Nine ways to get free money

It can actually be quite easy to get your hands on some free money... if you know where to look.

Many people now know about the grants available for insulation and other energy saving measures. However, these are just the tip of the iceberg.

In fact, there are thousands of grants on offer in the UK, to help out a huge range of people. If, for example, you're a new mum, a pensioner, a student or someone facing redundancy, there's likely to be some financial assistance you can apply for.

Here, I'm going to round up as many of these grants as possible, and explain who is eligible for each one.

To keep things simple enough to fit into a single article, I'm going to focus specifically on grants and bursaries - in other words money that is given, not lent.

I'm also going to concentrate on the grants available to individuals, rather than to small businesses and charities.

1) Energy and fuel grants

As I mentioned, there's a variety of grants available for people who want to make their homes more energy-efficient. The Energy Saving Trust outlines who is eligible to apply for government and local authority grants covering this.

There are also non-governmental grants available, often from the energy suppliers themselves. Have a look at The Heat Project website to see how much you could be entitled to.

If you're 60 or older, you may also be able to claim a Winter Fuel Payment of between £125 and £400 from the government. Have a look at this page of the Directgov website to find out more.

2) Disability housing grants

Your local council should be able to provide you with a Disabled Facilities Grant if you, or someone living in your property, is disabled.

This cash goes towards adapting your home, so you can live as convenient and independent a life as possible. You can find out more about this grant, and how to apply for it here.

3) Grants for new mothers

As a new mother you're entitled to several grants and one-off payments, as well as tax credits and various child-related benefits.

First, most mothers-to-be are now entitled to the new Health in Pregnancy grant. The grant of a tax-free £190 can be claimed when you are 25 weeks' pregnant.

Second, you'll receive a starter payment to be deposited into your Child Trust Fund. This will be a lump sum of £250 - or up to £500 if you're in a low-income family.

The third main grant for new mothers is means-tested: For those on a low income, the Sure Start Maternity grant is a one-off payment of £500 to help towards the costs of a new baby.

4) Funeral grants

If you're on a low income and need help to pay for a funeral, you might be able to get a Funeral Payment from the Social Fund. Just bear in mind that you may have to repay some or all of it from the estate of the person who's died. 

5) Community care grants

If you need financial help to live independently in the community, you may well be entitled to a Community Care Grant. This might apply, for example, to someone who is moving out of residential or institutional care to live independently. You can find out more about who is eligible and how to apply here.

6) Student grants

I missed out on getting a student grant by one measly year - boo! However - although government funding is no longer automatically available, there are still over £250 million worth of scholarships and grants are available to students every year. It's just a case of knowing where to look.

Use the ScholarshipSearch website to help you track down funding. There's a surprising variety of student funding bodies around, all allocating grants based on a huge range of variables.

If you're in financial difficulties, it's also worth using the Education Grants Trust Search on the Family Action website. This should help you find funding from one of the hundreds of educational trust funds operating in the UK.

Finally, don't overlook the extra student help still offered by the government itself. This page of the Directgov website outlines the funding certain students may be entitled to; including finance for disabled students, help for students with children and payments from the Access to Learning Fund.

7) Grants for professional re-training

There are also grants available for people seeking to professionally re-train, or who seek to further their education later in life.

If you live in England, you can apply for an Adult Learning Grant, which will provide up to £30 a week to help with your learning costs.

If you're in Scotland, you can apply for up to £500 from Individual Learning Accounts (ILA) Scotland, a Scottish government initiative to help with the cost of learning. To be eligible, you need to have an annual income of £22,000 or less, or be on benefits.

And people in Wales can apply to ILA Wales for up to £200 to help towards the costs of learning.

Finally, if you're starting a new job and you're over 50 years of age, you may be able to get help with work-related training costs through a Fifty Plus In-work Training Grant. Have a look at this page of the DirectGov website to find out more.

8) Search for the grant that suits you

If you still haven't found the grant you're after, use the Grant Search Wizard from the Turn2Us charity. The website contains a database of over 3,000 funds offering welfare and educational grants - so hopefully you'll find the funding that meets your needs.

Do you know of a grant that I've missed out? Please tell your fellow readers about in the 'comments' section below.

9) Get help from lovemoney.com

If you need a bit of help finding extra money, you've come to the right place. First, adopt this goal: Make some extra money. Next, watch this video: Cash in on cashback websites. And finally, why not have a wander over to Q&A and ask other lovemoney.com members for specific advice about your own circumstances? Or share your own tips using the comments box below.