A little advice needed please

itivvy

Good morning,

this is my first post on the forum, and i'm asking for a little advice please.

I recently got the sack from work for gross misconduct. i dont want to go too much into it, but it wasn't for anything fraudulent or illegal, just a stupid mistake which i was unfortunately bang to rights.

My wife is currently on Maternity leave since february. September will be the final month of her 26 weeks full pay, then she will go to statutory maternity pay for another 12 weeks i believe. The final 12-14 weeks is unpaid unless she returns to work.

My question is:

I know i cant claim jobseekers allowance while i look for a job, due to being sacked for gross misconduct, but would i be eligible for anything else?

The only thing we have ever claimed is child support allowance, which started 6 weeks ago at £20.50 per week.

Any help on what i should do and if i am entitled to any support would be much appreciated.

Thank you in advance for your help.

itivvy

itivvy

a few things i missed are that we are currently renting, and only have a very small amount of savings, as this was out of the blue.

thank you

pmlindyloo

Do use the calculator.

Off the top of my head you may be eligible for tax credits, housing benefit and CT reduction.

Because your partner is currently receiving full pay you will need to keep any benefit departments informed of any change of circumstances (if you get a job/when she goes onto SMP)

Apply for contribution based JSA now. You will be sanctioned but it will likely to be for 13 weeks so worth putting in your claim asap.

itivvy

Thanks guys,

from the calculator it looks like we can apply for help with the rent and council tax.

i will ring the job centre this afternoon to get an appointment.

thanks once again

pmlindyloo

itivvy wrote: »

Thanks guys,

from the calculator it looks like we can apply for help with the rent and council tax.

i will ring the job centre this afternoon to get an appointment.

thanks once again

Most job centres expect you to claim online.

See here:

https://www.gov.uk/jobseekers-allowance/how-to-claim

itivvy

blondebubbles wrote: »

Did it not give you any entitlement to tax credits?

apparently not, unlesss i filled it out wrong.

l

pmlindyloo

itivvy wrote: »

apparently not, unlesss i filled it out wrong.

l

How much does your partner earn?

itivvy

She earns £17000 per year, (£1300 after tax per month) although in september this will be reduced to Statutory Maternity Pay for 13 weeks.

pmlindyloo

Tax credit are usually based on the last tax year's joint income. It is possible that you were not entitled to tax credits because of this. However, you may be entitled to tax credits based on this year's income if your drop in income is over a certain amount.

I see that blondbubbles is around so hopefully she will be able to tell you the ins and outs of applying for tax credits during your present circumstances.

itivvy

pmlindyloo wrote: »

Tax credit are usually based on the last tax year's joint income. It is possible that you were not entitled to tax credits because of this. However, you may be entitled to tax credits based on this year's income if your drop in income is over a certain amount.

I see that blondbubbles is around so hopefully she will be able to tell you the ins and outs of applying for tax credits during your present circumstances.

Thank you.

I guessed it was due to my 13/14 earnings, and not our current situation.

Also it wouldnt let me apply online, so i'm going to give the JC a phone this afternoon