53 year old dad may be being made redundant

elsien

stephg20 wrote: »

I think to pay for everything they would need about £600pm but thats being very tight.

If it came to it they could survive on JSA i think

Really? If they've got credit card debt now while your dad is in work, then I think they'd struggle on JSA. I've recently been made redundant, and I'd be really struggling if JSA was all that was coming in. My redundancy pay took me over the limit for any other benefits and £73 a week (single person) really doesn't go far.

If he's getting 17K redundancy, minus the loans and credit cards and can scrape by on £600 pm, then that's not a lot of months of redundancy left to find another job. And mum may not want to work, but sometimes it's needs must. Just thinking that if he does run out of money and needs to start claiming for the two of them if his contributions based JSA runs out, then mum might not have any choice but to start looking.

saintjammyswine

There is a pot if funding called ESF (European Social Fund) SSR (Skills Support for Redundancy). This is for people who have been or are formally at risk of being made redundant. It is exactly for people like your dad who are time served which is great but may only know that specific job to help them get either basic retraining in another industry or to help formalise their existing skills (get an NVQ for example) and provide help in finding what skills he has and how these can be transferred to other jobs.
First point of call would be your local FE College who may have access to this fund, if they dont, they may be able to help you.

sniggings

Sounds as if he is best where he is...£17k sounds a lot but it's only a years wage, take off the loan payment, that only leaves £10,000, that will go very fast if his wife likes spending on high interest cards.

It sounds like finding another job will be very hard for him, if he is shy.

Many jobs these days are service jobs, if he won't taxi drive because of shyness, working in the service sector is probably out too.

If he enjoys his job ,probably best stay where he is, if he has the option.

If no pension, and wife spending on credit cards, sounds as it's her that needs to look for a new job, to help out and build a nest egg for retirement, rather than putting it all on him.

Sorry if that sounds harsh but just going by your post, that's my feelings.

Oh and trust me, living on£111 a week dole is not an option, you say £600 a month would be tight, try and spread £444 to last a month.

Your Dad would have to go to the dole to signon, and that's no fun, a shy man such as him, being told he's not applied for 20 jobs a week or whatever number they come up with, so his money is getting stopped would find it a nightmare.

seven-day-weekend

I strongly advise your father to stay where he is.

I am a coach at a Job Club and it is those participants who are not flexible and are not prepared to try other jobs that are the ones still without one. (I don't mean impossible jobs, I mean things like not even considering B&Q).

If he is signing on, the Jobcentre will not allow him to be picky and he will be expected to look for any job he is able to do. If he does not show enough effort , he will be sanctioned.

He has a job that he is familiar with, I suggest he stays in it as long as he can.

lessonlearned

I agree. Your dad would be better off where he is.

I do not mean to be rude but he just isn't flexible enough.

I think his big problem is that because he has spent so long with his current employer he has become a bit nervous about trying anything else. Sounds like he lacks confidence. Taking early redundancy and trying new things would mean him stepping right out of his comfort zone and I think he would find this very stressful.

You say he is a wood machinist. Does he have other carpentry or woodworking skills. Joiners are always in demand, could he retrain.

Re the money side of things. Once those debts are cleared then the remaining £10k is not going to last long.

Your parents are in debt, they have no savings and no contingency. They had to borrow to buy a new boiler, what would happen if they needed roof repairs .........

They need to start budgeting, and start saving. Your mum really needs to have a rethink. She was wrong to get in such a mess that your dad had to bail her out, but that's done so no point dwelling on it. However, she needs to look to the future. Whether she likes it or not she really ought to think about getting some paid work. A part time job would make all the difference.

Your parents aren't in a position to think about retiring. If your dad accepts voluntary redundancy then, in effect, this is exactly whAt they are signing up to.

If your dad is still in good health then he would be best advised to stay where he is and ride it out.

Your parents have done really well to pay off their mortgage - that's a fantastic achievement. They would be best to build on that by working a bit longer and saving as much as they can for their retirement.

trukdiver

saintjammyswine wrote: »

There is a pot if funding called ESF (European Social Fund) SSR (Skills Support for Redundancy). This is for people who have been or are formally at risk of being made redundant. It is exactly for people like your dad who are time served which is great but may only know that specific job to help them get either basic retraining in another industry or to help formalise their existing skills (get an NVQ for example) and provide help in finding what skills he has and how these can be transferred to other jobs.
First point of call would be your local FE College who may have access to this fund, if they dont, they may be able to help you.

If you do that, you need to do your homework first. I applied for SSR and gave them 3 options, giving the advantages of each one and supporting them with example job specs. They went for the cheapest option - not the one that would have been most useful in the job market. My fault for giving them a choice but at least I got some training!

saintjammyswine

trukdiver wrote: »

If you do that, you need to do your homework first. I applied for SSR and gave them 3 options, giving the advantages of each one and supporting them with example job specs. They went for the cheapest option - not the one that would have been most useful in the job market. My fault for giving them a choice but at least I got some training!

SSR doesn't pay the cost of a course. It is a pot of funding that the training provider receives based on 'outcomes'. These include engagement, start & participation on training, achievement of a qualification and progression (for example into a new job or higher level training). The training provider (usually a FE College) will have set courses they offer on the funding as they will make sure the courses are eligible. Very unusual for a candidate to come with a list of courses, especially with the rationale as you did.

trukdiver

saintjammyswine wrote: »

SSR doesn't pay the cost of a course. It is a pot of funding that the training provider receives based on 'outcomes'. These include engagement, start & participation on training, achievement of a qualification and progression (for example into a new job or higher level training). The training provider (usually a FE College) will have set courses they offer on the funding as they will make sure the courses are eligible. Very unusual for a candidate to come with a list of courses, especially with the rationale as you did.

Sorry, I thought it was SSR. It was payment for training for people who have been made redundant and have acquired skills but need a qualification to prove those skills to a potential employer. It was actually the DWP who paid for the course. I thought it was SSR because a) it was for people who had been made redundant and b) the DWP rep said the funding came from ESF. They definitely paid for a course though!

saintjammyswine

trukdiver wrote: »

Sorry, I thought it was SSR. It was payment for training for people who have been made redundant and have acquired skills but need a qualification to prove those skills to a potential employer. It was actually the DWP who paid for the course. I thought it was SSR because a) it was for people who had been made redundant and b) the DWP rep said the funding came from ESF. They definitely paid for a course though!

It may be although through a different route. If DWP paid for it then it is not the same funding but with the same outcome. ESF SSR is usually administered by colleges as it is held by the SFA (Skills Funding Agency) who fund 19+ learners through various routes such as apprenticeships, ESF schemes etc.

Mojisola

stephg20 wrote: »

I think to pay for everything they would need about £600pm but thats being very tight.

Before he ends up out of work, see if they will put some effort into sorting out their spending and debts. If they put a statement of affairs on the Debt-free board, people will help them to trim their spending.