Hey,

My experience of receiving help from my local council might be slightly out of date now, but for what it's worth........

In August/September 2023 my teenage daughter and I were moving from a women's refuge into our new council flat. We had been collecting secondhand furniture etc during the previous six months, and storing it in a lock up belonging to a relative, so we weren't starting with absolutely nothing.

My support worker from Leeway applied on my behalf to the local Assistance Scheme. It was quite a hefty form, and I needed to submit bank and UC statements as proof of what I was saying. As I recall it took about 3 weeks to come through. We received a secondhand washer, new freezer, and new cooker. Also a wardrobe. We also got £150 in grocery vouchers. This is because I don't have a prepayment meter for my electric, otherwise I'd have got it for that (no gas in the flat). It was very helpful indeed, but long winded. You needed to be quite computer literate to complete the form, so this could be difficult for someone without those skills. In fact I have helped others with the form since.

Let’s drop the pretence: Kemi Badenoch and her Tory allies aren’t safeguarding anything — they’re laying the groundwork for dismantling equality protections altogether, egged on by the reactionary grifters in Reform and the billionaire-funded media class that thrives on division.

This was never about “women’s spaces.” It’s a deliberate, strategic rollback of hard-won rights, using trans lives as a wedge to undermine the entire framework of equality legislation. And the current government, spineless and flailing, folds to it — not out of principle, but because they’re desperate to keep the right-wing press off their backs.

We’re watching the steady erosion of social progress, enabled by cowards, orchestrated by bigots, and cheered on by oligarchs who would rather we fight each other than notice their grotesque hoarding of wealth and power. There is no compromise to be made here — only resistance.

My local council is Glasgow.

My cooker oven broke the week before Xmas and was taken away by the SGN team cos it was unsafe, even though I wanted to keep it to cook on the hob. I applied for a crisis loan for a cooker. The application form was online, took a while to find it, and lots of detail was asked for on the application form, it took approx 3 weeks for them to reply. They said no, because they didn't consider it an exceptional circumstance and had to prioritise those with more difficult circumstances, I have no access to credit, no savings, so brought it on klarna, paying installments, had a look at 2nd hand ones but they had a limited warranty and only available with cash in full, i eventually got the cheapest one on curry's website, delivery wasn't until the 2nd week of Jan, it cost me more to buy fresh food and not be able to batch cook. The process of applying was fine but I know now they wouldn't give me any support if I asked in the future, so would not seek council help again. I'm still paying it off, it has put a dent in my weekly cash and will do so for months.

Trying to access support from my local authority has often felt like shouting into the wind—filling out endless forms, repeating my story over and over, and still getting no real help. It’s frustrating and disheartening when you’re made to feel like a burden just for asking. The system feels cold and distant, like it wasn’t designed for real people with real needs. What I needed was empathy, clear information, and timely support—but too often, I was left feeling small, judged, and alone. It shouldn't be that hard to get help when you're already struggling."

Trying to access support from my local authority has often felt like shouting into the wind—filling out endless forms, repeating my story over and over, and still getting no real help. It’s frustrating and disheartening when you’re made to feel like a burden just for asking. The system feels cold and distant, like it wasn’t designed for real people with real needs. What I needed was empathy, clear information, and timely support—but too often, I was left feeling small, judged, and alone. It shouldn't be that hard to get help when you're already struggling."

Accessing support from local authority or council can really be depending on where you are and what kind of help you're looking for.

For example a positive experience

* community services: councils sometimes run or fund helpful local services like food banks, mental health support, or advice centres.

Negative experience

*Long waiting times: whether it's on phone lines , housing application or any appointments the waiting can be frustrating .

My last time I asked for financial support from Aberdeenshire Council I was finally offered a council flat which was £350 a month cheaper than the private let I rented. It made sense as affordable, near by and the private let was expensive to heat and there was damp.

Aberdeenshire council again refused support for removal costs with the reasons being my income was more than enough to pay myself and it was my personal choice to move home.

This time I received advice from Advice. Scot and Citizens Advice who both told me Aberdeenshire Council were not adhering to rules of excluding disability benefits as income when assessing the application for support. Disability benefits are for paying a carer and or taxis ( mobility)

I took this advice and justified it to the council. This time I was told there were no funds left in the council budget.

I made an application to the Welfare Fund via Aberdeenshire Council for a fridge and washing machine after being refused financial support for rent deposit +1 month rent + removal costs.

The new private let had no white goods included.

I was refused as told I made the choice to move to a different home ( as if I just wanted a new home out of boredom) and was not actually physically homeless.

Aberdeenshire Council is Conservative led.

All councils in Scotland have a Scottish Welfare Fund. Funded by the Scottish Government for financial support in emergencies including homelessness.

I applied for financial support from Aberdeenshire Council when an intimidating private landlord (who wore a ring with a freemason symbol) wanted to sell up the flat I rented from him in 2nd lockdown. I had to find another home by myself as a single parent with a disabled child. There was lack of choice. I found another private rental which needed a month rent up front + another month rent, which mounted to £1400. I also needed to pay removal costs at £400.

I made the application online via Aberdeenshire Council website.

I had 4 weeks to vacate the private flat with an increasingly irate landlord who broke laws by turning up to the flat unannounced shouting abuse through the letter box and to move into the new private let.

In a panic I took out a high interest loan to cover, deposit new rent and removals.

Aberdeenshire council failed to keep to their policy of processing my application for financial support.

I contacted all local Councillors and local Conservative MP.

After 3 months I received a call from the council who refused any support as I already made the decision to move and they did not reimburse.

Wow... What a few months of turmoil there have been since Labour became the incumbent government. It is a rollercoaster I believe many of us did not want to be on at all. But here we are.

We've had a decent easter break in many ways, thanks to voucher hoarding!! I feel tremendously lucky to be able to support my son to go to things and do things that are mostly off limits because of our tiny budget for anything other than the essentials. It has made me so sad that the experience of eating out is largely closed to my son and his girlfriend. That trying new things is just not an option. It is dreadfully reductive at this stage in their development, and I just feel that we need to do better as a country, for our young people. The gap of privilege is 'gapping' at an extreme rate, feels deeply unbalanced and getting worse. I have nothing to compare this time with that isn't the 70's, how bad that is.

I think that our kids are so used to being refused anything that is above a certain cost, it is in their DNA that they 'can't' have a better life, that is awful to me. My son's girlfriend recently spoke about a gift for her mother which cost £22 and she was saying the amount as if it was a £1000, it really does impact you when you hear kids speak about tiny amounts of money as if they are huge.

What future can they expect after the recent announcement of cuts in support? Do they even dream of being more? Is anything above their experiences of poverty growing up even possible? I don't know, but I won't give up pushing them and reassuring them that they can change their lives. Self sovereignty should be taught in school, should be enforced as a concept at every level, because no one else will do it for us.

Despite the knowledge that this is dire, I am trying to ensure that my son's last year at school is positively memorable. The hardship he has experienced is appalling, but you know what, it feels in my power to make things better for him, whatever the cost... I have been looking at cleaning jobs again... I never want my son to reach 53 years old as I am, and believe the only job he can do is cleaning someone else's toilet...

I've never applied for help with any help from my local council because I didn't know that they could help with stuff like that, and if they did they've never let it be widely known.

Whenever I have needed help to purchase a large item like a fridge freezer for example, I've either turned to Citizens Advice or a local charity for help and advice on how to buy one if I haven't had enough money to do so.

I have had 3 carers needs assessments where I have asked for help in supporting my disabled children. I have never received help. The process of direct payments is too complicated for me as I’m multiply neurodivergent. The legislation around carers needs assessment is designed to be flexible as the needs of carers is so varied. However in reality, LAs use this to be flexible around their budgets. Not the needs of families. There is no accountability.