Lone Parent benefit help needed!!

[littlebea]

Hi my situation is as follows

i was in the process of being investigated (unfairly!) on allegations of gross misconduct. however at the same time my contract expired and i was offered renewal for 6 months. I opted not to renew my contract as i want to leave anyway. So in 3 weeks time i am out of work. I am trying to get a new job but think references may be an issue even though i am not technically resigning and the investigation is being stopped.

I have a 17 year old son, who has failed his AS levels and so will not be going back to 6th form college, he is trying to get an alternative course but has not got one as yet but likely he will

Am i entitled to anything? I have read various things which am finding very confusing regarding the age of your child, and also regarding the circumstances in which you leave your job. at this stage i am not sure whether my termination letter will state i was offered a further six months but refused

[surprise]

You can still claim family allowance and your son can claim EMA - £30 per week. It would be worth you talking to a benefits adviser.

[littlebea]

He is in an 'inbetween' place college-wise he is not allowed to continue next year at his previous college due to his exam results and he hasnt yet got another place somewhere else. he is hoping to get an apprenticeship soon though so if he does, does he then count as an adult in his own right and would any money he gets from an apprenticeship impact on any council tax/HB/IS that i would get?

the system seem so confusing since i was last in it which was over 10 years ago!

[surprise]

My grandson is 18 and on an apprenticeship and he gets £90 per week and my daughter still gets council tax reduction.

[littlebea]

oh thats a relief to know for when i do get a new job feels like everything is up in the air right now ... might ring gingerbread or CAB in the morning.

scrub that have never in my life managed to get through to my local CAB on the phone lol ..might have to queue up instead one morning

[Elenathion]

Your son could probably claim young person's job seeker's allowance. They may be able to help him get a place on an apprenticeship then also. You should claim JSA also.

[sallysas]

You have to be 18 to claim jsa. He may be able to claim IS till then if he does not return to college (this just makes the unemployment figures look better). Are you still getting cb and ctc for him? If he goes back to college and does a course that is recognised by cb etc you will still be able to claim cb AND ctc until he finishes college. If he claims IS you must tell them as you will be overpaid cb/ctc. I suggest you 'phone them as soon so you know what he is doing.

If he goes for an apprenticeship it does get a little strange. If his college course requires him to gain practical experience (and the college place him and he gets paid by the employer) then this is not taken as income by your council for hb/ctc purposes. If he goes for an apprenticeship off his own bat then it depends on how much his gross salary/total hrs worked is weekly as to whether he will have to make a contribution to your hb/ctb. It works on a sliding scale. Not sure about ema and apprenticeships but the college will know about it or you could ask your education department.

The moment you stop receiving cb for him you must let the council know as you will be overpaid hb/ctb.

[Elenathion]

You do not have to be 18 to claim JSA. You can claim it at 16 and 17 and are dealt with by a specialist young person's advisor in the jobcentre.

[sallysas]

But there are strings attached. Lets hope he finds a good college course that suits him.

[Elenathion]

Originally Posted by sallysas

But there are strings attached.

That doesn't change the fact that he can apply at 17.

[littlebea]

oh gosh it looks so complicated. He sat a test last week at the college open day and is waiting to hear if he has been accepted - he has had to identify his own employer and is also waiting to hear from him to confirm.

i am claiming WFTC and CTC but get zero as i got caught up in all that 2004-05 tax credit overpayment fiasco and my appeals were turned down so any credit i qualify for goes straight back towards the overpayment

[sallysas]

Fingers crossed he gets good news soon.

Have you stopped receiving cb for him then? You must tell the council if that is the case as it has an effect on your hb/ctb. This sounds silly but you get one allowance for yourself and a dependant child (by law) and then a different allowance just for yourself when cb stops.

Why on earth are you not receiving any wtc? Do you earn too much now? I was of the opinion that they could only take a proportion of whatever your exisiting award was each year till it was paid back - not all of it for years on end. This is what happened to me some years back.

Keeping fingers crossed for you both.