Application Guidance for
Applicant Officers
What is the purpose of the Marvellous Family Grants programme?
The aim of our Marvellous Family Grants programme is to support families who have a child or children with a serious long-term condition, and where the family is living in financial hardship.
Who is eligible for a grant?
The programme is open to any family residing in the UK who meet the following criteria:
- There is a child who has a serious illness that could be life-limiting, as described by the following:[1]
- Group 1 – Life threatening conditions for which curative treatment may be feasible but can fail. (e.g. epilepsy, irreversible organ failures of heart, liver, kidneys.)
- Group 2 – Conditions where premature death is inevitable. (e.g. cystic fibrosis)
- Group 3 – Progressive conditions without curative treatment options. (e.g. Batten disease, mucopolysaccaridoses, muscular dystrophy.)
- Group 4 – Irreversible but non-progressive conditions causing severe disability leading to susceptibility to health complications and likelihood of premature death. (e.g. sickle cell disease, cerebral palsy, multiple disabilities such as brain or spinal cord insult.)
- Group 5 – Syndromes without a name (SWAN) causing severe, chronic disability or illness.
The Charity’s remit excludes all forms of cancer owing to levels of support for children and young people with cancer being far higher than those for other conditions. We are also unable to support applications for children and young people who solely have learning or behavioural difficulties including autism and ADHD.
- The childis eligible to receive Medium or High Rate DLA (the Care component) or the Enhanced Rate for 6 of the 12 activities in the PIP or has an equivalent level of need
- The childhas yet to reach their 25thbirthday
- The family are living in financial hardship
- The family has not received a grant for this childfrom the Marvellous Family Grants in the last 12 months
- The grant is for the benefit of the child directly
Is there a maximum grant amount?
The maximum grant per child within a 12-month period is £1000.
If the item requested costs more than £1000 we will commit the funds until the remainder of the balance has been sourced by the Applicant Officer (See “Who can apply” section below) or the family. Grants can only be committed for a three-month period before funds will be re-allocated.
What can the grant be used for?
Marvellous Family Grants are aimed at supporting the wellbeing of the family. The most important thing is that members of the family are involved in deciding what support they need.
The support we can offer grants towards is as follows:
- Physiotherapy, speech and language therapy, hydrotherapy and counselling, where the provision on the NHS is not sufficient.
- Travel (including parking), accommodation and subsistence costs whilst a child is in hospital.
- Specialist equipment, for example specialist seats and walkers, epilepsy monitors etc.
- Art, music or play therapy.
- Everyday items that will improve the child’s quality of life and keep them out of hospital longer e.g. furniture, white goods, and clothing (where this is required because of the child’s condition).
- Ongoing social activities, lessons and membership.
- I-pads/laptops where there is evidence that it will be of educational benefit to the child.
- Attendance at medical/support group conference.
However, we are very open to creative or innovative approaches - if you would like to discuss an idea before applying please call the Programmes Officer on 01494 917689.
Please note that we no longer fund holidays, day trips, property adaptations, deposits for vehicles, garden works, sheds/storage, utility bills, respite care or driving lessons. We cannot fund retrospectively i.e. where the item or support has already been paid for.We are also unable to help with requests where a statutory agency (such as local authorities or health services) has a responsibility to provide the item required.
Who can apply?
Applications are only accepted when they have been completed and submitted by a health and social care professional from within a statutory organisation, who is working with and knows the family’s situation. Employees who are eligible to apply are referred to as Applicant Officers (AOs) and may be a social worker, doctor, nurse, health visitor, physiotherapist etc.
You will need to contact the Programmes Officer on 01494 917689 or at o get a validation code before you can begin applying.
When do you accept applications and how long does an application take?
Applications are accepted all year round. Applications are considered at a monthly grants allocations meeting. The application forms need to be submitted by a set date to be considered at each month’s meeting. These dates can be found on our website.
We will notify you with the outcome of your application by the notification date following the date by which you submitted the form. This is also listed on our website. Depending on when in the month your form is submitted, your application could take between 4 to 8 weeks.
How do I apply?
There are 2 parts to our application process:
- A quick, ten question online eligibility filter, which enables the AO to immediately check that an application will be eligible before completing the full form.
- The main application form, which can be competed online or can be downloaded and completed.
Please note that forms completed online will be e-mailed back to you within a few days. This is because we require a signature from the family before we can consider the grant.
Please ensure that you complete every section of the form including the bank account details section. Any forms that are incomplete will automatically be discarded.
What will I need to complete the application?
- Name for each family member and date of birth for all the children in the family
- Family’s contact details (address, phone number and e-mail address)
- The child’s medical condition
- Details of the support required by the family, how it will benefit the child with the serious illness, and the total cost of this support, including a financial breakdown of the costs.
- Evidence of the child’s disability benefits and the family’s financial situation (see below section)
- Whether any other charities have been approached for funding and the outcome of this.
- The bank account details for payment of the grant. Please note that we cannotpay into an individual’s bank account. This must be your organisation’s bank account or the bank account details of the supplier of the support requested. Ideally, we transfer the funds by BACs transfer, however we can provide a cheque if that is preferable. In exceptional circumstances, and where the items can be purchased from an online store, we may be able to order and pay for the items online.
- The child’s ethnic origin – this is purely for monitoring purposes and will not be used to determine whether a grant should be awarded. This is in an appendix, which will be removed before the application is considered.
Do you need to see evidence of the family’s benefits or finances?
We do not ask the AO to send us evidence in support of the application. We trust the AO to assess the family’s needs based on evidence. We recommend that the AOkeeps copies of key documents and notes of assessment visits to the family home or discussions with family members.
For auditing purposes, every year we undertake spot checks to see what evidence has been used and to ensure it has been securely retained.
Will you contact the family?
We only contact families who have received grants to ask about the impact of the support. This is usually three months after they have received the grant. If for any reason you think this is (or if it becomes) inappropriate for the family you are referring then please do let us know.
What commitment do you require from the Applicant Officer?
The AO must be willing to see the application through to completion which may occasionally involve supplying further information before the grant can be processed. The AO must be able to access the money on behalf of the family and must ensure that the grant is spent within three months of the receipt of the grant.
Full terms and conditions are at the bottom of the application form and should be read before submitting the form.
If you have any further questions, please contact the Programmes Officer on 01494 917689or by e-mail to
Registered Charity Number 1137409
Company Limited by Guarantee Registered in England and Wales Number 7340518
Registered Office: 1st Floor Montague House, 23 Woodside Road, Amersham, Bucks, HP6 6AA
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[1]Adapted from: ACT, ‘A Guide to the Development of Children’s Palliative Care Services,’ 2009.