Inheritance/nursery/loss of benefits

Madconsumer

Hi new here, 
we are a family of 3 soon to be 4 , currently on Universal credit and PIP with Child benefit. 

My husband is a beneficiary for quite a big sum of money ( executer still unsure the full value of estate ) we as a family have guessed with what paper work we have seen could be in the region of between £80,000 to £120,000 , which is a very generous gift . 

Firstly the executer ( solicitor) has told us we will be receiving some money ( don’t know how much at all ) in roughly 6 months time ( after probate) more than likely probably to be over the savings threshold. The rest comes after houses sell and sold some shares the deceased owned . 

My questions are : what do we do if the houses don’t sell for a long time period with what’s happening with living crisis etc and we have lived off the money we have received and it maybe has gone ? As I’ll have a newborn and I suffer with mental health , my partner is my carer and can’t work as I’ll be alone with 2 children and no close family ? 

Even if my husband went back to work , our outgoings are covered by his wage alone and would normally be entitled to some benefits being low income as well but as we have or had a large amount of money any claim .
finally I wanted my son to start nursery soon but won’t be entitled to free child care , as maybe overs can’t is it normal or okay for a child not to go to any school till 5 ? This worried me the most for social aspect . I’m so sorry for long post. 

tacpot12

Once you have less than £16,000 in capital, you can re-claim Universal Credit. Before then, you can spend the money on child-care and other day-to-day living expenses including replacing failed appliances. 

There is evidence that children do better when they start school if they have had social interaction with other children, and a little time away from their parents, so having your son start nursery when they are over three years old will be good for them. I would start them off with just a couple of mornings a week and when they reach four have them do a couple of days a week. This will prepare them to spend full days out of the home, and to interact well with other children, while still giving them plenty of time with you and your husband. 

Your inheritance won't affect your PIP or Child Benefit at all. 

There is a scheme called "Tax Free Childcare" that will give you some help (£2000 a year per child) with childcare costs. This will help your inheritance last a little longer.  I would guess that inheritance will last at least three and a half years which means that your new baby will be nearly four when you become eligible to claim Universal Credit again. At that point, Universal Credit will also help with childcare costs.

The house may take a little while to sell, if the aim is to obtain the absolute best price, but if you receive over £16,000 before the house sells, you will need to inform the DWP (and local authority if you are receiving help with your council tax). 

poppy12345

tacpot12 said:

There is a scheme called "Tax Free Childcare" that will give you some help (£2000 a year per child) with childcare costs. This will help your inheritance last a little longer.

Unless the husband returned to work then they don't qualify for tax free childcare. https://www.gov.uk/tax-free-childcare

OP the house being up for sale can be disregarded from means tested benefits for at least 6 months, (can potentially be increased)

With the rest of the inheritance do you have any debts that need to be paid? Paying of debts while claiming UC is not classed as deprivation of capital. You'll still need to report the savings when they go into your bank. For UC purposes, what counts is your circumstances on the last day of your assessment period.

For council tax reduction, all Local Authorities have their own rules and some have a maximum savings limit of £6,000.

sammyjammy

Who claims PIP you or your husband?  Its not clear on which basis you receive UC, is it for health issues or unemployment or both?  If the property/shares are being sold by the executor then the funds from it don't belong to you until the house is sold, however long that takes.

calcotti

sammyjammy said:

Who claims PIP you or your husband?  It’s not clear on which basis you receive UC, is it for health issues or unemployment or both?

None of those may apply, UC is payable to anyone assessed as on a low income based on their circumstances.

sheramber

If your child is 3 or 4 years old you can get 15 hours free childcare.

https://www.gov.uk/help-with-childcare-costs/free-childcare-and-education-for-2-to-4-year-olds?utm_source=childcarechoices&utm

p00hsticks

poppy12345 said:

tacpot12 said:

There is a scheme called "Tax Free Childcare" that will give you some help (£2000 a year per child) with childcare costs. This will help your inheritance last a little longer.

OP the house being up for sale can be disregarded from means tested benefits for at least 6 months, (can potentially be increased)

Will the timescales not depend/ be relevant  on whether the house(s) have been directly left to the OP (or husband) or if they simply form part of the deceased estate to be sold by the executor in order to distribute the proceeds to the various beneficiaries ?

I've heard of the rule about the proceeds of your house sale being disregarded for up to six months while you wait to purchase another, but I don't know the rules around when a beneficiary of a will is regarded as having received their legacy, and if it varies depending on whether the legacy is property or money.

TELLIT01

Assuming the will doesn't state that any of the properties become the property of the OPs husband, there is nothing to declare to DWP until the executors have actually sold the property or properties and can then distribute funds from the estate.

As has been said above, you will need to inform various authorities once savings/capital exceed £6k and entitlement to many income related benefits cease completely when savings reach £16k.

sammyjammy

calcotti said:

sammyjammy said:

Who claims PIP you or your husband?  It’s not clear on which basis you receive UC, is it for health issues or unemployment or both?

None of those may apply, UC is payable to anyone assessed as on a low income based on their circumstances.

Yes I am aware of that but neither are working.

calcotti

sammyjammy said:I

calcotti said:

sammyjammy said:

Who claims PIP you or your husband?  It’s not clear on which basis you receive UC, is it for health issues or unemployment or both?

None of those may apply, UC is payable to anyone assessed as on a low income based on their circumstances.

Yes I am aware of that but neither are working.

The implication in the opening post is that OP has health problems and partner is a carer.

OP, your husband can claim Carer’s Allowance for looking after you - it is not means tested. While you are on UC it makes no difference to your overall income because the CA will be deducted from the UC but CA will still be paid when UC entitlement stops.

tacpot12

poppy12345 said:

tacpot12 said:

There is a scheme called "Tax Free Childcare" that will give you some help (£2000 a year per child) with childcare costs. This will help your inheritance last a little longer.

Unless the husband returned to work then they don't qualify for tax free childcare. https://www.gov.uk/tax-free-childcare

...

Sorry about that. I saw the requirement for one of the parents to be working and earning a certain, but got confused about the OPs situation. Thanks to poppy12345 for spotting the error.