help please. seperating

ladystardust_2

sorry if this is wrong place!not very pc literate. am seperating from husband 1st sept when i sign tenancy agreement on private rented property.marriage has broken down and he wont move out as he feels he done nothing wrong.neither have i,just grown apart. two children 13 and nearly 16. i work on a as and whwn basis and have done for 4 years.lately hours have been rubbish averaging 6-8 per week and i dont get paid in holidays.never ever claimed any benefit befor and dont know where to start.all my savings have gone on deposit etc and a family member agereed to act as guarantor. now how do i pay my rent and bills? am looking really hard for work kids go back to school next week and are obviously devastated by the family split. dont know if it permanant been to relate etc.etc.two years left on mortgage and we live on overdraft.lost weight cant sleep trying to put happy jolly face on for kids telling them we be o.k .HELP. phoned ctc and hb and told cant even put in claim until i left the home.any one with advice? thanks

nm8553

You can certainly apply for Housing and Council Tax benefits. Call in to the Council offices today but keep your landlord in the picture.

Make an appointment today with the Jobcentre (it takes a week to come through) and see a benefits advisor at CAB (usually much quicker if you walk-in) as well re: JSA/IS/Tax Credits etc.

The more positive things you do right now the better you will feel about yourself so until you do get a better job treat sorting out your benefits as your full time employment. Get on the government web sites and develop your personal knlwledge-base. Not only will you feel that you are doing the best you can for yourself and your family by turning a negative situation into something more positive but as you develop expertise you will also be able to help and support others.

Good luck x

ladystardust_2

thank you,nm8553. will go to council today and mske appointment with benefits.had so much conflicting advice my head is spinning. you are right,i need to get more knowlegable on what i can/cant claim.never thought id be in this situation-it s scarey take my hat off to all those single parents that have coped with this alot longer than i have!1

Fran

You should put in a claim for Income Support as you are working under 16 hours, then once you have gone through the move look to increase your hours to 16 so that you can claim Working Tax Credit.

On Income Support as a single parent you can earn £20 (unless this has changed) per week before it is taken off the benefit £ for £.

I would also recommend a visit to Citizens Advice to make sure you get everything you are entitled to.

HalfPint

So sorry to hear that you are now in this situation.

NM8553 is right, the more positive things you do now, the better things will be and the less confused you will feel.

CAB is a great help in these situations, they will keep you right and make sure you can get everything you are entitiled to.

Best of luck to you.

Laura x

PS - Have been there, done it, got the t- shirt and have come out the other side happy and married to a wonderful man.

hmf_2

Hello,
I hope things get better soon. I am in a similar situation. CAB told me that I was entilted to no benefits, but Im pleased to say that they are wrong, so don't rely on them to much if they don't have good news for you.

I can tell you that you can claim at least £500 per month from tax credits as long as you work a minimum 16 hours per week so it might be worth looking for any other job for now that will give you 16 hours per week. You will qualify for maximum tax credits award if your income is below £6000 per annum and 80% of any childcare costs that you might have.

Give tax credits a call on 0845 300 3900 8-8pm and ask for there information booklet that will explain exactly what you are entilted to.

Naturally you will qualify for 25% reduction on your council tax as you qualify for a single person reduction so give them a call.

Im still unsure on other benefits out there so any other advise from moneysavers would be greatly appreciated.

I would like to think that a new job might even lift your self esteem getting you out of the house and meeting people.

Good luck and I hope everything starts getting easier soon.xx

hmf_2

Hello again,

I forgot to say, I believe that child maintenance is 15% of your Husbands income for 1 child but not sure what the % is for 2 children if you get child agency involved, but probably better to try an agree an amount of money between you and your Husband if he is approachable.

Conor_3

My brother and SIL have just gone through the same thing. They just grew apart - nothing else. In their case after everyone had got over the shock of it, everything settled down. He moved out and is living with his mother in law, that's how amicable it was done. Everyone is happier - him, her and the kids. Once you've got over the aggro of sorting out everything that's going on at the moment, you'll probably find the same.