Electrical Industries Charity

The Electrical Industries Charity (EIC), established in 1905, is the UK's only national charity dedicated exclusively to relieving hardship, poverty, and need among individuals and families connected to the electrical, electronics, and energy industries, including allied sectors. Its mission centers on fostering industry wellbeing through high-impact, preventative, and responsive holistic support, guided by values of compassion, sustainability, transparency, accessibility, growth, and leadership. With deep sector embeddedness, EIC delivers person-centered interventions like mental health services, counselling, emergency financial aid, legal advice, advocacy, CV support, psychiatric assessments, and practical assistance for issues such as bereavement, disability, ill health, redundancy, relationship breakdown, and financial crises.

Funding prioritizes direct welfare grants and support for current or former sector workers—regardless of age or career stage, from apprentices to retirees—and their dependents, addressing acute needs like mental illness, injuries, unemployment, and emergencies across the UK. While primarily individual-focused, it occasionally supports invited sector-wide collaborative initiatives or awareness campaigns.

Eligibility is tightly restricted to UK-based individuals/families with clear industry ties; charities and organizations are not routinely eligible, as unsolicited applications are not accepted. Individuals apply via the website's rolling 'Find Help' portal, with caseworkers assessing needs. Typical grants range from £500 to £2,000, sometimes higher for acute cases, awarded year-round without deadlines.

Distinctively, EIC embodies industry self-support, funding almost solely individuals rather than organizations, differentiating it from generic hardship charities through its 100+ year legacy, sector-specific focus, and direct, measurable impact on thousands of lives.