Husband giving up work to mind children...

barncopxx

I would have thought that given the clamp downs that are happening now with benefits it will be a tough road to you getting them, especially as you are giving up employment voluntarily which is exactly the opposite to what this coalition government are trying to achieve. They are constantly trying now to get people off benefits and back into work. Also be careful, because if they think you could fit evening or weekend work around child care you may be forced to do something you may hate, and risk losing any benefits if you don't stick with it.

Fiver29

nixxx wrote: »

Btw we only get 10/w tax credit which is why we'll initially get housing benefit. Once we get the tax credits we're entitled to the housing benefit will stop as I understand it.

If anyone knows of a job that my husband can do after 5pm that will pay him 17-18k but that still lets him get a night's sleep and look after two toddlers the next day let me know. We have looked everywhere believe me and have found nothing. We have spent the last ten months overspending every month by 500+ just on childcare and using the benefits system is a last resort for us. We are not proud of the situation we're in.

Why does he need to earn that much, if you're managing without it now?

Oldernotwiser

Macro wrote: »

This would worry me most, I think. The OP could become permanently reliant on benefits if her partner renders himself unemployable, and with the changes coming to benefits over the next few years they could be in a very difficult position.

I don't know if I've missed this, OP, but do you know if your partner has enough NI contributions yet to claim a full state pension?

His NICs will be protected if he's home with the children though.

Dontknowanymore

HappyMJ wrote: »

You need to speak with my council they refused to pay any HB until I applied for TC's. After complaining they estimated it (at the maximum rate) and paid an interim HB payment. You have just given me an idea though if what you say is true I can estimate my income to tax credits so that I only get a couple of pounds in tax credits every 4 weeks then tell council that's all I get then when I update tax credits with the actual income then I'll get a payment and only ever get an annual payment of many thousands in tax credits as you say it'll be ignored as it's capital. What a great idea thanks... I'll get onto tax credits and increase my provisional estimate.

You were lucky then cos my council won't estimate anythng to do with tax credits or dwp benefits, they want cold hard evidence.

Dontknowanymore

As far as the HB goes.
When reciving my working tax credit run on of £277 a week, I only got £25 a week housing benefit. That is a total income of just under £14.5k there is no way you will recive any help on £19k surely!

mavisangelica

Oldernotwiser wrote: »

His NICs will be protected if he's home with the children though.

Has the age threshold changed on this now though? I transferred 'home responsibilities' over to my hubby after he was signed off from the sick and got a small part time job which enabled him to look after our son and me to get a better job.

Hubby has now retired from work with full NI years but I think that they stopped applying HR once son reached 12?

Oldernotwiser

mavisangelica wrote: »

Has the age threshold changed on this now though? I transferred 'home responsibilities' over to my hubby after he was signed off from the sick and got a small part time job which enabled him to look after our son and me to get a better job.

Hubby has now retired from work with full NI years but I think that they stopped applying HR once son reached 12?

The OP's children are 1 and 2 so there's a good few years to go yet.

slscarborough

poves wrote: »

Well if you manage to get wtc and hb on £19,000 , let me know how you managed it , I earned £19,000 last year - we only get ctc £150 pw for 3 kids.
No wtc and definately no hb :huh:

I just stuck the figures through entitled to and it states 43.00 a weeks housing benefit so I stand corrected. This would be based on £100.00 a week tax credit entitlement.

Dontknowanymore

Dontknowanymore wrote: »

As far as the HB goes.
When reciving my working tax credit run on of £277 a week, I only got £25 a week housing benefit. That is a total income of just under £14.5k there is no way you will recive any help on £19k surely!

Just realised that my rent is only £75 a week so over £100 less than the OP so the OP possibly receive some benefit if their income was £19k before tax.

chris1973

With the economy in the mess its in and with jobs being lost right, left and centre I would think it would be absolute stupidity to rely on one income, and essentially voluntarily put 'all of your eggs in one basket' in the form of one salary if both parties are able to work, and have been doing.

Most of the people who work and have families who I know, are working all of the hours and overtime they can, in order to put aside every penny they can spare, in order to live off should the worst happen, and one or both of them become unemployed through no fault of their own, and like a lot of people these days - find themselves out of work for what could be a long spell.

What would happen if, god forbid, you were made redundant?. You would immediately be £19k a year down and no benefit is going to replace that.

An increasing number of companies now operate Job Share or flexitime policies to enable hours to be split or shared, and supermarkets and carrier firms like DHL, Fed-Ex often have warehouse jobs with Dawn or Twilight shifts. Why can't hubby look around for one of these?.