So confused about what to do during the summer

somethingwillturnup

I'll try and get down as much info as possible and hope someone can give me a definitive answer.

I started my degree last year (2012/13) as a single parent and got a single parent grant, an independent student's grant and the usual loan. During the academic year I got married and at the time husband was working but only part time NMW. He was signed off work by doc on 1 May this year and tried to claim income based ESA.

Meantime, my last loan/grant payment came through on 7 May and I won't receive anything else until the new academic year in September. I currently receive CTC and CB. I have put in a claim for HB and CTB.

Initially at the JC my husband was advised to add me to his application for ESA, so he did. Today he found out that he/we are entitled to no ESA/JSA any help from DWP at all. The reason given was that what I had received for the previous academic year, when taken over a 52 period would be more than we would be entitled to as a joint claim on his ESA.

Firstly, I don't have a clue what any of this means. On all of my letters from SAAS/SLC it states that the payments are for term time. I didn't know this at the time, but even though my lectures finished in April and I finished my first year exams in May, the term doesn't ACTUALLY end until June 30. Fair enough, I thought, then we should claim from 30 June, assuming my husband is still signed off work (heart condition, so possibly).

What I want to know is, should I have calculated my loan to last me over the entire 12 months? (If I had known, I could have tried to put some money aside each month to cover the gap - I will be doing that next year). Does this mean my husband is not entitled to anything and we will basically have to live off the CTC and CB until the new academic year? What happens to the ESA claim?

Having to budget for myself and 3 children on my student loan and CTC and CB is hard enough, it may just break me to add another adult onto that already tight budget. I already don't go out much (at all), don't drink, smoke and down to basics for food. Am I now expected to 'keep' (hate that term) my husband as well?

Sorry for this being so long - I wanted to make sure I gave as much info as possible.

I'm in Scotland by the way, if that makes any difference. And it's a four year degree.

brendon

I can't give any advice on your entitlement to benefits, etc, but student loans are supposed to provide for 12 months in all but your last year (even though they don't). In you last year, it will provide for ~9 months, and you will get slightly less in your last year.

Dunroamin

Have you appied for the Adult Dependants' Grant?

https://www.gov.uk/adult-dependants-grant/overview

somethingwillturnup

Thanks brendon - I wasn't aware of that (first in family to go to uni) and no-one mentioned that.

Dunroamin - I haven't even applied for funding this year yet because I didn't know what was happening. With my husband being ill and stuff going on with the kids it was put on the back-burner. Does this still apply in Scotland - I noticed it said Student Finance England?

somethingwillturnup

I had a quick look - it does apply in Scotland. Thing is, how do I prove he doesn't have an income? Would the letter (I'm assuming he'll get) saying he isn't eligible for income-based ESA be enough?

somethingwillturnup

Another thing that's confusing me - on this site and on other student benefit advice websites - it says that we could apply for JSA if we were BOTH students and on the summer break.

The only difference between our situation and that one is that my husband is not a student - but he is unable to apply for any benefit at all. If I was a single parent I would receive JSA over the summer - does this mean my student loan is supposed to last me 12 months because I have a partner? Even if he has no income? Why does it have to last me 12 months, when single parents and two student parent families it doesn't?

It could be I'm looking at this the wrong way and I can't see the wood for the trees, but we've been told so many different things by different people I don't know which way is up any more.

agrinnall

Is your husband well enough to look after the children? If so you could try to get a job over the summer, even if it's part time it would probably pay more than you could have got if you'd been able to claim JSA.

somethingwillturnup

I've been looking for part-time work since I found out I had my place this time last year. It seems that no-one is interested in taking on a mature student doing regular student type jobs (retail, bar work) - whether that's because of my commitments already, my previous experience (I was a legal secretary, then a carer for my autistic son) I don't know, but it's frustrating.

I am trying and open to any suggestions....

Erinnire

Cab and welfare rights told me I can claim is in the summer holidays. The student finance at my uni in the first year runs from 30th September ton30th June, then in year 2 it's the 1st September to the 30th June and in the final year it is the 1st September to finish, which is a reduced rate. In general it is meant to cover the whole year but this is not the case for single parents,disabled students and those on benefits. There is loads of information online but it is tricky to find.

Erinnire

https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=can+students+claim+benefits+over+summer&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&hl=en-gb&client=safari struggling to get individual links as I am on a tablet but this throws up lots of information from different universities. You should speak to the finance and welfare people at your uni and perhaps try the job centre again but ask to speak to someone who knows more about the area.

Voyager2002

The best advice is speak to the welfare and finance team at your university. The systems for student support and for social security do not fit together well, and your situation falls between the two of them. While I am confident that financial support is available somewhere, I think you will need specialist advice to gain access to it. Student unions are good at referring you to the specialists who can help.