Made redundant, where can I save money?

safester

Hi,

I have recently been made redundant and today (06.01.2025) is my first day of unemployment.

It's been about 20 years since I last claimed any benefits and I'm sure much has changed since then so can anyone give advice where can I save money between now and finding a new job?

I have applied for job seekers allowance but I'm wondering if there are any other benefits I may be able to claim or if I can get reductions on any household bills like utilities or council tax.

I live alone without any dependants, have a mortgage, savings of around £7,000 and expect a significant redundancy package at the end of January (I was granted voluntary redundancy if that makes any difference).

Any help will be greatly appreciated.

Muttleythefrog

First port of call... use one of the benefit checker calculators like https://www.entitledto.co.uk/organisations/benefits-calculator which will ask plenty questions we would have to here to give comprehensive advice on benefits, council tax etc. You could return here to discuss results and what they mean.

In terms of saving money... look out for community larders (usually anyone can use) where often you can get bag fulls of food for little to nothing and build up a bit of social connection too. Check you're getting the best deals on things like household bills (and revisit the issue if you get awarded an income related benefit as there may be suitable social tariffs for things like broadband)... cut back things you don't need like TV packages. Look out for supermarket deals including reduced stuff- use the fact you have more time through the day available to take advantage and also do more home cooking particularly in batches you can fridge/freeze for multiple meals.

Good luck finding new job!

safester

Thanks for the reply.

I'm not looking for things like community handouts, i.e., help with food, just what I may be entitled to whilst unemployed. Household bills is definitely something I'll be looking into, as mentioned in my OP.

poppy12345

safester said:

Thanks for the reply.

I'm not looking for things like community handouts, i.e., help with food, just what I may be entitled to whilst unemployed. Household bills is definitely something I'll be looking into, as mentioned in my OP.

Which is why a benefits calculator was also provided above. Entitlement to welfare benefits unfortunately doesn't take into consideration the bills you have to pay. If you claim Universal Credit your maximum entitlement as a single person without rent costs for your home will be £393.45/month before deductions. 

Your redundancy payment will be treated as capital so if that takes your total capital to more than £16,000 you'll be excluded from claiming. 

For council Tax reduction some local Authorities have a maximum capital limit of £6,000 and then there would be no entitlement to CTR. 

There's New style JSA which pays £90.50/week for 26 weeks. This isn't means tested. 

Spoonie_Turtle

safester said:

Thanks for the reply.

I'm not looking for things like community handouts, i.e., help with food, just what I may be entitled to whilst unemployed. Household bills is definitely something I'll be looking into, as mentioned in my OP.

It's up to you whether you make use of all the help that is potentially available to you, but it would have been remiss of members of a moneysaving website not to mention all sources of that help, not just those administered by the government

Muttleythefrog

safester said:

Thanks for the reply.

I'm not looking for things like community handouts, i.e., help with food, just what I may be entitled to whilst unemployed. Household bills is definitely something I'll be looking into, as mentioned in my OP.

A couple of reasons I raised such.. my guess is you're likely only to get New Style JSA (after receiving redundancy which will likely kill any means tested help) and it's not a lot (around £400 a month)...and it's not forever... so cutting household bills without digging into your savings heavily might need some change unless you quickly again acquire a job. Things like community larders.. they often charge.. these aren't as such places of handouts (which food banks may be considered) but places of saving food from waste.. they can be a bit of a lucky dip (we enjoy lots of M&S, Waitrose food alongside increasingly expensive fresh food) but save vast money that switching utility suppliers or getting a social tariff could not likely match... and they can be incredibly good for connecting to people that themselves may be useful including if seeking work. But these really are a hit and miss concept... some places there'll be good options some maybe none. There are lots of other ways to save money.... as advised your situation may have significantly headed south temporarily but utility bills will be stubbornly difficult to reduce... in fact even social tariffs for things like broadband can be matched with some switching and cashback options while social tariffs for mobiles last I checked seemed pretty poor price...nothing near as good as available on open market via comparison sites...and stuck at home your gas/electric use may go up along with water. It is likely you won't even qualify for social tariffs anyway once with redundancy as you'll fall foul of means testing above £16k.

Aside from any surgery with a new mortgage arrangement or selling your home I'm trying to think of the go to things for significant weekly reductions in household costs. You can get help with water bills (reductions) from suppliers but the criteria is so stringent in my experience that it may be a no go. Lifestyle and things otherwise invisible to us may offer significant savings... memberships.. subscriptions... vehicles.

Key probably is getting new job and it cuts out a lot of these considerations perhaps.