Early days but looking for advice

pmlindyloo

First of all, congratulations!

I think you are very sensible to be thinking about the future and your finances.

You are lucky in that it sounds as if you have the potential to expand your business and up your income.

This would be particularly important when your partner goes on maternity leave.

The first thing you need to do is to check her contract of employment and see what she is entitled to.

Then you can make plans!

Babies needn't be expensive but the probable drop in her income may need looking at carefully.

You may want to think about staying where you are and saving as much as you can. You will need at least a month's rent in advance and probably a month's rent in deposit for a place of your own.

Just do your sums carefully. You will certainly be entitled to child benefit. Other benefits may be available in the short term but with your ability to earn more you may not need them.

Good luck!

Elektrik

pmlindyloo wrote: »

First of all, congratulations!

I think you are very sensible to be thinking about the future and your finances.

You are lucky in that it sounds as if you have the potential to expand your business and up your income.

This would be particularly important when your partner goes on maternity leave.

The first thing you need to do is to check her contract of employment and see what she is entitled to.

Then you can make plans!

Babies needn't be expensive but the probable drop in her income may need looking at carefully.

You may want to think about staying where you are and saving as much as you can. You will need at least a month's rent in advance and probably a month's rent in deposit for a place of your own.

Just do your sums carefully. You will certainly be entitled to child benefit. Other benefits may be available in the short term but with your ability to earn more you may not need them.

Good luck!

Thanks so much for your help.

I have enough saved for all essentials including rent for months to come. She has chose to work for as long as possible then take time off when he/she arrives.

We have checked what she will get and to be honest it ain't bad at all which is a good sign.

Indie_Kid

Congratulations!

If your girlfriend is planning to return to work, her employer may offer chill care vouchers.

p00hsticks

There seem to be some rather old fashioned and sexist attitudes appearing on this thread.


I wonder if some of the comments would have been the same if the father to be had been working full time and the mother to be part time rather than the other way round ?


For all we know the couple could decide that the father picks up the brunt of the child care responsibilities as they work less hours.....

bloolagoon

Elektrik wrote: »

Seems no matter where you go you always get opinionated people with unhelpful comments!

I work less than 16 hours but make more than the average wage age month, when I first started out I was working all hours of the day but now I have things streamlined it takes not so long!

I came here asking for advice not folk judging me on how my first born will have a great start in life aswell as other negative comments.

Me or my partner have not claimed a benefit since leaving school and no doubt people will look down there nose at us like they always do, but we are entitled to what we can get!

Thanks to those of you that were actually helpful to me.

Regards

Well you will not get anything then. The average wage is £26,000 which at 1 child precludes you from benefits other than CB.

FBaby

Many things can change once you have a baby. You will have many choices, your partner might decide she doesn't want to get back to work, so will only have your salary to rely on. You can then claim tax credits and the rest. Or maybe she will go to work and you will become a stay at home dad, or you might be satisfied with working part-time. In the end, claiming benefits just on the back of having children is getting more difficult especially when you are self-employed as too many families saw it as a chance to work as fewer hours as possible was claiming more in benefits than earning.

It is not about all the benefits you can claim, but about what maximum income you can get in and benefits being there to top up when this is low, but you do come across as the first category.

Whatever you choose, you might want to consider that although claiming as many benefits as possible and working as little as required might seem very attractive, it is only so short or medium term, long term, you would always gain working as hard as you can.