Housing Benefit and JSA not enough D:

Benefits_Bod

I agree that some of the information given is contradictory. On the one had, the OP says s/he is not a student, yet the second post refers to taking exams.

For HB purposes, a full time student remains a full time student until either the course has ended OR is formally abandoned. The reference to exams at least implies the course was not formally abandoned nor that the course had ended. Non-attendance of classes in itself would not count as abandoning the course. IF you remained a full time student, there should be no HB at all (unless there is more info not posted that would lead to one of the exceptions being engaged).

On the assumption that the OP is NOT a full-time student, there is something that may be arguable on the HB side. This assumes the OP's HB falls within the LHA scheme. If the OP was not entitled to HB within the previous 52 weeks (at any address) AND could afford the financial commitments for the (new) dwelling when they were entered into, the LHA limit should not be applied for the first 13 weeks of HB at the new address. The term "financial commitments" is from the HB regulations and it is arguable that this means more than just the amount of rent.

moseymoose

Jemma-T wrote: »

You must be very thin.

I'm not sure why you didn't think through all these things before you moved. You'll have to go home and just post any work from there and sort yourself out. Or get a job and probably still struggle.

Go home if you can.

I did have a job, but it was so difficult to earn a living from that I stopped it, it was a door to door sales job selling charity, nobody wanted to join them because people just dont have the money in the current economic climate, they were 14 hour days and I earned not a penny because it was 100% commission. I didn't realise this because it wasn't made very clear so I thought I'd got myself a stable job.

I would go home, but then I'd be worse off I'd still be liable for the rent but without the housing benefit, they've stopped my JSA without prior warning and told me I wont be getting it for the 23rd or from the date I last signed, which I'm so angry about because why allow me to waste my time signing on twice if they never intended to pay me JSA, they reckon I haven't payed enough class 1 National Insurance from april 2009 to april 2010, but what about all the National Insurance from 2008 to 2009 and 2010 to 2011, basically, they are telling me that I haven't payed them enough of their precious tax to deserve to live and look for work. I'm applying for a job I've got a very good chance of getting good results with on monday because I'm quite experienced in that field of work and engineering. But now I won't even be able to get to the trial week because the Job Centre were supposed to be covering my travel expenses to and from the job trial.

I thought I would have my rent money together today because with JSA and Housing it would have been enough to pay this months, but now I can't afford it at all with only housing benefit I can either pay my rent or live. I'm so unbeliably angry at them I can't even describe, I can't get through to anyone at the job centre because "all their lines are busy" I think to myself "yeah, thats because you cancel money people are relying on without warning" I dispair, I really do, they go on about people who commit benefit fraud... seriously? Getting financial help form the government is like trying to get blood out of a stone. I just don't see how so many people can commit benefit fraud easily when people who need genuine support are discarded with no regard whatsoever.

moseymoose

Benefits_Bod wrote: »

I agree that some of the information given is contradictory. On the one had, the OP says s/he is not a student, yet the second post refers to taking exams.

For HB purposes, a full time student remains a full time student until either the course has ended OR is formally abandoned. The reference to exams at least implies the course was not formally abandoned nor that the course had ended. Non-attendance of classes in itself would not count as abandoning the course. IF you remained a full time student, there should be no HB at all (unless there is more info not posted that would lead to one of the exceptions being engaged).

Ah this is some good news for me, so because I haven't formally abandoned my course, and the expiration date for completion of the course is not up till January 2013 I can class myself as a full time student and apply for a grant or student maintenance loan to fund my accommodation and living costs so that I can re-enrol and attend my college full time? That's the best result I could possibly ask for, because really, that's all I'm up here for, so that I can finish my course in Engineering and find work that I aspire to do.

moseymoose

debrag wrote: »

You have exams every week? Get a bar job and request the evenings of when you need to.
Where did you live when you were a FT student?
Why did you have to leave?

I have exams when I choose to speak to the appropriate lecturer to arrange a resit examination on a Tuesday or Thursday evening.

I lived on campus at the college and the accommodation was payed for by my sponsor company. I left because I failed to complete the course by the time the sponsorship ended and I've been trying ever since to get the money together to be able to afford to get back, because the college is so far from my hometown its impractical to study away from college as I need access to the lecturers and to the Library.

I've tried to get on a sponsorship again, but they wont let me, but I'm thinking that if I complete my HND they will sponsor me to do my other part of my course - the NVQ L3 and Engineering Officer of the Watch Certificate.

LL30

Have you spoken to your student finance office at all? It seems crazy that you're in such a pickle and not communicating with them. Reading between the lines, and I may be wrong but: your sponsorship ended because you failed some/a module/s and were referred and therefore did not complete for the summer as expected? If so, you are a student...which is kind of ironic as you were sounding off about people being able to commit benefit fraud, and you not being able to get anything when in fact if you are a student, you've been committing housing benefit fraud...people in glass houses and all that...

And I'm not being funny (because seriously, I rarely am) but there's no way if this is the case that you're in college all day...unless I am totally missing something?

moseymoose

Well, I don't know, I guess I'm just naive, I thought that because I failed to complete my course on time the sponsorship ended that was it, I needed to fund myself and find work, I had a tempuary job from February to May this year where I worked myself out of my student overdraft and prepared to find work in Newcastle to fund my resits at college. I had no idea that I could do anything still as a student, I thought that I needed to be enrolled to be called a student and my enrollment ended last November. So I don't know what to do now, I don't want to be in trouble or committing fraud but then I don't want to be unknowingly refusing student support, I don't know where I stand. I'll look to see if I can find where the Student Finance Office is in Newcastle and see what I can find out.

I'm not in college all day, but if I could get student finance for maintenance and enrolment, I would be. I wouldn't need HB if I was entitled to Student Finance.

LL30

You live and learn, it's not always easy, but you get there in the end! Hope you've managed to make some progress today and clarified your position

vroombroom

Moneymoose, do you live near a metro? I know a bar in Sunderland town centre taking on staff

Jemma-T

There's a lot of people struggling at the moment (especially people under 30 I reckon) but they have to start planning their lives better because if it's bad now it may get worse.

The OP's situation seems very unclear but I think there's more to it and a bit of wisdom is needed to solve things. That may not arrive but hopefully your job will. Start saving anything you can and plan your life a bit better.

And you need to obtain advice and ask questions before you get in a muddle. That again is part of planning your life.

Preparation. Rarely can one have too much of that.

moseymoose

vroombroom wrote: »

Moneymoose, do you live near a metro? I know a bar in Sunderland town centre taking on staff

It would be a bit awkward to work in Sunderland, study in South Shields and live in Newcastle, I need something in Newcastle/Gateshead really where I don't have to worry about getting on the last metro if I'm doing evening shifts. But hey I won't rule it out do you know what it's called?