Single parent benefit advice please

halladay

Hi,

I'm a single dad living in South Wales. Im 25 and have a 4 year old son, living in social housing (2 bed) and am considering that my girlfriend may move in with me.

She is 21 and has a 3 year old daughter and currently lives with her dad.

Both children from previous relationships.

I am self employed and recieve HB, council tax exemption, WTC and CTC and she receives income support and CTC.

Just wondering what will happen to our benefits if we move in together?

Thanks
S

dl5543

Hi,

Citizens Advice will be able to give you some good advice, I've found them really helpful in the past.

Good luck :-)

sammyjammy

She would need to close her claim for Income Support and your claims to CTC, WTC, HB ETC would need to be closed and new claims as a couple made.

Poppie68

halladay wrote: »

Hi,

I'm a single dad living in South Wales. Im 25 and have a 4 year old son, living in social housing (2 bed) and am considering that my girlfriend may move in with me.

She is 21 and has a 3 year old daughter and currently lives with her dad.

Both children from previous relationships.

I am self employed and recieve HB, council tax exemption, WTC and CTC and she receives income support and CTC.

Just wondering what will happen to our benefits if we move in together?

Thanks
S

Your girfriend will have to close her claim for income support, with regards to the other benefits and tax credits you will both have to open new claims as a couple.

halladay

Thanks for the replies, very useful.
The cynic in me is asking if we would be better or worse off financially?

Blindsided_2

halladay wrote: »

Thanks for the replies, very useful.
The cynic in me is asking if we would be better or worse off financially?

:rotfl:

It must be true love

jetplane

halladay wrote: »

Thanks for the replies, very useful.
The cynic in me is asking if we would be better or worse off financially?

The cynic in me thinks your fishing for a bite use turn 2 us and put your numbers in.

BigAunty

halladay wrote: »

Thanks for the replies, very useful.
The cynic in me is asking if we would be better or worse off financially?

If you only focus on loss of some aspects of your benefits, then you won't get the whole picture.

There's also intrinsic benefits, such as promoting values in your children about people in serious relationships living together and bringing up kids together - lone parents are much more likely to produce kids that become lone parents themselves. Lone parents are one of the most impoverished social groups in the UK.

What you should do is also focus on savings - only having one lot of energy, telecoms, contents insurance, council tax, tv, water bills to pay instead of two, plus the economies of scale that come from joint grocery shopping, transport or similar.

To identify your overall savings, download the MSE budget planner for both of you in your current situation and then produce a new single joint one as if you lived together. This will give you the true overall picture of whether you are purely 'financially' better off.

ArtoDeeto

halladay wrote: »

Hi,
I'm a single dad living in South Wales. Im 25 and have a 4 year old son, living in social housing (2 bed) and am considering that my girlfriend may move in with me.
She is 21 and has a 3 year old daughter and currently lives with her dad.
Both children from previous relationships.
I am self employed and recieve HB, council tax exemption, WTC and CTC and she receives income support and CTC.
Just wondering what will happen to our benefits if we move in together?
Thanks
S

Get her to ask for a "Better Off Calculation" at her Jobcentre. It should make you both better off or the system is all wrong

zagfles

Assuming you work 24+ hours and don't claim any childcare, your WTC will stay the same. Your joint CTC will go down £545 (loss of the second family element). Your gf will lose IS. Your HB will go up a bit (higher applicable amount).

If you work under 24 hours you'll lose WTC, but your gf may be able to claim income based JSA (depending how much you earn) if she looks for work.