Benefits available for 17 year old living away from home.

goggler

I am enquiring on behalf of a family friend, and woud just like to know what (if anything) she may be entitled to.

She is 17, looking to continue her education, but desperately needs to leave home but can't afford it on her part- time wage as a waitress.

If she decides to do her 'a' levels is she classed as a full time student, would she be elidgeable for housing benefit or income support? also would it put her in a better position if she gave up her p/t job?

I have looked on the agency website but am just getting in a muddle now as things don't seem to apply to her age group.

all information and advice appreciated

bunny999

why does she "need" to leave home ? As 17 year olds are not usually entitled to benefits she will need a good reason.

System

Hvaing a quick look, its not looking good with her being a full time students. There are some exceptions

I think she'd be able to get income support, but she won't be able to get housing benefit if shes a student unless she has a child or is disabled.

should be more info here
http://www.adviceguide.org.uk/index/life/benefits/young_people_and_benefits.htm

System

bunny999 wrote: »

why does she "need" to leave home ? As 17 year olds are not usually entitled to benefits she will need a good reason.

To be fair there could be all kinds of problems at home, we dont know the full facts and the OP may not feel comfortable going into detail

Jowo_2

A 17 year old may struggle to find a private landlord that will accept her as a tenant because there are legal difficulties which mean that it is commonly believed that under 18 year olds can't have a tenancy agreement. Arrange an appointment with the Citizens Advice Bureau or Connexions and have a look at the Entitled to website.

http://www.adviceguide.org.uk/nm/index/life/benefits/young_people_and_benefits.htm

"You can usually claim Jobseeker's Allowance only if you are 18 or over. However, 16 and 17-year-olds who are unemployed and not in full-time education may, in some circumstances, be able to claim.

If you are 16 or 17 years old, you may get Income Support if you:-

• have a child or are pregnant
• are on certain kinds of training course.

There is nothing to stop a young person claiming Housing Benefit, but the amount you can get if you are a single person aged under 25 with no children is restricted."


http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/MoneyTaxAndBenefits/BenefitsTaxCreditsAndOtherSupport/On_a_low_income/DG_10034876

If you’re doing a higher education course, you can apply for student finance to help fund your studies.
Full-time students can’t usually claim income-related benefits as well - but part-time students and certain groups of full-time students are sometimes eligible.

dmg24

xXMessedUpXx wrote: »

To be fair there could be all kinds of problems at home, we dont know the full facts and the OP may not feel comfortable going into detail

Which is the beauty of posting on an anonymous forum. If people do not give the required information, we cannot give accurate answers!

OP, if the claimant has good reason for leaving home, they will be entitled to IS and LHA whilst studying. However, her income will be counted against these benefits, so she may qualify for very little.

ALIBOBSY

Under 18's only qualify for income based benefits like IS or JSA if they have HAD to leave home. This is either because they have been thrown out or there are abuse issues at home.
If they say they are being thrown out, the DWP will expect to confirm this with the parents and if they say no they can still come home, the claim will be disallowed.

How many PT hours do she do, 16 or more also disallows her. Lower hours the benefit is reduced £1-£1 against the wage after a small disregard (think this is the first £20?).
The main thing is the full time student bit. Unless she is disabled or has kids she would be expected as a full time student to live off any grants or loans she gets (these would also be taken into account as income and likely wipe out the benefit anyway).

As its a-levels she may still get EMA (think this is being phased out but worth checking), but this is only £30 ish a week.

To be honest she is much better staying where she is whilst doing her a levels then going off to uni/college and moving out then or working full time then.

ali x

dmg24

ALIBOBSY wrote: »

Lower hours the benefit is reduced £1-£1 against the wage after a small disregard (think this is the first £20?).
The main thing is the full time student bit. Unless she is disabled or has kids she would be expected as a full time student to live off any grants or loans she gets (these would also be taken into account as income and likely wipe out the benefit anyway).

You have got a bit confused here.

The disregard is £5 for a single person, £10 for a couple and £20 for lone parents and the disabled.

Full time students under eighteen in non advanced education are entitled to benefits (subject to them having good reason for being in that situation), as they do not qualify for student loans.

This is a quite a niche area, hence several posters giving incorrect information. OP, is there an advisor at the claimant's college/ school that could help?

student_advisor

Under 18's only qualify for income based benefits like IS or JSA if they have HAD to leave home. This is either because they have been thrown out or there are abuse issues at home.
If they say they are being thrown out, the DWP will expect to confirm this with the parents and if they say no they can still come home, the claim will be disallowed.

Actually, the DWP have to believe the young person unless there is a specific reason they think they are lying (such as incosistencies in the story). Estrangement only needs to be one-sided so it is enough for either the student or the parent to say they can't live at home.

How many PT hours do she do, 16 or more also disallows her...The main thing is the full time student bit. Unless she is disabled or has kids she would be expected as a full time student to live off any grants or loans she gets (these would also be taken into account as income and likely wipe out the benefit anyway).

This is not the case if they are under 19 when they stated the course and they are not in higher education.

As its a-levels she may still get EMA (think this is being phased out but worth checking), but this is only £30 ish a week.

It is up to £30 per week and will either be based on parental income or they will get the full amount if they receive income support.

To be honest she is much better staying where she is whilst doing her a levels then going off to uni/college and moving out then or working full time then.

Depends what's going on a home really. I see young people every week who are definitely better away from the family home for a vast array or reasons.

To the OP: The funding/benefits available really does depend on they young person's situation and the reasons why they moved house. If they had no choice, they should be able to get income support, housing benefit/LHA and EMA plus maybe Learner Support Funds from College. We generally advise students that if they want to work, they should aim to earn lass than £50 per week. You should make sure they see someone from either the college/school or from Connexions. The Jobcentre won't normally see students who aren't referred by Connexions.

If there are no extenuating circumstances and they left just because they fancied it, then there's really not much.

As someone who works in a Student Services at a college, we like to know about all the students who don't live at home, so we can "keep an eye on them" and give them some extra money as and when they need it!

mazza1985

I left home shortly after sitting my GCSEs when Iwas 16 due to abuse from my parents. I claimed income support at the over 18 rate, and EMA whilst I did my A levels. Your friend will get full EMA but she needs to inform them that she is now an independant.

She will also get housing benefit/council taxbenefit to cover a one bedroom flat if she is getting income support on estrangement grounds.

I would strongly suggest that she links in with support services when she leaves. If you need more advise for her around this please pm me.

boo666

http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/YoungPeople/Money/FinancialHelpForYoungPeople/DG_10027506

give this a try