Maternity - Confused re: additional benefits

jc6280

Can someone please, please help me? I am utterly baffled and confused as to which (if any) benefits I am entitled to claim whilst on maternity leave. I am taking the full 52 weeks off work, and I am currently 2 weeks into the SMP period and receiving £117.18 per week. The baby is due on 3rd November 2008.

Everything I have researched so far (particularly council tax benefit) has advised that calculations are based on my normal salary of £30k per annum, rather than my maternity pay of £117.18 per week. This makes no sense to me - clearly for one year I will not be receiving anywhere near £30k! Should I not be eligible for council tax benefit (amongst others) for the next year?

Also, what exactly is working tax credit? I have heard I can claim this..... but the title confuses me because I'm not working, even though I am technically employed whilst on maternity leave..... is this perhaps something my partner claims rather than me?

If anyone can give me a short list of the benefits I should be chasing up, I would be ever so grateful. Thanks for reading this far and thanks in advance for your time.

DaisyFlower

If you have a partner they will take into account his earnings too for means tested benefits - its unlikely you will qualify for council tax benefit.

You may get WTC once the baby is here dependent upon joint earnings, CTC again based on earnings but everybody gets FA.

jc6280

Thank you Daisyflower! I wish the government would make these things a little easier to research!
But do you happen to know if my applications are based on my regular salary or my maternity pay??

cw18

no disrespect whatsoever, but at least you have income via your partner that is clearly enough to give you the option of taking the full 52 weeks -- which I think is a great start for you all as a family

when I took maternity leave with my elder son (19.5 years ago) I was told by the Benefits Agencies to resign if I wanted any money from them !!

As a single parent I didn't have to work, and the position was

1. keep your job open, and you can't have unemployment (as it then was) because you have a job. you also can't get 'whatever the top-up benefit was then' as you're not physically working the minimum number of required hours in a week -- talk about being caught between a pillar and a post !!!

2. resign, which won't be held against you as you're a single parent. you'll then get all sorts of benefits thrown at you. (no wonder single parents can get a bad reputation for sponging of the state, even when they don't want to!!!)


The benefits agency were told (none too politely I admit) where to stick option 2, and the welfare chap from work who'd taken me down then signed approval for me to return to work (subject to my GP approving) after 12 weeks off (which turned out to be the day my son was 8 weeks old). I'd already told work I wouldn't be entitled to anything, which was why I planned to finish so late and go back so soon (he was actually 10 days late, so I should have been off from just 2 weeks before my due date) - but they were concerned I wouldn't be mentally ready to return. However, following the meeting with the BA they could see that I'd be mentally worse off staying at home with no income!!



And as for making these things easier to research -- IMO pigs will fly before that happens, 'cos then more people will know what they're entitled to and it'll cost the government a lot more money !!!

jc6280

No disrespect whatsoever to you cw18, it sounds like you had a difficult time. But my partner does not earn enough to support both of us and keep a baby in nappies, that's why I'm reaching out for help.

ClaireS

If you look at http://www.taxcredits.inlandrevenue.gov.uk/HomeNew.aspx it will tell you what child tax credits/ working tax credits you are entitled too.

I am in a similar situation, i had a baby in July and was on circa £30kpa. The first time we applied for child tax credits using 07/08 P60 data we were awarded £ZERO. As my income for 08/09 will be approx £16k we applied again and now recieved approx £80 per month along with £75 child benefit.

The way to work out your income for this year is to take any pay you have recieved before mat leave, add on the 6 weeks pay at 90% and then 17.85 for each week you will recieved SMP. (you take off £100 per week of SMP making 17.85).

I doubt you will be entitled to any other benefits!!
Hope that makes sense. good luck with your new arrival.......

jc6280

ClaireS - you're a star. I will check this out and base it on my 08/09 income rather than my standard income. Any small amount will help! Hope the baby is bring you lots of joy! :cheesy:

inaspin_3

Hi, I don't know if I'm much help but I thought i'd give u an idea of what I'm getting help wise and what I did to get it. I'm currently on smp...due to go back to work beginning of Dec Me and my partner had a joint income of £30,000 before I left for matenity. I'll be going back after the 9months smp as we can't really afford for me to stay off, though if you can then I think that's great, I know it's a personal choice, but if I could then I really would, my little one is growing up so fast and the time has flown by! Anyway... when my little one was born, I called the tax credits office and told them my situation and that I was going to be on less than I was the previous year (which they normally base it on) so they worked out the tax credits on this years income. I have since spoken to quite a few people and this seems to be what they do now, so if you call them and explain your situation they should do the same for you. Also, I wasn't entited to the £500 maternity grant whilst I was working and on the 6 weeks 90% maternity, but as soon as I hit the smp I put a claim in and was given the £500 this will depend on how much your partner earns though but the worst they can say is no, so maybe worth a try? My partner being on £15,000 pa and me on smp is bringing in about £200 per month in tax credits, we're not entitled to any help with council tax or anything though. I hope this gives you a rough idea of how much you should be entitled to. If you want a rough estimate just call the tax credits office and they should be able to give you an idea, though when you give them your figures for this year, don't include the first £100 a week for your smp (something to do with not being taxed on not too sure tbh but I was told this by my health visitor which was clarified by tax office for me) If you declare that extra money that you shouldn't be doing then it'll work out that you're entitled to less. I hope this makes sense and helps a little.

jc6280

Inaspin - its tough work isn't it? Their system of benefits certainly doesn't encourage couples to stick together does it? Its very sad.... they should be encouraging family life! Perhaps there would be less social problems if they did… although that's a whole different mine field! Thanks for your advice. It seems you have to delve a lot deeper to get what you rightly deserve, I guess by making these things difficult they do save themselves a bit of money, as someone suggested earlier! I’ve never claimed any kind of benefits in my life (I’ve always worked full time + part time) which is why I have absolutely no idea where to start with any of these things! As for you, I’ve heard you can claim up to 80% of your childcare costs when you return to work, so I hope you’ve had some success with that.

Saver_Raver

inaspin wrote: »

Hi, I don't know if I'm much help but I thought i'd give u an idea of what I'm getting help wise and what I did to get it. I'm currently on smp...due to go back to work beginning of Dec Me and my partner had a joint income of £30,000 before I left for matenity. I'll be going back after the 9months smp as we can't really afford for me to stay off, though if you can then I think that's great, I know it's a personal choice, but if I could then I really would, my little one is growing up so fast and the time has flown by! Anyway... when my little one was born, I called the tax credits office and told them my situation and that I was going to be on less than I was the previous year (which they normally base it on) so they worked out the tax credits on this years income. I have since spoken to quite a few people and this seems to be what they do now, so if you call them and explain your situation they should do the same for you. Also, I wasn't entited to the £500 maternity grant whilst I was working and on the 6 weeks 90% maternity, but as soon as I hit the smp I put a claim in and was given the £500 this will depend on how much your partner earns though but the worst they can say is no, so maybe worth a try? My partner being on £15,000 pa and me on smp is bringing in about £200 per month in tax credits, we're not entitled to any help with council tax or anything though. I hope this gives you a rough idea of how much you should be entitled to. If you want a rough estimate just call the tax credits office and they should be able to give you an idea, though when you give them your figures for this year, don't include the first £100 a week for your smp (something to do with not being taxed on not too sure tbh but I was told this by my health visitor which was clarified by tax office for me) If you declare that extra money that you shouldn't be doing then it'll work out that you're entitled to less. I hope this makes sense and helps a little.

Do you know who you apply to for the maternity grant and how long after the baby is born you have to apply? My little one is 10 weeks old tomorrow and by the sounds of it I maybe eligible for this? Thanks.

inaspin_3

JC6280, I totally agree! We did have to do a lot of digging and asking questions to be able to get somewhere, I luckily found the CAB very helpful Have worked full time since I left education and I'd love to go part time just so that I have a bit of the day time with my little one still but we're in a situation where we earn too much to claim much and too less to be able to work part time. Like the nursery fees, we earn too much to get the 80% I think it works out at about 20%!!! Though I am currently looking into it a bit more. Good luck with the little one, I bet you're really excited now!

Saver Raver - You need to get a SF100 Sure Start form from the Job Centre, or download from the website and send to the Job Centre (though I can't remember the address that you send it to, if you called your local one they should be able to tell you). You have up until your little one is 3 months old, if they were to say no and you wanted to appeal you have about 2 weeks to appeal whether your lo is over 3 months or not then. Get filling in and sending quick! The address link for more info is:
http://www.jobcentreplus.gov.uk/JCP/Customers/WorkingAgeBenefits/Dev_013950.xml.html
Good luck, it's nice to get some extra money when you don't expect it :j