money worries?
Help paying for decluttering services.
Cost is the most common worry people bring to us, and here is something most people don't know: there is real help out there that goes unclaimed, year after year, by the families who could use it most. This page gathers the routes we think are worth checking.
First, an honest line
We're organisers, not benefits advisers, so nothing here is advice and we can't take responsibility for what any scheme decides. What we will do, gladly, is our best to point you to the people who genuinely know: the links below, and the local folk who help with the forms for free. "Worth checking" is the spirit of every route on this page. If a claim works out, it's yours to spend on whatever help you choose, ours or anyone else's.
Start warm: Nexus Community UK
Rather than facing gov.uk alone, West London has a warmer door. Nexus Community UK is a local charity offering free, expert help with understanding and claiming the benefits you're entitled to, plus debt and money guidance. They hold drop-ins across the area, and they're the first place we send anyone who needs help with the money side. They know us, we know them, and they're lovely.
Contact: info@nexuscommunity.uk, or see current drop-in times on their site.
Routes worth checking
Attendance Allowance
Over State Pension ageFor people over State Pension age who need help or supervision through the day. It is not means-tested, it is tax-free, and it does not reduce other income. It can be spent on any help the person chooses, including support like ours. It is worth around £76 to £115 a week (the rates change each April, so check the current figures), and most families who could claim it never do.
Claim via gov.uk — and if the form feels daunting, Age UK's free advice line (0800 678 1602, 8am to 7pm, every day of the year) will talk you through it, and your local Age UK can help you fill it in.
A free OT home assessment
Anyone finding daily life at home harderYour council's adult social care team can send an occupational therapist to look at how you manage at home, free of charge. Small equipment and minor adaptations (grab rails, raised seats, half steps) are usually provided free where they're needed.
Ask your council's adult social care team for an occupational therapy assessment.
Disabled Facilities Grant
Bigger adaptationsA means-tested council grant towards major adaptations like stairlifts, wet rooms and ramps. It sits behind the OT assessment above, which is usually the first step.
Your council can tell you whether your home and circumstances qualify.
Pension Credit
Pensioners on a lower incomeA top-up that many pensioners miss, and a gateway to other help with housing, heating and more. Even a small award can change the whole affordability picture.
A quick check on gov.uk or a call to Age UK's free advice line (0800 678 1602) tells you if it's worth claiming.
Access to Work
In work, or starting workA government scheme that can fund support for people whose health or neurodivergence affects their work, and home support like ours can sometimes qualify. We provide the invoices the scheme asks for.
Apply via gov.uk; our guide below explains how it can fit home support.
Personal budgets and direct payments
Anyone with a care planIf you (or the person you care for) have a care plan with a personal budget or direct payment, it can often be spent on support like ours. Some of our clients are funded exactly this way.
Your social worker, care coordinator or support broker can confirm what your plan allows.
A free home fire safety visit
Anyone in LondonThe London Fire Brigade visits homes free of charge, gives practical safety advice, and fits smoke alarms where they're needed. In a fuller home this one is genuinely worth having.
Book online or by phone; we're happy to help you arrange it.
Quick answers
Can Attendance Allowance be spent on decluttering or cleaning help?
Attendance Allowance can be spent on any help the person chooses, including private support at home such as decluttering. It is for people over State Pension age who need help or supervision through the day, it is not means-tested, and it does not reduce other income. It is worth around £76 to £115 a week; the rates change each April, so check the current figures on gov.uk.
Is there any financial help for decluttering or hoarding support in the UK?
Several routes are worth checking: Attendance Allowance for people over State Pension age, a free occupational therapy home assessment from your council, the Disabled Facilities Grant for bigger adaptations, Pension Credit, Access to Work for people whose health or neurodivergence affects their work, and personal budgets or direct payments where there is a care plan. What any scheme decides is never ours to promise, but each of these is genuinely worth checking.
Who can help fill in benefits forms for free?
Age UK's free advice line (0800 678 1602, 8am to 7pm, every day of the year) talks people through forms like the Attendance Allowance claim, and local Age UKs can help fill them in. In West London, Nexus Community UK, a local charity, offers free expert help with understanding and claiming benefits, plus debt and money guidance.
And what we can do ourselves
The first visit is always free, so there's nothing to lose by talking to us. A small number of community slots each month are held at a reduced rate for people whose circumstances make the full rate out of reach, with no application form. And if you're referred through an NHS, social work or charity team, a community partnership rate applies. If money is the thing standing between you and asking, please ask anyway, and we'll work out together what's possible.