addition, recognising to the requirement to
commence immediate delivery, the undertaking of a
competitive procurement process would result in delays to
commencement that could negatively impact the achievement
of planned outcomes