What is the housing benefit for Part time work?

snowqueen555

i've just finished my degree so i now have to pay rent, so the council started charging me like, £60 a week, though my contract at work is only 12 hours a week = £70ish (plus I am actually doing a few more hours here and there because of the holidays but nowhere near full time), so I earn about £70 a week meaning I am not getting anything.

I have applied for some housing benefit but they aint even getting back to me.

So am I likely to get at least some kind of discount on the rent until I find full time employment?

I have uni debt to clear as well, its getting a little difficult to clear it

--

it sounds stupid but i would be financially better off going on jsa, this is kinda ludicrous, but i wouldnt do that, id rather work

Kazzajr

Im confused why did you not have to pay rent just because you were a student?

If you check www.entitledto.co.uk and enter your details you will get a rough idea of how much (if any) HB you will be able to claim. I'm assuming you are in council house?

Also HB goes by income not how many hours worked.

bestpud

Be very careful about going down the JSA line as you will be penalised (no money for up to 26 weeks I believe?) if you leave your job without a very good reason, and also if you cause yourself to sacked. Plus, it is much easier to get work when you are in work as a rule. Thus, that could be jumping out of the frying pan and into the fire!

I don't know about HB but I can't see why you are only just starting to pay rent either? Unless you mean your grant/loan covered it before?

Under the new rules your income and the type of accommodation they deem suitable for someone in your position count and I believe they will assess you as needing a room in shared accommodation (which going on your rent you may well be in anyway?)

You won't be able to get tax credits or any other benefits as far as I am aware.

Really, your efforts will be best placed getting a full time job asap! Trying to find benefits is just delaying the inevitable!

Oldernotwiser

You really need to be working full time (or certainly more hours than you're doing now) to be able to keep ourself now university's finished, even if you haven't found a graduate type job. I'm also confused as to your rent situation, although you're lucky that it's so low.

snowqueen555

hi, full time students are counted as independants, so we don't have to pay rent, or tax either. this of course is going to change right about now, so tere isnt really a lot of support for new graduates living in council housing. i wonder how many new graduates are in a similar predicament?

so yah, cash flow problems. I am living in shared housing so each person in the house pays a simlar price weekly

bestpud

snowqueen555 wrote: »

hi, full time students are counted as independants, so we don't have to pay rent, or tax either. this of course is going to change right about now, so tere isnt really a lot of support for new graduates living in council housing. i wonder how many new graduates are in a similar predicament?

so yah, cash flow problems. I am living in shared housing so each person in the house pays a simlar price weekly

Full time students pay rent and tax the same as everyone else, unless they live at home and their parents don't ask them for anything towards the bills, or they don't earn enough to pay tax!

You are being supported by living in council housing! Your rent will be much lower than most, if not all, of your fellow graduates.

There is help for those who cannot work full time through illness or disability, but not for those who are young, free and single but choose to work part time only.

Are you sure you are a graduate as you seem unaware of some very basic facts about HE students?

seven-day-weekend

I don't understand this thread at all.

OP, why didn't you have to pay rent before? Students are not exempt from it. And how can you live in a 'shared' house if it is Council?

Could you please spell it out in words of one syllable as I can't understand it so far.

Oldernotwiser

snowqueen555 wrote: »

hi, full time students are counted as independants, so we don't have to pay rent, or tax either. this of course is going to change right about now, so tere isnt really a lot of support for new graduates living in council housing. i wonder how many new graduates are in a similar predicament?

so yah, cash flow problems. I am living in shared housing so each person in the house pays a simlar price weekly

Your post makes no sense whatsoever! What's an "independent" in this context? Why wouldn't you have to pay rent? How can you be in shared housing and also be in council housing? Are you SURE you're a graduate?

Kazzajr

Totally confused by the op and independent comment, I was a full time student and had to pay rent, although as a single parent I was able to claim some HB but I didn't think students could normally apply for HB even if you were eligible there is no way you would get full HB.
I am not lucky enough to live in council accommodation but cannot see how they can make students exempt from paying rent?

JimmyTheWig

Are you talking about rent or council tax??

Oldernotwiser

JimmyTheWig wrote: »

Are you talking about rent or council tax??

At £60 per week I can't imagine that she's talking about council tax!