When families think about how to fund care, they usually think of benefits, savings, or help from the council. But there is a lesser-known source of support that is well worth exploring, and it is tied to something you might not expect: a parent's former job.
Many professions, trades and industries have their own charities, often called benevolent funds, that offer financial help and support to people who worked in them, and frequently to their families too. It is an avenue many people overlook entirely, yet it can genuinely help. Here is how it works.
Across the country, a huge number of professions and industries have their own charitable funds, many of them set up long ago, sometimes more than a century back, to look after people who worked in that field and later fell on hard times or came to need support.
These benevolent funds exist to help former workers from a particular trade or profession, and very often their spouses, widows, widowers and dependants as well. The idea is a lovely one: that those who spent their working lives in a trade should be able to turn to it for a helping hand when they need one.
It varies from charity to charity, but the support can include:
Some also offer help specifically to carers and dependants, so it can be worth exploring both for your parent and, in some cases, for the wider family.
Eligibility is usually based on having worked in a particular profession, trade or industry, often for a qualifying period, together with being in some form of need. Beyond that, a few tips genuinely help:
The breadth of these charities is remarkable. There are benevolent funds connected to the armed forces, nursing and healthcare, teaching, farming and agriculture, the railways, seafaring, the police, the civil service, acting and entertainment, and a great many other trades and professions besides. Whatever your parent did for a living, there is a fair chance a fund exists for it.
Because there are so many, the challenge is finding the ones relevant to your parent. A few excellent starting points:
One note worth making: individual charities do occasionally close or merge over the years, which is exactly why using an up-to-date search tool like Turn2us is more reliable than working from an old list.
Each charity sets its own eligibility criteria and application process, but typically you will fill in a short application form and provide some evidence, such as proof of the person's occupation, their financial situation, and any benefits they receive.
If there is one thing worth saying, it is this: please do not feel that these funds are \"not for people like us,\" or feel awkward about asking. They exist precisely to help people who worked in a trade or profession, and a great many people who would qualify never apply simply because they do not know the funds are there, or feel reluctant to ask. There is no shame in it at all. It is exactly what these charities are for.
Occupational and trade charities are an easily missed avenue, but for the sake of a little searching, they could unlock real help towards your parent's care or wellbeing, earned through a lifetime of work. It is well worth exploring alongside benefits and the other funding options. Our guides to your funding options and budgeting for care ahead of time set out the wider picture.
If you would like to talk through how to fund care for someone you love, we would be very glad to help you understand the options.
Book a free care advice call, or give us a ring on 020 3970 9900.
This guide offers general information only and is not financial advice. Each charity sets its own eligibility criteria and the help available varies and can change, so please check directly with any fund, and consider free advice from Turn2us, Age UK or Citizens Advice.
","html_sections":{"json":[{"tagName":"P","innerHtml":"When families think about how to fund care, they usually think of benefits, savings, or help from the council. But there is a lesser-known source of support that is well worth exploring, and it is tied to something you might not expect: a parent's former job.","attributes":{"data_edyn_component":null,"data_edyn_url":null,"class":null,"id":null}},{"tagName":"P","innerHtml":"Many professions, trades and industries have their own charities, often called benevolent funds, that offer financial help and support to people who worked in them, and frequently to their families too. It is an avenue many people overlook entirely, yet it can genuinely help. Here is how it works.","attributes":{"data_edyn_component":null,"data_edyn_url":null,"class":null,"id":null}},{"tagName":"H2","innerHtml":"What are occupational and trade charities?","attributes":{"data_edyn_component":null,"data_edyn_url":null,"class":null,"id":"what-are-occupational-and-trade-charities"}},{"tagName":"P","innerHtml":"Across the country, a huge number of professions and industries have their own charitable funds, many of them set up long ago, sometimes more than a century back, to look after people who worked in that field and later fell on hard times or came to need support.","attributes":{"data_edyn_component":null,"data_edyn_url":null,"class":null,"id":null}},{"tagName":"P","innerHtml":"These benevolent funds exist to help former workers from a particular trade or profession, and very often their spouses, widows, widowers and dependants as well. The idea is a lovely one: that those who spent their working lives in a trade should be able to turn to it for a helping hand when they need one.","attributes":{"data_edyn_component":null,"data_edyn_url":null,"class":null,"id":null}},{"tagName":"H2","innerHtml":"What kind of help do they offer?","attributes":{"data_edyn_component":null,"data_edyn_url":null,"class":null,"id":"what-kind-of-help-do-they-offer"}},{"tagName":"P","innerHtml":"It varies from charity to charity, but the support can include:","attributes":{"data_edyn_component":null,"data_edyn_url":null,"class":null,"id":null}},{"tagName":"UL","innerHtml":"