We'd like to remind Forumites to please avoid political debate on the Forum... Read More »
📨 Have you signed up to the Forum's new Email Digest yet? Get a selection of trending threads sent straight to your inbox daily, weekly or monthly!
Income support changing to JSA when a child turns 5?
Options
daisychains12
Posts: 12 Forumite
Hi,
I have recently started claiming income support/ctc/hb and council tax relief after finding myself a single parent.
I work 12 hours a week and take home around £320 every four weeks.
Currently my son is four and I am claiming income support, when my son turns five in July I think from what I have read on the internet, that I will need to stop claiming income support and start claiming JSA as I am not working 16 hours a week and therefore should be 'looking for work'
Can anyone tell me if this is correct?
I am really really stressed and anxious about this as no one at the job centre even bothered to tell me.. I understand I will have to go in for fortnightly job focused interviews - in all honesty so long as I get childcare I would much rather be working - the idea of being criticized for not finding work with enough hours fills me with dread.
Can anyone advise me of what exactly happens? If it is confirmed that I will be on JSA I will have to approach my current employer and ask/beg for more hours. If that doesn't work what are my options as I am already working Thursdays and Fridays so unable to take up any work on those days, have no weekend childcare, nor childcare outside main school hours- the free childcare I have is limited to two days so I feel a bit stuck.
Would I be in a better position to leave my current job and then look for something entirely new as I guess my current contract will effect what else I could get work wise?
Or if I could even just stop claiming income support all together and not have to go onto JSA and have to scrimp and save the £32 a month I get from IS? Would that effect my other benefits?
Feel absolutely lost and can't understand why the government are trying to make life difficult for single parents, I struggle enough trying to find childcare cover for the 12hours I work.
I have recently started claiming income support/ctc/hb and council tax relief after finding myself a single parent.
I work 12 hours a week and take home around £320 every four weeks.
Currently my son is four and I am claiming income support, when my son turns five in July I think from what I have read on the internet, that I will need to stop claiming income support and start claiming JSA as I am not working 16 hours a week and therefore should be 'looking for work'
Can anyone tell me if this is correct?
I am really really stressed and anxious about this as no one at the job centre even bothered to tell me.. I understand I will have to go in for fortnightly job focused interviews - in all honesty so long as I get childcare I would much rather be working - the idea of being criticized for not finding work with enough hours fills me with dread.
Can anyone advise me of what exactly happens? If it is confirmed that I will be on JSA I will have to approach my current employer and ask/beg for more hours. If that doesn't work what are my options as I am already working Thursdays and Fridays so unable to take up any work on those days, have no weekend childcare, nor childcare outside main school hours- the free childcare I have is limited to two days so I feel a bit stuck.
Would I be in a better position to leave my current job and then look for something entirely new as I guess my current contract will effect what else I could get work wise?
Or if I could even just stop claiming income support all together and not have to go onto JSA and have to scrimp and save the £32 a month I get from IS? Would that effect my other benefits?
Feel absolutely lost and can't understand why the government are trying to make life difficult for single parents, I struggle enough trying to find childcare cover for the 12hours I work.
0
Comments
-
Unless you have another reason to stay on IS, (such as being a carer and claiming carers allowance) or have a medical condition which affects your ability to work, it would be job seekers allowance you claim once your son turns 5.
Due to having a child for whom you have responsibility for, you can restrict the hours on your job seekers agreement.Sealed pot challenge #232. Gold stars from Sue-UU - :staradmin :staradmin £75.29 banked
50p saver #40 £20 banked
Virtual sealed pot #178 £80.250 -
So could I stick with my 12hours with my current employer and take 8 hours else where for example?
I am not capable of working full time at the moment for a number of reasons and the most I could realistically work at the moment is 25 hours a week.0 -
Could you not do 4 hours private cleaning to make it up to 16 hours? you could then claim working tax credit which will work out more than the income support anyway.
I answered an advert on the board in my local Tesco and got 2 hours twice a week cleaning.Life is not the way it’s supposed to be. It’s the way it is. The way you cope with it is what makes the difference.0 -
angelsmomma wrote: »Could you not do 4 hours private cleaning to make it up to 16 hours? you could then claim working tax credit which will work out more than the income support anyway.
I answered an advert on the board in my local Tesco and got 2 hours twice a week cleaning.
That's a great suggestion.
Its nice to know theres some possibilities. I just don't want to have to pack in my current job.
Is it definitely the the benefit changes once the child reaches 5? I wonder why job centre don't mention this so you have a few months to sort yourself out as surely most people need notice like I do to find something on top of what they are already doing/up the hours at their current job. guess it is the job centre we are dealing with.....0 -
It's a claimant's responsibility to make themselves aware of the rules regarding claiming benefits in their individual circumstances.0
-
Fieldsofgold wrote: »It's a claimant's responsibility to make themselves aware of the rules regarding claiming benefits in their individual circumstances.
hence why she was asking for clarification on this and the correct advice has been given out0 -
help4help2013 wrote: »hence why she was asking for clarification on this and the correct advice has been given out
No need to get shirty!
The OP was saying that the JCP should have told her and the system doesn't work like that.0 -
Don't panic, you have 5 months to get ready for it, that's plenty of time to ask your current employer to increase your hours, look for 8 hours extra work, or even better, look for another job that offers more hours. You don't need to give up your current job to look for another one.
What I would do is find out about breakfast/after school clubs just in case. If you could put your son down for one of the other or both without having to pay for it (you don't usually need to if it is run by the local authority), you are solving the problem if you need to start early or finish later. You can always take him of the list if you don't need it.0 -
help4help2013 wrote: »hence why she was asking for clarification on this and the correct advice has been given out
Yes and the OP also posted that she is unhappy that the DWP didn't inform her about IS stoppping when her child turns 5, the other posters quite correctly informed her it onus is on the claimant to gain the information themselves. Which is very useful advice for the future...for her or anyone else reading the thread.0
This discussion has been closed.
Confirm your email address to Create Threads and Reply
Categories
- All Categories
- 351.1K Banking & Borrowing
- 253.2K Reduce Debt & Boost Income
- 453.7K Spending & Discounts
- 244.1K Work, Benefits & Business
- 599.1K Mortgages, Homes & Bills
- 177K Life & Family
- 257.5K Travel & Transport
- 1.5M Hobbies & Leisure
- 16.1K Discuss & Feedback
- 37.6K Read-Only Boards