Wanting to go back to work but initial childcare costs are making it difficult.

DJRenegade

Hi guys.
My OH is wanting to return to work however we are struggling to work out how to afford the initial payment for childcare which will be in the region of £500. We know the UC will cover up to 85% of the cost however it is this initial payment that we simply cannot work out how to afford. Due to her career if she doesnt work in a 2 year period she can lose her licence and have to go back to uni for a year, we are nearing that limit now so returning to work is becoming more and more of a must. 

I joined the forces last year so we have recently moved areas and she has just been contacted by a previous employer offering her another job at a location near us which she is eager to take however we have this final hurdle to get over first. I keep hearing that there is help available regarding the first payment but despite many searches I cannot seem to find anything, and we currently have pretty much all of my wage budgeted to cover all the bills so dont have any spare and borrowing is a no go due to bad credit.

Is there really a scheme in place to help with the first payment? 

calcotti

Are you claiming UC at the moment? I think there is a discretionary fund which work coaches can access to help with the upfront cost of childcare - the Flexible Support fund. If you are on UC I suggest speaking to your work coach to see if they can help.
https://cpag.org.uk/news-blogs/news-listings/upfront-families-childcare-costs-universal-credit
https://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2019-07-09/275211/
https://www.turn2us.org.uk/Your-Situation/Looking-for-work/Flexible-Support-Fund

DJRenegade

Thanks - I thought there was something, however my work coach seems to be avoiding mentioning it. I will ask again

DJRenegade

Literally 30 minutes after mentioning the words "Flexible Support Fund" we got a reply asking us to make an appointment. Why they are being so secretive about something the parliament.uk link above is "actively promoted in jobcentres and to all claimants who might benefit" is beyond me lol. Thanks for the advice calcotti.

tomtom256

DJRenegade said:

Literally 30 minutes after mentioning the words "Flexible Support Fund" we got a reply asking us to make an appointment. Why they are being so secretive about something the parliament.uk link above is "actively promoted in jobcentres and to all claimants who might benefit" is beyond me lol. Thanks for the advice calcotti.

Because a lot of childcare providers won't accept it, as it doesn't get paid up front, it's just a promise that the DWP will pay it, once they confirm the child/ren have attended the sessions.

NedS

And also it doesn't actually solve the problem of you having to pay your childcare up front and claim it back later, it just kicks that particular can down the road one month, and it's a lot of paperwork and effort to not actually solve the problem. However, one benefit it does offer is you get the full 100% covered for the first month (or however long they offer) as opposed to 85% under UC. Just my opinion.

Callum

Flexible support fund is essentially DWP fight club. “No one talks about FSF”

Glad you managed to get an appointment.