Want to return to work - term time only

seppy_2

I am a single parent and have always worked. Due to my son's disability, I was forced to give up work and become his full time carer for a year and subsequently go onto benefits. My son has now been placed in the appropriate special needs provision and attends a special school. I would like to come off benefits and return to work, but due to the nature of my son's special needs I am only able to work during term time so am looking for a part-time job in a school etc. I need to be available for him when he is not at school and it makes the type of jobs that I can do very limited.

I am trying to do a "better off calculation" but I am not sure how this will work because the jobs I am applying for have pro-rata salaries and I will only be working for approx. 40 weeks of the year because of term times. Obviously this means that I will only get paid for 40 weeks of the year. It is very difficult to work out how much money I will receive for working and how much working tax credit etc. I could be entitled to, does anyone know or have similar experience or advice?

I have a strong work ethic and a social conscience and want to be a good example to my 3 children and take responsibility for myself, however, it would seem utterly crazy to come off benefits if after working 30 hours a week I would be worse off. Can anyone shed any light on this?

Thanks

mysk_girl

Pro Rata salaries are difficult to calculate, I run payroll for a preschool and it gives me nightmares everytime one of the staff changes hours!

Anyway, I do it like this (as advised by the preschool learning alliance)

£15,000 salary is for 40 hours a week, 52 weeks a year. You are legally entitled to 5.6 weeks holiday (obviously your employer may give more, but I'll show you the calcs for 5.6 weeks). But you can't accrue holiday while ON holiday, so to speak, so the £15k is effectively for working 46.4 weeks.

For term time working, I assume that you will not be allowed to take paid annual leave in term time, so it will all be paid in the summer holidays.

Assumption that you will be working 30 hours a week, 40 weeks a year.

£15,000 * 30/40 = £11250 (this would be for working 30 hours a week, 52 weeks a year - the 40 is the number of hours a full time member of staff would work)

40/46.4 * 5.6 = 4.83 (number of weeks holiday you are entitled to for working 40 weeks, not 46.4)

40 + 4.83 = 44.83 = number of weeks salary you can expect to be paid, this INCLUDES your paid annual leave

44.83/52 * £11250 = £9698.80 = pro rata annual salary INCLUDING holidays

I divide by 12 and pay in equal installments so our staff get a payslip in August, so your gross monthly salary would be £808.23

If you worked a full tax year on this salary, I calculate deductions as about £48 a month (for 2012/2013) tax year, leaving you with about £760 take home pay.

Hope that helps!

mysk_girl

Obviously adjust the numbers to suit the salary/hours/weeks on offer!

Oldernotwiser

Also, you should have a Lone Parent Adviser who could do this calculation for you.

seppy_2

Thank you very much, all three replies very helpful and appreciated. Unfortunately the pro rata salary is only up to 11,000 but like you say, I can adjust the figures! I understand what you are saying about enrolling the help of a lone parent adviser and I will look into it. I have not wanted to phone the benefits people because they always ask for your NI number and I'm too scared for them to have anything on file because I haven't actually got a job yet its all hypethetical and I don't want to shoot myself in the foot if I am grossly worse off! Thanks though.

Sixer

Hi OP. When you're working things out, note that if you are contracted to work term-time only (eg you're working as a school receptionist or dinner lady or somesuch), then this is how it works:

The number of hours you work a week WHEN you are working are what you claim for - so if you work 9-1 Mon-Fri in term time, you tell tax credits you work a 20 hour week, even though this is only in term time.

You claim for the income you earn over the whole year, regardless of how many hours you work over the whole year.

http://www.cpag.org.uk/scotland/taxcredits/tax_credits_and_flexible_working_19.htm

http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/taxcredits/start/claiming/income-hours/work-out-hours.htm