London, England

“I found it really straightforward to fill out the form. My situation was difficult and this made it easy."

At the start of 2022, single mum of three Millicent found herself struggling under the burden of high rent prices, rising energy bills and the soaring cost of everyday essentials. Working part-time and studying to gain further qualifications meant that Millicent’s income simply couldn’t cover her expenses.

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Millicent had been looking for support, but thought there was not anything out there available to her so had never applied for a grant before.

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“My part time earnings aren’t enough for my 3 children. If I have to  buy them something like clothes or food, sometimes I can’t pay rent or council tax. But I feel so bad when they take me to the bailiffs and send eviction letters. I don't think they appreciate the effort I'm making.

It's been really hard for me recently... I didn't think there would be anyone who can help me."

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Thankfully, Millicent’s luck changed when she received an email from Lambeth Council. She was initially sceptical having not applied for support before, as many grant applications require a lot of paperwork and long phone calls – something that a mum with three kids, college and work simply doesn’t have time to do.

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But once Millicent created a profile on the Lightning Reach Portal, she quickly found that was very straightforward. Using just her iPhone she supplied all the required documents to prove her financial situation.
 

“The [Lightning Reach] portal made the whole process very straightforward. Filling out the forms was really easy and sending documents was simple, even on my iPhone. My situation was difficult and this made it easy."

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To her delight Millicent received a £500 grant within a few days, which has created some valuable breathing room, relieving a lot of the pressure that she was under.
 

“I was really, really happy to receive the grant from Smallwood Trust. After I submitted everything, they called me within 3-4 days to let me know they were giving me £500.”

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