worried about what they will say

karenx

he won't be entitled to help with childcare though as he's not working, hence going on income support

AsknAnswer2

I'm sorry to hear that not only your wife has passed away, but now you have this to contend with.

In addition to Widowed Parent's Allowance and child tax credit (which he would be entitled to, it's working tax credit and the childcare element he would not be entitled to), have you applied yet for the Bereavement Payment?

Depending on what benefit yuo are receiving and how long it has been since the funeral, you may also be eligible for a Funeral Payment.

hsvc

thanks to everyone for there replies.yes i am getting widowed parents allowance.does this mean im not entitled to income support anyway?i dont know if i am or not.and ive sorted out my child tax credits.i have claimed for the bereavment payment and have allready recieved a cheque for 2 thousand pounds which is the maximum you can get.i am still waiting to hear about the funeral payments claim i made.

ceebeeby

Sorry about your wife hsvc!

Why do you have to give up work? If you stay at work, you won't have so much financial difficulty. Could your Dad watch the kids pre / post school etc.?

hsvc

no not at the moment.i need to take the time i need to recover from my loss,my wife and i have been together for twenty years,its such a long time and considering she was only 35 when she died.well you do the maths? i will look for part time work in the future but for now i need to look after our two girls.i worked shifts anyway and was only an agency worker.ive spoke to them and we both agreed it wasnt possible for me to continue at the moment.

SuziQ

I'm so very sorry for your loss,so young.

Did you give your job up? I thought that they penalised anyone who had given up work to apply for benefit. I'm not criticising you for this,but did you take advice before taking this step,or are you still employed and able to rethink this? Sounds like you might be better to ask for unpaid leave in that case-as your dad has a serious wadge of cash might he help you out for a few months? I certainly would if I had a child in your position,and you had done him a massive favour by 'hiding' the money for him!

I'm not sure giving up your job is a healthy thing for you to do. Maybe bereavement counselling and help with the chid care would enable you to continue with your job-a great example to your children also that when dreadful things happen,we all have to somehow carry on. Good luck and I hope 2010 will be kinder to your family.

DX2

hsvc wrote: »

thanks to everyone for there replies.yes i am getting widowed parents allowance.does this mean im not entitled to income support anyway?i dont know if i am or not.and ive sorted out my child tax credits.i have claimed for the bereavment payment and have allready recieved a cheque for 2 thousand pounds which is the maximum you can get.i am still waiting to hear about the funeral payments claim i made.

Income support is 64.30p/w
WPA is £95.25 p/w so you won't get IS as you already get over and above what the law says you need to live on. Sadly this means you won't get all the passport benefits that go with IS.

chesky369

How old are your daughters?

AsknAnswer2

SuziQ wrote: »

I'm so very sorry for your loss,so young.

Did you give your job up? I thought that they penalised anyone who had given up work to apply for benefit. I'm not criticising you for this,but did you take advice before taking this step,or are you still employed and able to rethink this? .

Only for JSA. As the OP is a lone parent, he is entitled to IS (or in this case, widowed parent's allowace) whether he leaves his job voluntarily or not and will not receive a sanction.

Oldernotwiser

AsknAnswer2 wrote: »

As the OP is a lone parent, he is entitled to IS

This will depend on the age of his children.