FINANCIAL HEALTH

Financial health and wellbeing is just as important as our mental and physical health.

You may be finding juggling finances a challenge at the moment or might benefit from some financial professional advice.

Here you will find information about both internal and external ways that you can be supported with your financial health needs.

Understanding your Payslip

We appreciate that there can be a lot of different pieces of information on your payslip.

We have therefore put together the attached guide to understanding the different elements to your pay and payslip to aid your financial understanding.

Click here to download.

Early Intervention Requests

There may be the possibility that should staff wish to fund an appointment themselves to take proactive action regarding a condition that would either enable them to remain at work or to support a return to work at the earliest opportunity, the Trust would consider refunding staff these monies via an Early Intervention Request.

If you feel that this may be of benefit to you, please liaise with either your Manager or a member of the Human Resources Team.

Please note that any requests submitted are subject to approval.

Pension Information

For any pension queries please contact Susan Howard, Pensions Officer, on Susan.Howard@wmas.nhs.uk

Alternatively, staff can get much more information on the scheme by visiting the NHSBA website: https://www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/nhs-pensions

Pre-Retirement Planning

Keeping your retirement plans on track can be a challenging task.

The Pre-retirement online course, provided by Affinity Connect encourages a positive and realistic approach to help you make informed choices about your retirement. You can access the course dates and how to book here.

Financial Support

Barclays Bank

Explore what Barclays can offer to support you with your financial health and wellbeing, including a broad range of products and services available to all UK-based employees by clicking here.

Barclays are delighted to continue serving you through our close relationship with West Midlands Ambulance service, allowing us to provide you with a wide-ranging set of resources to support your financial life.

To make our offering even easier to understand we’ve created a short video summarising everything available through your organisation’s Barclays support and services website.

You do not need to be a Barclays customer to engage with this service.

Help for Households: find out what offers are available from businesses to help with the cost of living.

Cost of Living Support: find out what support is available to help with the cost of living.

Help for Households: find out what help is available for your energy bills.

Find Ways to Save Energy in Your Home: recommendations for home improvements that could make your property cheaper to heat and keep warm.

Help for Households: find out what family support you may be able to get.

Claim Government tax relief for your job expenses: additional tax relief for WFH- gas and electric bills

Government Supported Childcare: check if you’re able to get 30 hours free childcare.

Childcare Choices: Government help with childcare costs for parents.

Marriage Allowance: check if you are eligible.

Claim employment expenses: check if you can claim tax relief for your job expenses.

Employment Support Allowance: apply if you have a disability or health condition that affects how much you can work

Universal Credit: payment to help with your living costs, if you’re out of work or on low income, which is paid monthly

Benefits calculator: use an independent, free and anonymous benefits calculator to check what you could be entitled to.

Advice and guidance

Tax code: understand your tax code and watch the YouTube tax code guide.

P45 / P60 / P11D: read the workers guide to better understand your P45, P60, P11D.

Free HMRC App: get organised with the free HMRC app.

Personal Tax: manage your personal tax account and watch the personal tax account YouTube guide

Advice and guidance

Citizens Advice: their website has a page dedicated to getting help with bills, with specific pages for energy bills and water bills.

Money Saving Expert: the website has a guide on what to do if you’re struggling to pay your energy bills.

Energy Saving Trust: provides energy advice for your home which could help you lower your bills.

Ask Bill: the website has pages dedicated to support with water and energy.

Utility Warehouse: bundle together your energy, broadband, mobile and insurance into one bill, saving you time and money to spend on the things that really matter.

Money Saving Expert: the website provides a range of financial advice, with a dedicated cost of living help section. Their Cost of living help guide provides over 90 ways you can save money.

Cost of living support hubs in Dudley

Four cost of living support hubs in Dudley are supporting local people with poverty relieving information and guidance on how to maximise income and save money.
The hubs were set up in January by Citizens Advice Dudley and Wolverhampton in conjunction with Dudley Empowerment Partnership and funded by Dudley Council and the NHS Black Country Integrated Care Board (ICB) through its Health Inequalities fund.

They offer people practical help relating to access to food, fuel and available grants and funds. By connecting people with these vital resources, the hubs have become a lifeline for those experiencing financial hardship.

The hubs are available by appointment only at the following locations in Dudley, open on certain days across the week, from 9.30am-3.30pm:

• Halesowen Library, Hagley Mall Cornbow Centre, Halesowen B63 4AJ

• Brierley Hill Methodist Church, 24 Bank Street, Brierley Hill DY5 3DA

• Provision House, 80-81 High Street, Dudley DY1 1PY

• Christ Church, 45, High Street, Lye, Stourbridge, DY9 8LQ

A fifth hub will be opening in October in Brockmoor and Pensnett. For more information on opening times at each location and how to book an appointment, visit Eventbrite here.
For more information on the hubs, visit the Dudley Council website here.
As well as running cost of living support hubs, Citizens Advice Dudley & Wolverhampton also have a collection of leaflets available. These are full of useful information and can help those who are struggling with the cost of living, which can be viewed on the Citizens Advice website here.

Financial Support from Trade Unions

There for You (UNISON Welfare)

Unison Members experiencing financial and emotional difficulties can contact our welfare charity, There for You, which provides a confidential advice and support service for members and their dependants if you are experiencing personal difficulties such as:

being off work with a long-term illness;
domestic violence or abuse;
living on the breadline and needing to pay for a major bill or vital item;
recovering from surgery;
looking for advice in dealing with your debts.

For more information contact us on 020 7121 5620 or email thereforyou@unison.co.uk or contact your branch welfare officer.

There for you also provides a free, impartial and confidential debt advice service over the phone in partnership with Payplan, experts in helping people in financial difficulty.

Debtline (Call UNISON Debtline now on freephone 0800 389 3302) will help you find the best solution to suit your circumstances. The service is completely free to UNISON members.

We also have an online version of our debt advice service called Debt Clinic which provides advice and debt information and outlines key problems. The site also provides tools to help you set up a recovery plan.

UNISON There for You has produced a range of information guides that members may find useful including:

Arranging and paying for a meaningful funeral
Help with fuel costs
Food banks and fuel banks
Flooding

For more information on the service that Unison offers to it’s members, please visit the following link, where the above information has been obtained: There for You (Unison Welfare) or click here to access the There for You Booklet.

UNISON provides a one-off grant of £250 to help with essential expenses such as food and bills, general living costs, household appliances, urgent repairs, disability equipment and adaptations, utility bills and funeral costs. To be eligible to apply for financial assistance, you must have been a member of UNISON for at least four weeks and up to date with your subscriptions. For more details:

https://www.unison.org.uk/get-help/services-support/there-for-you/financial-assistance/

GMB Financial Support How Financial Problems Affect Your Mental Health | GMB CreditUnion

Unite Financial Support – Unite Financial Advice | Gain Financial Peace of Mind (unitetheunion.org)

Financial Support from Charities

The Ambulance Staff Charity

TASC provide a range of services to support the mental health, physical rehabilitation and financial wellbeing of the UK’s ambulance staff, their family members, students and ambulance service volunteers.

Charities and Grants

Cavell Nurses Trust

Cavell Nurses Trust is charity that supports UK nurses, midwives and healthcare assistants, both working and retired, when they’re suffering personal or financial hardship often due to illness, disability, older age and domestic abuse. One way Cavell Nurses trust provides this support through one-off grants to relieve financial hardship and rapid emergency funding for those at great risk.

The Care Workers’ Charity

This charity has two grants; Crisis grants – live and in use throughout the year exclusive to health care workers.

COVID-19 Emergency Fund grant which covers the following grants related to self-isolation, funeral costs or other unexpected costs. This extends to additional roles such as Cooks/Kitchen Assistants, Housekeepers or Domestic Workers, Maintenance staff, Drivers and Admin staff (Team Leaders/Supervisors and Personal Assistants)

For more details:

Carers UK – Carers UK Grants and Schemes https://www.carersuk.org/search/grants-and-schemes

Imperial Charity

Imperial charity holds a Dresden Hardship Grant – A year-round grant for many people, being admitted to hospital or receiving hospital treatment can trigger sudden and serious financial pressures. In light of the fast-changing COVID-19 situation, we have also decided to temporarily expand the criteria of the Dresden Hardship grants and simplify some related processes.

CSIS Charity Fund is a small, highly focused organisation with the welfare ofserving, retired and former civil and public servants. Individuals can apply for assistance/ funding when they are struggling with problems arising from job loss, disabilities, low incomes, caring responsibilities and other factors including stress at work, marital breakup and debt.

Turn2us

Turn2us helps people in financial need gain access to welfare benefits, charitable grants and other financial help – online, by phone and face to face through partner organisations. Their web site includes a benefits calculator, a grants search database, information and interactive tools providing a wide range of subjects on welfare benefits, charitable grants and managing money.

The Trussell Trust

The Trussell Trust supports a nationwide network of food banks and together we provide emergency food and support to people locked in poverty, and campaign for change to end the need for food banks in the UK. Click here to get help and to find your local food bank.

WMAS Partners With Trussell Trust

The Trust recognises that some colleagues may need additional financial support from time to time. Having the strength to ask for help can be difficult, which is why the Trust has partnered with The Trussell Trust, a national charity who support a network of foodbanks, to make it easier for staff to access the support they need. They provide a minimum of three days of nutritionally balanced emergency food to people who have been referred to them in a crisis by organisations such as advice agencies, GPs, social services and schools. They also support the people they help resolve the crisis they are facing. As a partner organisation, the Trust can refer staff to their nearest food bank and issue them with an e-vouchers for a three day food parcel on behalf of the Trussell Network. These vouchers are issued by the Trust’s Wellbeing Team and are registered on the food bank system on the staff members’ behalf. Head of HR, Lucy Mackcracken, said, “We want to do all we can to support staff at this difficult time and hope this new partnership will provide an easy and discreet way of accessing vital support. Only the minimum information required by the Trussell Trust is gathered and all requests will be handled with sensitivity and care. Your information will not be shared outside of the Trussell Trust and the food bank you are referred to, where required.” If you need to access this support, or have any queries please don’t hesitate to get in touch with the Wellbeing Team by emailing Manjeet Malhi or Stuart Hossack.

NHS staff support line telephone support line

NHS colleagues can call this support line, provided by the Money Helper service, for free and impartial money guidance from Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm. Call: 0800 448 0826

Add+44 7701 342 744 to your WhatsApp and send the Money Helper service’s national support team a message for help with sorting out your debts, credit questions and pensions guidance.

NHS England: Supporting our staff to help money go further

Supporting our staff to help money go further

The link below provides a range of widely available financial wellbeing support and ideas to help any member of health and care staff make their money go further. It is designed to highlight a range of support available such as national discounts, help for households, travel / fuel cost, grocery savings, childcare help, financial advice / support and mental health support.

Please note, the information is up to date as of August 2022. NHS England does not promote or endorse the use of the organisations, companies and resources mentioned and may amend or update this information at any time.

Staff Cost of Living Support Page: Signposting Health and Care staff to financial Wellbeing support and ideas.

Money Helper

For free guidance about Benefits, Family & Care, Money Troubles, Savings, Everyday Money, Homes, Pensions & Retirement or work, visit the links below for help and advice: –

https://www.moneyhelper.org.uk/en/money-troubles/dealing-with-debt/debt-advice-locator

https://www.moneyhelper.org.uk/en/money-troubles/way-forward/bill-prioritiser

https://www.moneyhelper.org.uk/en/everyday-money/budgeting/budget-planner

https://www.maps.org.uk/money-guiders/

https://www.moneyhelper.org.uk/en/contact-us/free-printed-guides

TOO Good To Go

LET’S START SAVING FOOD

WHY WE’RE HERE

Our mission? To make sure good food gets eaten, not wasted. Every day, delicious, fresh food goes to waste at cafes, restaurants, hotels, shops and manufacturers – just because it hasn’t sold in time. The Too Good To Go app lets customers buy and collect Magic Bags of this food – at a great price – directly from businesses.

Feed a Family: Sikh food halls open to all who need a hot meal

A religious community has spoken up about how it can help people struggling during the cost-of-living crisis to get a hot meal.

The continuing cost of living crisis has left many people wondering how to provide a hot meal for themselves and others.

With the cost of food rising along with rapid rises in the price of utilities, a lot of people have been left looking at whether to heat their homes or cook food, but one community has offered a solution for how to help.

The Sikh community is one of the largest in the region, with near 10 per cent of residents in Wolverhampton and nine per cent in Sandwell belonging to the Sikh faith and more than 30 gurdwaras being found across the towns and cities.

It is open to all faiths and communities and you are not questioned at the door when you enter the gurdwara.

There is a code of conduct that you need to adhere by when you enter the hall, which includes not being under the influence of alcohol or drugs and not smoking cigarettes on site, as well as covering your head, taking off your shoes and washing your hands.”

The volunteers at the hall will spend their time making the Indian flatbread roti, cooking different types of curries and sweet dishes and making sweets, all of which are vegetarian dishes.

People entering the hall will be able to take a tray and line up to ask for three types of curry, as many roti as needed and a sweet dish, as well as a cup of Indian tea and a glass of water, all served on metal trays.

Please find link of your local gurdwara in your area: Talk:List of gurdwaras in the United Kingdom – Wikipedia

Watch the BBC iPlayer – The One Show – 16/01/2023

FINANCIAL SUPPORT
We are aware that the cost-of-living crisis has resulted in additional financial challenges for everyone. At the Healthcare Workers’ Foundation, we provide grants of up to £1,000 to healthcare workers who are struggling with their finances.

It’s easy to apply for financial support and we have two funds to choose from. Please note that you are only able to apply for one of these grants annually.

Please ensure that you submit all required information and evidence requested on the form. Due to the large volume of applications that we are receiving, any submissions that do not include the requested evidence will automatically be declined.

Once you have submitted your application, you will receive a confirmation email from our grants team. We will then let you know if we require any further information or evidence to proceed. Following this, a member of our grants team will be in touch to notify you of the outcome of your application.

Email support@healthcareworkersfoundation.org for more information or help with your application.