help for 16 year old son get benefits..hes a parent

[pebbles71]

hello...can anyone help me. my son is 16 and had a baby with his girlfriend last july ( no! i wasnt inpressed at the time but my grandson is adorable!) Quick recap of things....

 

He was living with me in kent...we arranged to move but agreed he should stay in kent with his nan to finish school exams. I passed over the tax credits and child benefit to his nan (my ex mother-in-law) and all was well. Then along came the baby. Him and his girlfriend are still together and fantastic parents. she has privately rented a flat and this is where the problem comes in. after the exams he left school to try to get full time work to provide for his family so his nan stopped getting his child tax credits and child benefit and now says she cant afford to have him stay with her even if i send her money!! Nice eh? i have asked him to move in with me in essex but he wants to be with his girlfriend and 7mth old son..rightly so!! So at the moment he stays with her some of the week and my other son, his older brother and partner the rest of the week

Ok now ..his girlfriend and him want to be a proper family and have him move in permently. They have been to the beneifits agenciy filled in untold forms to have him put on her claim and him to claim with her on his....hope this is making sense!!

She is still getting her claim but he cannot be added to hers and has been denied his claim for JSA:mad2: which means they can not live as a family!!!

 

Now you may be thinking just get a job then...he has tried everywhere and applied for loads. However due to being only 16 there are lots of issues with him getting work due to health and saftey issues and insurances etc....he wants to get on an apprentership to be a machanic but after having 4 interviews and being knocked back due to not having a driving licence he is becoming very annoyed as he is not someone that wants to be on beneifits and wants to work for his family. Mcdonalds and places where 16 year olds work would not bring in enough money to pay the rent etc even with tax credits etc and he wants a career.

So please help....he is being denied being a full time father and living with his partner as a family. He is still looking/applying for work but is feed up of being away from his son/girlfriend most of the week and not having a fixed abode. I have said I will move back to kent and try to rent a place for us all but that means me giving up my job and having the same problem of finding another.

 

What can he do...what are his rights...and can the benefits be declined while he is looking for work?

 

I hope none of you judge by saying he should of kept it in his pants (lol) because I have said it a million times....however he is trying to do the right thing unlike so many others who do not accept responsibility...he just needs some help at the starting post!!! I have come to a dead end....hope someone here can advise our next steps......i do hope this all makes sense xxxx

[jadeybags]

My brother became a dad at 15, yes, 15! And he didn't deal with it so well. So hats off to your son.

The first thing that is worrying me is the fact he has no fixed abode, I hope the council dont start accusing his GF of having him there if she is on income support & claiming as a single person?! It's just the way these threads on here seem to be going lately. Make sure she doesn't have any of his mail going there! And he's not there too often. Seriously they are really clamping down on that now.

Are you saying because he is only 16 he cant live there & they then claim as a couple with a baby?

[jadeybags]

You have had a read on here?

http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/YoungPeople/Money/FinancialHelpForYoungPeople/DG_10027506

[Nystagmite]

In general, people under 18 can't claim JSA. I will find it for you later; but there are a few exceptions to this.

[MIKEY DABODEE]

your son unfortunately cant claim JSA at the moment even if he is looking for a job.

 

"If you're 16 or 17, you will only be able to receive Jobseeker’s Allowance in exceptional circumstances. For example, estrangement from your family leading to severe hardship. If you think that you might have exceptional circumstances, contact your nearest Jobcentre Plus office."

 

His girlfriend sounds as if she is claiming I.S as a single parent and she will have no grounds at all if he moves in with her and the claim will close leaving them with no money at all

 

There is no benefit at the moment he can claim for himself. Not good news

[jadeybags]

Isn't that shocking, keeping a family apart, that's all wrong.

[Nystagmite]

JSA for 16 and 17 year olds

If you're unemployed and 16 or 17 years old you may be able to get income-based JSA for a short amount of time. For example, this could be if you:

 

are forced to live away from your parents

will find it very hard to live without Jobseeker’s Allowance

are part of a couple responsible for a child

 

Source - http://www.bpp.com/develop-your-career/career-tools/general-career-resources/job-seekers-allowance.aspx

[pebbles71]

Blimey !! That was quick.....!!!!

My son was 16 2 days after the baby was born!!

Yes i have been on that site...i hate the fact that he is in this position with no afixed abode..i feel a terrible parent that it has come to this have asked them both to move here with me but she wants to stay near her family which I can understand and he also wants to stay near to his friends and brother too.

He has applied for the JSA saying the truth about everything and they denied it not giving a reason this week.

They are so desperate to be together full time but we are just coming up against brick walls as to how.

She is legally allowed to have him stay there 3 nights a week. No he has no post sent there it all goes C/O to his brothers address.

i do feel so sorry for them. Bascially if he moves in she will lose her single parent benefit which is understandable but they cant seem to claim anything else as a couple and the job centre are so unhelpful and look down their noses at them....which is why i am on here to see if there is a way round it all. He has NO money at all apart from what I can send him and obviously what I send his brother to help with his keep.

Thanks for your answer...anything else you can think of will be much appreciated x x x

[Nystagmite]

The 3 nights rule is a myth.

[MIKEY DABODEE]

you learn some thing everyday JSA is not my benefit maybe soon with the dimise of I.S, perhaps he has been claiming JSA on his own then, if they claimed as a couple of course she would have to close her I.S it may be successful. But why has this not been picked up by the Jobcentre

[pebbles71]

thank you to the rest of you too for your quick replies...

the quotes and links you have sent we have spoken to the benefit people about but because my son and I are still close they just say live with me...which in fairness i can understand and would totally agree with if he was not a parent. There must be something out there that allows a young family to became a family unit..surely!!

[pebbles71]

Why is the 3 night rule a myth???

Is he doing wrong by staying there then for these nights?

Yes They have tried claiming as a couple and been denied x x

[jadeybags]

Why is the 3 night rule a myth???

Is he doing wrong by staying there then for these nights?

Yes They have tried claiming as a couple and been denied x x

 

And the awful thing is, this may just have the LA's now keeping an eye on her. Just the way it is going these days.

The 3 night thing is an old wives tale, or maybe it did used to apply. But doesn't anymore. otherwise when someones boyfriend works away on the lorries, the partner at home could be claiming as single, yet he's sending money home? They certainly dont just count the toothbrushes anymore.

It's more to do with shared finances, mail in his name going to the address, a few things, which sounds like wont apply to your son & his GF anyway, but the DWP & LA's are being a pain in the arris at the moment with this, it's becoming a nightmare for people!

I really hope they can sort this soon though, because they should have the right to be a proper family!

In an ideal world they would have been older when having a baby, but life has a habit of getting in the way doesn't it. It's unfair they get penalised for it. And JCP should NOT be judging them like that

[Nystagmite]

It's a myth because they look at things like sharing finances, etc.

[pebbles71]

so is he doing wrong by staying there then? x

[MIKEY DABODEE]

Young person is a member of a couple and responsible

for a child

30726 A young person is entitled to JSA(IB) if the young person is

 

1.

a member of a couple and

2.

treated as responsible for a child who is a member of the household1.

See DMG 22031 et seq for guidance on "responsible".

1 reg 61(1)(b)

30727 A young person who satisfies this condition is entitled to JSA(IB) for the period

starting on the date of claim and ending on the earlier of

1

1. the day before the young person's 18th birthday or

2 the day before this condition is no longer satisfied.

 

You need to appeal his JSA decison then as this is out of the DMG the guide they use.

 

The problem your son might have now is as follows, if he has made a joint claim to JSA for his himself girlfriend and baby, he has said they are living as a couple and he would have had to use her address, they cant be a couple and be NFA. This claim has been turned down you say but JSA would contact IS and tell them they are lving at the same address so this may impact her claim

[pebbles71]

She tried to have him put onto her benefit which was diclined. He then tried claming for JSA with her on his claim. They filled in the form at the job center with the 'HELP' of someone there who suggested that the claim be in his name at a different address but a covering letter put in about his intentions of moving in with his G/F and her being put on the claim to allow this to happen. it is all so confusing.

The problem is if they do a joint claim out right as if he has moved in she has to stop her beneifit first and live on nothing for anywhere upto 13 weeks while the decission is made on the new joint claim...and then there is a chance that the claim be denied and then her not being able to claim hers again because, like you have said, he is then said to be living there.

 

Can you please..in black and white for me lol....advice what to do next....appeal his JSA desicison YES?

Thank you for the info what does NFA mean (sorry am I being thick lol) x

[Nystagmite]

NFA = no fixed abode.

 

Have they tried getting advice from CAB?

[pebbles71]

oh Right lol get it now.

no they havent as yet...so appeal against his JSA or see the CAB first???

[MIKEY DABODEE]

She tried to have him put onto her benefit which was diclined.

 

 

she would not be able to claim for him she is a lone parent for I.S purposes no grounds to put him on the claim

He then tried claming for JSA with her on his claim. They filled in the form at the job center with the 'HELP' of someone there who suggested that the claim be in his name at a different address but a covering letter put in about his intentions of moving in with his G/F and her being put on the claim to allow this to happen. it is all so confusing.

 

Sounds like he was trying to put in an Advance JSA claim.... This means he was stating in the FUTURE he and his girl friend where moving in together.. Advance claims to JSA are not allowed, So they have niled his claim... THey classed him as single, if I can explain, Say he made the claim the !st of March thas his is IDOC he states he is making a claim for him self and his girlfriend who is moving in

soon... On the date he made his claim he has stated she is not there so they class him as single, no grounds and nil the claim

 

The problem is if they do a joint claim out right as if he has moved in she has to stop her beneifit first and live on nothing for anywhere upto 13 weeks while the decission is made on the new joint claim...and then there is a chance that the claim be denied and then her not being able to claim hers again because, like you have said, he is then said to be living there.

 

This is a real problem, it may take a long time for the decision to be made and if he made a proper joint claim this would happen and her I.S would stop.

 

Can you please..in black and white for me lol....advice what to do next....appeal his JSA desicison YES?

Thank you for the info what does NFA mean (sorry am I being thick lol) x

 

 

In black and white I would say

A proper joint JSA has not been made, you could do that, he would have to make a new claim and state

that he was living there with her from the date he was making the claim, but it could take a few weeks to process, and this would effect her tax credits because they would have to make a joint claim for that....

Things could stay the same and she could claim single

Could he get a training scheeme to get some money

Its a shame, he sounds like a decent young man who is trying to do the right thing, I hope you can get something sorted...

 

Again you could make a new JSA joint claim but remember not with the opening we are moving in soon if would have to be together from IDOC, day he make that phone call.. Perhaps if you decide to go down this route CAB may be able to push it for you

[jadeybags]

CAB do have their uses, they can talk to these different depts on his behalf. Let us know how it goes if you can. Will be nice to hear a happy ending for them x