A guide to benefits; please read before posting.

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Healthy Start

This scheme provides fixed valued vouchers that can be exchanged for milk, infant formula, fruit and vegetables.

It is for pregnant women from the 10th week of pregnancy and children under four years old in families who recieve IS, IBJSA, IBESA or CTC (where there is no entitlement to WTC and an annual income of less than £16,190).

Claims forms are availble from your midwife or health visitor or by calling 0845 607 6823.

More information

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National Insurance contributions

Class 1 - paid on earnings of £110 per week or over.
People earning between £97-110 will be treated as having paid NIC.

Class 2- paid by self employed people (unless excempt because profits are low) at a flat rate of £2.40 per week.

Class 3 - voluntary contributions.
Only gives entitlement to state pension and bereavement benefits.
At a flat rate of £12.05 per week.

Class 4 - paid by self-employed people with profits between £5715 and £43875.

Prior to 1977 married women could chose to pay a reduced contribution. This gives no entitlement to benefits, if you are still doing this you should seek professional advice to see whther it is worth opting to pay the full contribution rate.


National Insurance credits

You can be credited with NICs which can satisfy the contribution conditions for contribution based benefits. The main circumstances for being entitled to one contribution credited per week are;
Unemployment [if you meet the qualifying conditions for JSA]

Incapacity or limited capability for work.

Age 16-18, if credits are needed.

Men who have reached the PC qualifying age, if credits are needed.

Recieving CB for a child under 12.

Foster parents

Caring for severely disabled person for at least 20 hours per week.

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Guardian's Allowance

This benefit can be claimed for anyone who is responsible for a child or young person who is not your birth or adopted child.

It can be claimed if both of the child's parents are dead, or one is dead and the other is either;

untraceable and their location is unknown

in prison with a minimum of two years left to serve or is detained in hospital by order of a court

divorced and not liable for either maintenance or custody of the child.

This is a non-contributory benefit and is ignore as income for means tested benefits and tax credits.

It can be paid on top of child benefit, however it overlaps with child dependant additions paid with non-means tested benefits.

How to claim

call 0845 302 1464


More information

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Overlapping Benefits

Some means-tested benefits are overlapping which means you can not claim two of them at the same time. If there is entitlement to more than two overlapping benefits then the contributionary benefits will be paid instead of the non-contributionary benefit, which can be topped up by the non-contributionary benefit if needed.

The overlapping benefits are;
Bereavement Allowance
CA
CBJSA
CBESA
IB
MA
SDA
SP
WP
Widowed Mother's or Widowed Parent's Allowance.

SSP can be paid at the same time as Bereavement and Widow's benefits, CA and SP but not with any other benefit on the list.

CA is usually paid instead of SDA

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State Pension

Can be claimed once pension age has been reached.

Before 6th April 2010 the pension age for women was 60 and for men was 65.

Pension age for women will be raised from 60 to 65 between April 2010 -2020.

If you were born after 5th April 1959 your pension age is 65

You can check your state pension forecast by ringing 0845 300 0169


The basic state pension can be reduced if you do not have enough NICs.

The SP can be increased by;

an additional pension under the SERPS scheme or State Second Pension

a graduated pension

25p age 80 or over.


Earnings do not affect the SP, however the pension is taxable.

Pensions counts as part of income for means tested benefits.

It is an overlapping benefit.





Additional State Pension



You can build up additional State Pension if you are below State Pension age and you are:

• employed and earning over £4,940 (from any one job)
• looking after children under 12 years old and claiming child benefit
• caring for a sick or disabled person for more than 20 hours a week and claiming Carer's Credit
• a registered foster carer and claiming Carer's Credit
• receiving certain other benefits due to illness or disability

If you are employed and have a pension then you may be ‘contracted out’ of the additional State Pension. This means you probably do not build up additional State Pension. Find out more in ‘Contracting out of the additional State Pension’ below.
SERPS and the State Second Pension

The additional State Pension has gone under different names in the past. You used to get additional State Pension through the State Earnings-Related Pension Scheme (SERPS). See ‘SERPS and the State Second Pension’ to find out more.


Reference


Deferred Pension Payment

You can decide to delay claiming your SP.

This means you could get either an higher weekly SP rate or a one off taxable lump sum payment.

However, to get an extra weekly amount you must delay claiming your SP for at least 5 weeks (1% for every 5 weeks delay).

You can claim the lump sum payment if you have delayed claiming your SP for a least 12 months in a row.


How to claim

You should automatically recieve a claim form four months prior to reaching state pensionable age.

If you have not recieved this you can call 0845 60 60 265.

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Statutory Maternity Pay

You can only claim SMP if you are pregnant and employed.

Paid up to 39 weeks whist you are on maternity leave from work.

You do not have to repay this if you decide not to go back to work.

You must have worked for the same employer for 26 weeks by the qualifying week [15th week before the week in which your baby is due].

To qualify you must at least have average earnings of £97 per week.

Higher Rate 90% of your average earnings for 6 weeks
Lower Rate £124.88 or 90% of average earnings, which ever is lower for the remaining 33 weeks.


You can claim SMP from the 11th week before the baby is due.

This is a non-contributory benefit and is counted as income for some means tested benefits.

It is counted as earnings with a disregard for HB, LHA and CTB.

For the purposes of TC deduct £100 per week, which is disregarded.

How to claim

You must notify your employer 28 days before you are intending on going on maternity leave.

You may need to do this in writing.

The employer requires evidence of when the baby is due by giving them a copy of the MATB1 issued usually by your midwife.

More information

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Maternity Allowance

This can be claimed if you're pregnant or recently given birth and do not have any entitlement to SMP.

You can be either employed or self-employed.

You must have worked for 26 weeks in the 66 weeks before the baby is due.

The 26 weeks can be combined self-employment and employment.

Your average wage must be £30 per week.

MA is paid for 39 weeks and can start from the 11th week before the baby is due.


90% of your average weekly earnings or £124.88, which ever is less.

£124.88 if you're self-employed and paid class 2 NICs for at least 13 weeks in the 66 weeks before the baby's due date.

90% of £30 if you had a small earnings exemption from paying NICs for 13 weeks in the 66 weeks before the baby is due. You will be treated as earning £30 per week.


MA is a non-contributory benefit and is treated as income for means tested benefits.

For the purposes of TCs it is totally disregarded.

How to claim

You can get the form from your midwife or JCP.

Your employer, if you are not entitled to SMP, will give you an SP1 form to send to the DWP.

More information

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Statutory Paternity Pay

A parent is entitled to paternity leave who;

expects to have responsibility for the child's upbringing, and

is the biological father or the mother's husband or partner, and

has worked continuously for their employer for at least 28 weeks.

SSP is available for those entitled to Paternity Leave and earn at least on average £97 per week.

It is payable to both men and women.

It is made for a maximum of 2 weeks by the employer.

The earliest is can start is on the date of the baby's birth or adoption placement and the lastest it can be claimed is 8 weeks after that date.

£124.88 a week if you have earned £97 a week or more or 90% of average earnings, which ever is lower.

SPP is non-contributory and is counted as income for means tested benefits.

It is counted as earnings disregards for HB, LHA and CTB.

£100 is disregarded per week for TCs purposes.

More information

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Housing Benefit

If you're on a low income, whether you're working or not, and need financial help to pay all or part of your rent, and live in either a council or housing association property, you may be able to get Housing Benefit.

You can't usually get Housing Benefit if:

• you have savings of over £16,000, unless you are getting the 'guarantee credit' of Pension Credit
• you live in the home of a close relative
• you're a full-time student (unless you're disabled or have children)
• you're an asylum seeker or are sponsored to be in the UK

Important Note: Child Benefit is no longer counted as income when working out how much Housing Benefit or Council Tax Benefit you can get.

If you live in council accommodation or other social housing, the most Housing Benefit you can get is the same as your 'eligible' rent.

If you are a council tenant, your council will pay any Housing Benefit straight into your rent account.

If you're not a council tenant, your Housing Benefit will be paid:

• to you by cheque
• by Direct Payment into your bank or building society account

Local Housing Allowance

LHA was introduced nationally from 7 April 2008 and now applies to most new claims by private tenants. However, there are some exceptions. If you rent from a private landlord, you will not be assessed using the local housing allowance rules if:

• you pay a registered 'fair rent' (eg you are a regulated tenant)
• a substantial part of your rent is for board and attendance (such as in a hotel)

you rent a hostel, caravan, mobile home or houseboat.

If you were already claiming housing benefit when LHA was introduced in your area, you may continue to receive housing benefit for a while, but your claim will be switched to local housing allowance when you make a new claim, change address, or your circumstances change.

Local housing allowance does not apply to council tenants, or those renting from a housing association (see Housing Benefit)

If you rent a property or room from a private landlord, your Housing Benefit will be calculated with the Local Housing Allowance rules.

If you are a private tenant renting property or room from a private landlord and you are on a low income, you may be able to claim and receive Local Housing Allowance.

If you have been getting Housing Benefit since before 7 April 2008 the Local Housing Allowance will only apply to you if you:

• change address
• have a break in your claim

With the Local Housing Allowance, your Housing Benefit is worked out according to where you live and who lives with you. Local Housing Allowance rates are set for different types of accommodation in each area. The rates range from a single room in a shared house up to properties with five bedrooms.

Local Housing Allowance rates are calculated each month for individual areas. You can check these locally on your local council's website or by visiting the Local Housing Allowance Direct website https://www.lha-direct.voa.gov.uk/Secure/Default.aspx

This will tell you how much help with your rent you might get before you find somewhere to live, making it easier for you to decide what property you can afford.

Shelter (http://england.shelter.org.uk/get_advice) is a website that can offer help, advice and support in all matters from homelessness, eviction, renting and leaseholders to repairs and neighborhood issues.

FAQ

Can I get Housing Benefit if I am living with my parents?
If you are renting a home from a family member and they live in the same house, you won't be able to get housing benefit, even if you are paying them rent.
A close relative is a:

• husband or wife
• civil partner
• partner
• parent or step-parent
• father-in-law or mother-in-law
• child or step-child
• son-in-law or daughter-in-law
• brother or sister
• brother-in-law or sister-in-law
• partner of any of the above.

Can I get LHA if I rent a house from my parents?
If you live in a property owned by a family member and pay them rent, you may be entitled to LHA. However, this will not be the case if you (or your partner) are responsible for a child and are renting from the other parent of that child.

The council will also want to check:

• that you're paying rent on a commercial basis. In other words, that it's a proper tenancy, not just an informal arrangement between family.
• that the arrangement has not been set up in order to take advantage of the housing benefit system - this is called a 'contrived tenancy'. For example, if your landlord only asks you to pay rent when you are not working (and so are eligible for housing benefit), but not when you are working (and earning too much to claim housing benefit), this would be a contrived tenancy.

I have a mortgage - can I get Housing Benefit to help with the mortgage?
No, you cannot claim HB or LHA on a property you own. If you are claiming the relevant benefits you should begin to receive mortgage interest relief after the 13th week of your claim. You can only claim help on mortgages up to the value of £200,000.

My rent is lower than the LHA I am receiving. Can I keep the difference?
If you do not have to pay anything towards your rent, you can keep the difference (up to a maximum of £15 per week) between your actual rent and the local standard rent.

Can I rent something bigger than the LHA say I need?
Yes, although you will have to make up the difference in rent.

How do I claim HB or LHA?
When you want to make a claim, you should phone the housing and council tax benefit department at your local council to let them know that you want to make a claim. You can find the contact number in the phone book or your council's website. They will then send you a claim form.

Make a note of the date and the name of the person you spoke to at the council. This is important because, if you are entitled to housing or council tax benefit, it will be paid from the Monday after the date you told the council you wanted to make a claim, not the date you actually handed your form in.

What is a Discretionary Housing Payment?
If you get some housing benefit or council tax benefit but are having difficulty paying the rest of your rent yourself, you may be able to get a discretionary housing payment.

A discretionary housing payment can be paid to you if the council believes that you need further help with housing costs. This may include help with paying off arrears in some circumstances, although not if you were receiving enough housing benefit to pay all of your rent at the time the arrears built up.

A discretionary housing payment cannot be paid if the reason for shortfall is that your housing benefit has been reduced to recover an overpayment

Other than the ones above, there are no rules about who can get discretionary housing payments. Each housing/council tax benefit department is given a pot of money and they are allowed to decide who should be given the payments.
The housing benefit department will usually take into account any special circumstances that contribute to your financial difficulties, for example, if:

• you have to pay child maintenance
• you have to pay legal costs
• you have extra heating costs because you spend a lot of time at home because you are sick or have a disability
• you have additional travel costs because you travel to a doctor or hospital or you care for a relative or friend

.

You will have to fill in a claim form. You will be able to get this by phoning or going into your local council office. Be sure to ask for a discretionary housing payment form, as it is different to the form that you will have filled in when you first claimed housing or council tax benefit.

You will be asked to give evidence of your expenditure (ie the money you have going out). This could be a copy of a bill or your bank statements. You should also provide any information about your circumstances that make things difficult for you financially.

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Pension Credits

Who can claim

The date women become entitled to the State pension is also when men and women become eligible for pension credits. Due to the women's pension age due to rise to 65 during the next ten years means that the age of entitlement for PCs will also rise.

Pension credits is made up of two parts;

Guarantee credit;

This is means tested.

It ensures that individuals/couples at the eligible ages does not live on less than the government believes that they should do.

£132.60 for a single person and £202.40 for a couple.

Extra premiums are paid if you qualify for the severe disability addition, you are a carer or have relevant housing costs.

£10,000 savings are disregarded and there is no upper limit.



Savings credit,

for over 65s who have modest savings and extra income above the savings credit threshold [occupational pension or savings over £10,000].

Maximum amount of savings credit is £20.52 for a single person and £27.09 for a couple.

This can be paid on top of guarantee credit or on its own.



All benefits are counted in full as income apart from;

AA
DLA
HB, LHA/ CTB
CB
CTC
GA
£10 war widow's or war disablement pension/armed forces
£10 widowed mother's or wodowed parent's allowance.

For Savngs credit only

WTC
IB
CBESA
CBJSA
SDA
MA
Maintanance payments.


Other disregarded income

£20 rent from sub-tenants
first £20 from borders plus 50% of any charge over £20.
charitable and voluntary payments.

How to claim

Ring 0800 99 1234


Changes in circumstances

If you or/and your partner are over 65 you may be given an assessment income period of up to 5 years.

If you are over 75 your income assessed period maybe set or renewed if you already have one for an indefinite period.

An income assessed period means that you do not have to inform PCs of any changes to your income or pensions. Your income assessed period could end if you become part of a couple or single or move into a care home.

If you are not given an assessed income period you do need to report any changes of income such as savings or retirement pensions which could affect your entitlement.

Please check your beenfit award to see a list of what changes you must report.

If you recieve guarantee credit you will be entitled to the maximum HB, LHA and CTB even if your capital exceeds £16000 as it is totally disregarded. You also could be entitled, if you're a home owner, for help with the interest of your mortgage straight away.

For savings credit, your capital is not disregarded and you must have less than £16000 to qualify.