Another teen pregnancy question

paper_clip

Sorry if this has been asked before but I cant seem to find much help. I have tried trawling the web but there seems to be very little specific information, so if anybody can help it would be great.

The situation goes like this - 16 year old daughter still living at home is pregnant, I work and hubby gets incapacity benefit. We also get child and working tax credits and obviously child benefit , we have 3 other children.

As she is not staying in FT education as of 1st sept they have stopped all my benefits for her so cb and tax credits have been reduced in total by 300 per month.

She has been to see what she can claim in her own right and was told she could claim nothing!!! Is this right, how are we supposed to miraculesly be able to live on £300 less a month, tax credits say I cant claim for her any more so she has no way of claiming fruit/milk tokens or a sure start grant until after the baby is born ( due 25th nov) Can she suddenly exist on fresh air ?? I think not!! Please can anybody help with some advice.

Oldernotwiser

Perhaps she should return to education; apart from your money it's going to be necessary for her future.

Mips

I agree with Oldernotwiser - she should go to college and perhaps your money will be returned. You are going to need it for the baby.

Buttercup.x

Advise her that she should think about going back to college as when the baby is born it could be more difficult getting into some courses (although some colleges offer creche places) what does she intend to do during her pregnancy sit and home and do nothing?

I was Pregnant at 16 also still at home with my mum but was doing a post 16 course (diploma in drama) i think she got CB for me till i left home 3 months before i had the baby

paper_clip

She is planning on going back to education she had a place this year but let it lapse as the baby is due in november. She figured it would be better to take a year out , she has already got 3 as levels as well as her gcse,s and so really only has to do 1 year to have enough credits for uni. She is also wanting to try and get a place with her bfriend who is also 16 but works fulltime, they are both quite mature and level headed for teens, (lucky really it could have been so much worse). Finding somewhere to live is gonna be hard but not impossible. I work in the social housing sector and know that at some point I will probably have to 'kick her out' in order for her to get a place as the waiting lists round here are 5 years plus.

Im just wondering where the hell Im supposed to magic up another 300 a month, Im in debt management already and at risk of losing my house, literally every penny counts in our house. hubby had a good job but got injured at work and lost his career and since then life has turned to poo!

It was unlucky that my daughter got caught out and I know she feels really bad about the stress its causing, but at the end of the day she is human and made a mistake, she hasnt killed anybody and I dont think a baby can bad thing.
I want her to be able to have some financial independance and not feel as though she has to beg me for everything. At the moment her bf has bought everything for the baby as I simply dont have the cash.

Oldernotwiser

If she returns to education she can get up to £160 per week to fund childcare under the Care to Learn scheme. In her situation, taking a year out seems to be an expensive luxury and worrying about social housing waiting lists is going to severely limit her options for HE. Her other option, obviously, is to get a temporary job which would enable her to be genuinely independent.

Penny-Pincher!!

Hi

I think a job sounds like her best option.

The majority of women have to work whilst pregnant and if she already has GCSE's and AS levels at age 16, then she sounds like an intelligent girl and shouldnt find getting a job too difficult.

Has she looked into at all her options

PP
xx

Mips

Penny-Pincher!! wrote: »

Hi

I think a job sounds like her best option.

The majority of women have to work whilst pregnant and if she already has GCSE's and AS levels at age 16, then she sounds like an intelligent girl and shouldnt find getting a job too difficult.

Has she looked into at all her options

PP
xx

Yeah.. .because loads of employers will be chomping at the bit to employ a 6 month old pregnant teenager!

lonestar1

Dippychick wrote: »

Yeah.. .because loads of employers will be chomping at the bit to employ a 6 month old pregnant teenager!

Crikey I know kids these days become sexually active earlier and earlier but thats going some

NB Dont you have to be at least 13 before your a teenager ??:rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:

Wish I could help the OP but I dont think she should have let her course lapse and now you pretty much stuffed Im afraid. Can the BF help out at all ?

Conor_3

paper_clip wrote: »

She has been to see what she can claim in her own right and was told she could claim nothing!!! Is this right, how are we supposed to miraculesly be able to live on £300 less a month, tax credits say I cant claim for her any more so she has no way of claiming fruit/milk tokens or a sure start grant until after the baby is born ( due 25th nov) Can she suddenly exist on fresh air ?? I think not!! Please can anybody help with some advice.

Perhaps her sodding boyfriend who is in fulltime employment should accept responsibility for the kid he fathered and pony up the money. After all, if she was older and in the same situation, you'd expect her partner to support her then so why not now or is the fact half your household income comes from your other half sponging off the state clouding your judgement? Why should we foot the bill for her stupidity when the other party involved in the creation of this child is still with her and still in employment?

Penny-Pincher!!

Dippychick wrote: »

Yeah.. .because loads of employers will be chomping at the bit to employ a 6 month old pregnant teenager!

I missed the fact that she's 6 months preggers:rotfl: ....thats why I asked if she had looked into all options....but that wouldn't be relevant at 6 months. Sorry!

Seriously though, she could get a couple of cleaning/ironing jobs if the effort was put in to put some flyers out etc.

PP
xx