Could claim benefits...but choose not to! Why?

AimeesMum_2

I unfortunately don't have the support of family to look after my children for me. Blame the childcare providers for charging so much...not people who need to claim it in order to keep themselves in a job.

lovetowinacar

melly1980 wrote: »

those credits were there in different forms. I didnt realise it until it was point it out on here. Then the other day when clearing some rubbish out of the attic i stumbled on a P60 (or whatever number it is) from before 02 and there it was on there. You just got it automatically without having to apply for it.

Actually no there was no free childcare provision at all - we paid for it. Many mums used other mums, family help and fairly cheap playgroups then. Now there is a huge industry of overcharging childcare provision paid for by the taxpayer - can the country really affort it???? No! I believe what you are referring to was the old married mans allowance - many people would state that covers the child tax credits HOWEVER that did not cover CHILDCARE costs since nothing extra paid out to fund childcare as nowadays

AimeesMum_2

He can't look after them...if he was able to then he would be working. Of course I would have to stop working. Our childcare costs are £320 a week. If I was to have to pay that myself then I wouldn't have any money left to feed my kids and put a roof over there heads.

Unfortunately it seems on this forum that you'll get shot down no matter what path you choose.

lovetowinacar

AimeesMum wrote: »

I unfortunately don't have the support of family to look after my children for me. Blame the childcare providers for charging so much...not people who need to claim it in order to keep themselves in a job.

I was referring to your unworking partner not other family. The one you state is on IB and looking for a job.

lovetowinacar

AimeesMum wrote: »

He can't look after them...if he was able to then he would be working. Of course I would have to stop working. Our childcare costs are £320 a week. If I was to have to pay that myself then I wouldn't have any money left to feed my kids and put a roof over there heads.

Unfortunately it seems on this forum that you'll get shot down no matter what path you choose.

You did actually state he was looking for a job in another thread. Therefore that poses the natural question of whilst he is looking for a suitable job why not look after your children instead of the expensive childcare? Just asking questions since it would save you money in childcare costs.

In my very first post I did blame the childcare providers who appear to be cashing in by increasing fees by much more than inflation whilst paying their employees a low wage knowing that the government ie the tax payer will pay the fees in the large part..... crazy situation for the country.

AimeesMum_2

lovetowinacar wrote: »

Now there is a huge industry of overcharging childcare provision paid for by the taxpayer - can the country really affort it???? No!

If you weigh it up I think you will see that it is better to pay childcare costs than to pay the alternative.

Pay £1000 in childcare tax credits. I am paying £550 in tax. Claiming £450 more than my tax.

or I leave my job (this would be the only other alternative) and pay

£400 rent benefit
£100 council tax benefit
£400 tax credits
£480 income support

An excess of £1480 not to mention free school meals, uniform allowance etc and me paying no tax.

lovetowinacar

AimeesMum wrote: »

If you weigh it up I think you will see that it is better to pay childcare costs than to pay the alternative.

Pay £1000 in childcare tax credits. I am paying £550 in tax. Claiming £450 more than my tax.

or I leave my job (this would be the only other alternative) and pay

£400 rent benefit
£100 council tax benefit
£400 tax credits
£480 income support

An excess of £1480 not to mention free school meals, uniform allowance etc and me paying no tax.

But you don't need to give up your job when you have an unworking partner who you state is looking for a job claiming IB currently. The other figures sound plucked from the air...lol The point is the same people managed before childcare tax credits and nurseries playgroups were more reasonably priced. Now that childcare providers know that the government will pay for a large percentage of the overinflated fees they charge more. The country pays. The country cannot afford to pay and years ago didn't need to. Either childcare costs need to be capped so parents might shop around for more affordable provision or the percentage must be decreased as is happening now. Why do people who cannot afford to pay for the most expensive nuseries in the area think that the taxpayer should pay for these nurseries for them? Cut your cloth according to your means doesn't appear to apply nowadays.

AimeesMum_2

He is looking for a job at the moment but if I was to take my kids out of nursery I would struggle to get them back in as it takes time to wait for places for a 3yr old and a 5 month old, I would need a month upfront to pay for the childcare and it would hinder his time he was able to look for a job. I also can't take regular time off work for him to attend interviews. We did notify IB that he was looking for a job incase he would have to go onto JSA but they have said that he shouldn't incase he can't handle working and he would lose his return to work credit and his long term status.

GobbledyGook

lovetowinacar wrote: »

An observation:

Perhaps the weekly amount of childcare tax credit needs caping? The percentage has recently changed, maybe it should be lowered again? Perhaps if "benefits" were really only kept for the most vulnerable in Society and not given out to families on higher earnings (child benefit) means testing for winter fuel allowance then maybe we could all pay less tax?

The childcare element of tax credits is capped. They pay 70% of £175 for one child or £300 for more than one child. The percentage has dropped, but I think also the weekly amount has dropped too.

The main issue is, for some reason, they did not predict that nurseries (in particular) would hike up their prices with the introduction of tax credits. The forgotten other downside to that is that families who are claiming tax credits, especially the most poorly off, are having their incomes hammered by greedy childcare providers.

Before tax credits some maybe had to pay £85 a week for childcare so couldn't afford to work. Tax credits were brought in so this allowed them to work and if they had been entitled to (at the time) the full 80% of the £85 then they'd only be paying out £16 a week from their wages. Now people are having to pay around £35+ per day for a nursery meaning that someone in that position would be having to pay out £52.50 per week (£35 before the drop to 70%).

So as well as coining it in from the tax credits the nurseries have made a large impact onto the take home money of families. That's before you take into account the nurseries who charge MORE to families in receipt of tax credits which again hits both the tax payer and the family.

You can see why nurseries do it - they are a business, but it should have been something that was thought of before. When you look at the financial structure of nurseries (and I don't know about business taxes and the likes, but even allowing for them paying £100,000's of tax) they are making an absolute fortune.

Oldernotwiser

AimeesMum wrote: »

He is looking for a job at the moment but if I was to take my kids out of nursery I would struggle to get them back in as it takes time to wait for places for a 3yr old and a 5 month old, I would need a month upfront to pay for the childcare and it would hinder his time he was able to look for a job. I also can't take regular time off work for him to attend interviews. We did notify IB that he was looking for a job incase he would have to go onto JSA but they have said that he shouldn't incase he can't handle working and he would lose his return to work credit and his long term status.

But why can't he look after the children long term? Surely that would save everybody money?