Do you claim for Child benefits when the Baby is born?

ironman1

Apologies as I have posted similar elsewhere but still don't quite have the answers I am looking for...

Our Boy is due in around 14 weeks and I have no idea of what we are able to claim. At them moment we both work, although not on mega pay.

My Girlfriend (we are both 24) takes home £930 a month and my pay, due to hour cuts etc has gone down to £1260 a month. As I am Self-Employed but working for a building firm, this obviously means any lates/time off means I earn less. Admittedly depending on the work I can get a bit extra but that is rare and with no overtime for the last six months and not looking like there will be for at least another six, that is basically what I will be getting each month untill I qualify up to the next level (which won't be for at least another couple of years).

All I know is that my GF will receive pay from her work for the first Six weeks, basically £1400 odd, then it goes down to the Statutory Pay of £125ish a week. I think we also get the £40 or whatever it is a week in Tax Credits etc.

We have a Shared Ownership property in London and our Mortgage/Rent/Service Charge adds up to £825 a month without any other expenses. Considering my travel to work costs £40 a week it won't leave us alot. Then obviously the Utilities, food, Council Tax and so on.

After a year my GF said she will hopefully be goign back to work, but with the Baby being one and us not having family to look after him (they all work) how will we afford to put him in a nursery? Ideally I would love for my GF to look after him until he is old enough for school but I simply don't earn enough for her to do so. I only get the £1260 and our outgoings are about £1250.

I am getting quite worried but so excited that we have the littl'un on the way. I thought I would post in here as people may be a bit more clued up on this.

I know it's boring but it does make you wonder if we would have seriously been better off having a baby a few years ago and getting most things paid for (apologies if that sounds bad!). We even miss out on the £190 Mat Grant payment as he is due two days after it finishes!

I am not moaning and I feel lucky with what I have and we rarely go without but my real worry is when the Statutory payments stop in 39 weeks.

Any advice extremely welcome!

Thanks

katygeorge

hi im not totally clued up on this but while researching benefits for my self ive come across a few, you would get ctc on top of your wtc, the earning threshold goes up once you have a child so would be entitled to more wtc. these will also award up to 70% of childcare cost when your gf goes back to work, and then you get your child benefit of around £20 a week from when the baby is born. they are the only ones i know about but its a good place to start looking

karenx

If those figures are after tax and ni that means your joint income is at least 26k. Too much for wtc. And I dont think you will get much in the way of help towards childcare. If she is taking a year off she wont get anything for that period after the stat maternity pay ends and before returning to work.
If she decides not to return to work at all theres no extra benefit you can both get for making that choice.
Theres child benefit of £20 per week you will get AFTER the baby is born and been registered

ironman1

Yes the earnings are after tax but they are hardly mad wages are they! Without her wages it will be very tight. I am interested in finding out more about the Childcare benefit, that would make things alot easier. My GF reckons she will want to go back to work sooner but there is no rush as far as I am concerned. I want her to have the chance to bring up her own baby. She works in a nursery and mentions how certain Mum's/Dads lack a bit of a bond with their baby as some of them are put in there from a VERY early age full time.

I am not saying that is wrong and it depends on the circumstances, but with us if we didn't get a bit of help for costs it would probably make us worse off if my GF went back to work early and we had to pay nursery fees etc.

I am sure we will find out more nearer the time he is born. I am not overly worried but I get a modest wage for hard work and just want to make sure Mother and baby are looked after... It was our choice to work and get a mortgage and obviously try for a baby so I am not EXPECTING much back, just wondering what we are actually 'entitled' too.

katygeorge

I also work in a nursery, well you really have best of both worlds, she can put the baby in the nursery where she works so not missing out and should get a staff discount on the fees (i know we do). and i would still go for wtc and ctc even if they only give you a tini bit its better than nothing, maybe only go back part time

ironman1

Yeah we are going to look into taking him to her nursery, the only thing is she seems to want to leave the one she's working in. Also they don't do part time. I am quite sure, for some reason, they don't let workers take their own kids there either. But worth looking into, thanks

ironman1

Another quick question, which sounds ridiculous so close to the pregnancy, but I have just read on a site that after the 6 weeks full pay you can/should get the other 33 weeks at 90% of your take home pay.

So does that mean, at 930 odd a month, my GF will receive about £205 a week or will it be the SMP of £125ish? We should know but my GF doesn't seem to have a clue and/or doesn't like asking. I can't keep on at her about it as she thinks I am having a go!

vroombroom

its £125 after 6 weeks or 90% of your wage, which ever is the lesser so in your gf's case it would be the SMP. I've read today the SMP is going up to £128 in April, not a massive increase but good nonetheless.

corbyboy

ironman1 wrote: »

Another quick question, which sounds ridiculous so close to the pregnancy, but I have just read on a site that after the 6 weeks full pay you can/should get the other 33 weeks at 90% of your take home pay.

So does that mean, at 930 odd a month, my GF will receive about £205 a week or will it be the SMP of £125ish? We should know but my GF doesn't seem to have a clue and/or doesn't like asking. I can't keep on at her about it as she thinks I am having a go!

After 6 weeks you get 90% of your average weekly earnings up to a maximum of £124.88.

ironman1

Ah that clears it up, I suppose the £128 plus 39 quid or whatever it is a week is quite good really

Js_Other_Half

Have you put your details into http://www.turn2us.org.uk/benefits_search.aspx ?