benefit help ( scotland )

[ivansmagic.]

Hi all,

 

I am looking for a bit of advice.

 

I have worked for the same company for 27 years but due to ill health I have been unable to work for the last year and it is unlikely that I will be able to work in the forseable future.

 

My employers have paid me for the last 12 months but now my sick pay has expired. I have no financial capital and am using last years annual leave to keep me going.

 

I dont know what to do and am looking for a bit of advice.

 

My partner used to claim ESA but we stopped that when we moved in together due to my income.

 

Now my income has effectively stopped, what can I do to get help to pay my rent etc ????

 

If it helps, my illness is a mental illness

 

Any help would be appreciated or if you specialise in this area, i would be happy to give more specific details by private message

[id6052]

you should make a claim for ESA

 

does your household have any other income?

[ivansmagic.]

Can I still make a claim for ESA whilst I am still employed ?

 

I know my partner can reclaim as the only reason she stopped claiming was due to my income so she will still be eligible.

 

With regard to other income, the only other income is my step daughters SAAS payments as she is at university. She also has a part time job

[Sparks_]

I claimed ESA whilst still on my employers books, they were not paying me though, plus you should claim housing benefit

[ivansmagic.]

I have not claimed ESA yet as I didnt think I could as I am still employed (even though I have no income from my employment) but I will give them a call on Monday. I never thought of Housing Benefit either. Its all a bit of a minefield to me as I have never had to claim benefits before. Thanks for the advice.

[mikeymack2002]

Run the benefits advisor and see what else you may be able to apply so please see here https://www.gov.uk/benefits-calculators beware some sites try to charge you for using their services always use the .gov site for info like this

[ivansmagic.]

thanks for the link. I will go run a check now. I didnt know sites like that existed.

[mikeymack2002]

trust us when we say every [problem] known to man and more are known to us here at CAG Have a read of the attachment

Edited May 30, 2015 by mikeymack2002
Added a PDF

[Nystagmite]

Because you have a non-working partner, you can claim some income based ESA as well as contributions based ESA. This will entitle you to some help with council tax and your rent.

 

Yout vontributions based ESA is counted as income for income based ESA.

[estellyn]

You actually could have claimed ESA nearly 6 months ago when your SSP ran out. Claim now and request to backdate 3 months. You will need to get a form from your employer to go with your claim called an SSP1 form. You should also put in a claim to the local authority for housing benefit and council tax reduction (sadly these can't be backdated without exceptional circumstances). You should also look at the descriptors for PIP (personal independence payments - new benefit replacing disability living allowance) to see if you might be eligible.

[Nystagmite]

Your partner may also be eligible for PIP depending on their situation.

 

Your daughters income from SAAS doesn't count. All DWP care about is your income and that of your partner.