No help but only working part time

sally0101

I am feeling totaly let down not only by my local council but also by the government.

I currently work 22.5hrs and am a single person, with no children, living in a council flat. I have all the bills to pay on my own and was advised I'd be entitled to housing and council tax benefit. I have had nothing but hassle from the council who have messed up all the calculations over the past 3 months.

They have now turned round and said that I am only entitled to £0.50p help! £0.50p help when I only work 22.5hrs ... so I can apparently afford to pay the same as a person working full time. (I am not lazy and am not just 'choosing' to work part-time. There is a reason.)

I went to see the council and spent an hour and a half with them trying to justify the situation to me .. they said that the government claims that all people can live on £64.50 a week ... and that if you earn £64.50 or more, then you cant claim benefits. Considering my rent alone is £54, I dont see how this can be acceptable.

My view on this is quite clear ... yes I can live on £64.50 a week .. IF ... and a very big IF ... if I can claim all my day-to-day living costs as 'expenses' .. like the MPs have done!

If this so called government claim we can live on £64.50 a week ... answer me this: Why cant they afford to live on their ridiculously high salaries WITHOUT the need to claim for their day-to-day costs on their expenses??? This country is a total shambles.

alwaysonthego_2

How old are you?

Why can you not work full time? (not being nosey just trying to see if it is due to health reasons)

sally0101

I am 29. I had an operation last year but wanted to return to work as had been offered a new job just before the operation (emergency op .. didnt expect it). I didnt want to lose the job so I asked if I could start in Jan (was meant to be 37.5hrs.) They agreed to start me on reduced hours of 22.5 but said they would review it at 3 month intervals. At the 3 months, Ocupational health said I had to remain at 22.5 until my next review. Hoping to be increased to 30hrs then eventually 37.5hrs but worried financilly in the meantime

mazza111

my daughter is in exactly the same situation, has her own place, works full time, but on minimum wage, doesn't get help with anything. However when she's 25....

I really don't see how they can work out that an under 25 who has their own place can live cheaper than an over 25 in the same situation. Doesn't make sense to me.

I also would love to work at least 30 hrs a week, unfortunately finding a job isn't so easy so i have to stick to my contracted 24 hrs

Cross posted: not the same situation at all

dmg24

How much do you earn?

sally0101

im not sure i want to disclose that on here but about 6.50 an hour before deductions

Macro_3

mazza111 wrote: »

my daughter is in exactly the same situation, has her own place, works full time, but on minimum wage, doesn't get help with anything. However when she's 25....

I really don't see how they can work out that an under 25 who has their own place can live cheaper than an over 25 in the same situation. Doesn't make sense to me.

I also would love to work at least 30 hrs a week, unfortunately finding a job isn't so easy so i have to stick to my contracted 24 hrs

Cross posted: not the same situation at all

Of course, an under 25 cannot live any more cheaply than an over 25 in the same situation, that's not what the regulations are getting at. Under 25's are treated much more harshly than other groups for political and social reasons.


Sally, your position is really unfortunate. Is our health still a concern? Would it be worth applying for any disability related benefits at all?

hayley11

sally0101 wrote: »

im not sure i want to disclose that on here but about 6.50 an hour before deductions

You work 22.5 hours a week and your hourly rate is £6.50. Your annual income is approx. £7605 before tax. You are 29 so you should definitely be entitled to tax credits. You haven't mentioned them so i'm assuming you don't get them (if you do ignore me)

I think your council must be messing up big time if they're saying you can't get help with the rent and council tax. We get £100 housing benefit every four weeks and we have twice as much as you do coming in.

Try https://www.entitledto.com - that will tell you any benefits you should be entitled to.

Get back on to the council and get them to recalculate it. When they sort it out, make sure you get it back dated to the date you first claimed.

Good luck

chinagirl

I think you'll find you have to be doing 30 hrs to get Working Tax Credits. Check on their website.

hayley11

chinagirl wrote: »

I think you'll find you have to be doing 30 hrs to get Working Tax Credits. Check on their website.

Yes you're right. For some reason I was thinking it was over 16 hours. I think it's if you have children or are disabled it's only 16 hours.

OP - you should almost definitely get housing benefit, check entitled to and then get back on to the council.

PasturesNew

If the OP is over 25, living alone in self-contained accommodation and working over 30 hours/week, then they can be considered for WTC. But she works under 30 hours, so doesn't qualify.

The OP earns: 22.5x£6.50 = £146.25/week, £7605/year.
The OP will take home £137.92/week.

Out of that they pay £54 rent - and let's assume £16 CT (easy maths)

£54 - £16 = £70
£137.92 - £70 = £67.92
This is in excess of the £64.50 they are advised they need to live on.