refused maternity grant how do I appeal

poppyscorner

Hi all,

I had a baby boy 16th March prior to his birth I wasnt entitled to a maternity grant but afterwards it appears I am the form says if you are entitled to more than the family element of CTC then you can get it well we are entitled to more than the family element of ctc BUT we werent claiming these credits prior to his birth even though we already have a 4 yr old and because I wasnt claiming I dont have the supporting info for the maternity grant i.e the award notice even though I know our entitlement to the credits have applied now but will take a while to sort out. How do I appeal the maternity grant decision as stated above it was only rejected as I don't yet have award notice seems crazy to me I could provide them with income details but they arent interseted any advice appreciated hope this all makes sense Amanda x

babyboo42

Hi I take it you are referring to the sure start £500 grant? It can be applied for up to 3 months after you give birth so I would get another form from the jobcentre and re-apply. You normally have a month to appeal decisions so depending upon when you were refused it might be easier to do that.I would ring the jobcentre and explain.good luck

Morglin

You can download an application form here:

http://www.jobcentreplus.gov.uk/JCP/Customers/WorkingAgeBenefits/Dev_013950.xml.html

Lin

Scarlett1

doesnt this grant depend on how much income a family has rather than just a qualifying benefit, im sure I read somewhere a £15,000 maximum limit ?

Becles

You can get it if you qualify for more than the basic child tax credit of £545 per year.

This works out roughly as households with an income of under £25K.

paul.nikki

Hi put in your claim to the grant and state on it you are awaiting the outcome of your taxcredit claim ( this means your claim is regestered with them before the 15 week deadline after the baby is born). When you have been awarded it give them a ring to inform them ( they can check tax credits system as they have access ) Even if it is awarded after the 15week date you have regestered the claim so if you are entilted you will get the money they will not pay you until tax credits have been awarded and they can assess if you are entitled. If you wish to appeal against the decision you need to ask the Jobcentre for a GL24 form ( this is the appeal form ) It can take up to three months for an appeal to be heard. I would ring appeals once you have sent the form to make sure they have recieved it.

Hope this help
Nikki