How to apply for equipment grants and loans

Newlife is the largest charity provider of specialist equipment for children and young people with disabilities in the UK, with over 30 years’ experience. We aim to support as many disabled or terminally ill children who need emergency equipment as possible. We do this through either emergency loans or grants.

What is a Loan?
Newlife recognises that some children may require urgent access to specialist equipment, such as beds and buggies, due to changes in their medical, postural, or nursing needs, or for discharge from a hospital or care setting. If available, Newlife can offer a loan of suitable equipment from our loan suite, provided a supporting professional confirms that it meets the child’s specific requirements (an application will still need to be completed). The loan is for a maximum of 6 months, giving statutory services time to arrange long-term provision. If statutory services are unable to supply the equipment long-term, a loan cannot be considered.

Grants
Our equipment grants can improve a child’s health and quality of life, reduce risk of significant injury and pain, as well as support delivery of care – while enabling childhood experiences and encouraging independence. Our grants are suitable for children who require the equipment long term. Beds, buggies, car seats and wheelchairs up to the value of £10,000 are all available to apply for under our grants offering.

To assess your application as quickly as possible, please complete the following steps:

1: Visit our website

Take a look through our website and see if we can offer you the right equipment for your child’s needs. Newlife provide both an Equipment Grant and Emergency Equipment Loan services for disabled and terminally ill children who meet all of the eligibility criteria. If you require help with the piece of equipment needed, please reach out to your supporting professional who can provide guidance on the suitability of equipment.

2: Browse our catalogue

Our catalogue  lists the equipment that we fund in the four equipment categories: beds, buggies, car seats and wheelchairs. Subject to successful application, Newlife charity may loan or grant equipment up to the value of £10,000. For technical queries, or to discuss specifications, please contact the supplier directly. These details can be found on the individual product pages. If the piece of equipment needed is not listed, please see our family signposting document here for alternative solutions.

Browse our catalogue

3: Professional role breakdown

Before proceeding to the application form, please ensure you have a relevant professional to support your application. Professionals that can apply for pieces of equipment:

Postural/Medical

  • Occupational therapist
  • Physiotherapist
  • Condition specific / clinical nurse specialist

Behavioural/Neurodiverse

  • All the above professionals, plus
  • Other nurse e.g. community or school nurse
  • Health visitor

A Safety Sleeper must be supported by an occupational therapist, physiotherapist, or a nurse.

If Newlife don’t provide the piece of equipment your professional recommends for the child, please find our signposting for families below.

Signposting for families

4: Complete our application form

Please note, you MUST meet the eligibility criteria in order to be considered for equipment and funding may take up to 6 months to secure.

Part A – to be completed by families
Families should complete ‘Part A’ of the application form here.

Please ensure all information is complete and accurate, as this could cause a delay in your application.

Part B – to be completed by professionals
Professionals should complete ‘Part B.’ This will automatically be sent to the supporting professional’s email address as part of the ‘Part A’ application process.

Please note that only certain professionals can apply for postural or medical equipment (see above). All supporting professionals must be accredited.

Once both Part A and Part B are completed and submitted, Newlife will process your application. We no longer require supporting letters from professionals as Part B of the application form replaces the need for this.

Apply for equipment now >