Part Time Work

[DPG]

Good Afternoon

 

I am not sure if this is the correct thread so please if needed to remove to the correct thread please do so..

 

I had been signing on for about a year, until i landed myself a nice part time job in a clothing shop, I signed off from the local job Centre, but due to me renting a property i still needed help with my rent. I was told by the Local Housing Benefit office that if I worked part time I would have to contribute 20% only towards my weekly rent, which was not to harsh.

 

I obtained as requested from the Housing Benefit a letter of proof from my new employer that I would be working 16 hours over three days, at a starting hourly rate of £6.70 an hour rising to £7.20 an hour once the new rate came in April. I have had problems with the local Job centre for the past 6 months, stopping my benefit due to my own problem caused by signing on late on a few occasions, but now I do not claim any Income Support or JSA from the 15th March 2016.

 

Today (11th April 2016), i received a letter from the housing stating that I would have to pay full rent due to that the local job centre had informed them that I was working 16 hours which the job centre had stated to the housing is classed as full time work. after a lengthy discussion with the job centre they were strong on their opinion that 16 hours is full time. The JC advisor could not be more strong on their opinion of this, but after many discussions with local business's and work agencies I was told 16 hours is classed as part time as long as I had a written proof form the employer.

 

The advisor went on to say to me that the Employer was wrong and that 15 hours is now part time not 16. and that he had to change the letter and drop my hours. Now they have stopped my claim for housing benefit on the say of an advisor from the JC even though i no longer sign on and no in receipt of any JSA or Income Support.

 

Now my question is please - Is 16 hours classed as full time or part time ?

 

Thanks in advancer for any help on this dilemma.

[reallymadwoman]

I thought entitlement to housing benefit was based on income, in which case the hours you work are irrelevant surely?

[DPG]

my income is paid over a 2 week period - I am now on £7.20 an hour due to the increase, my current earnings for the past 4 weeks is £444.80 - my rent is £380 a month, the current max rent they pay out weekly is £86.23 which equals £362.16.....My benefit was £146 fortnightly and now my wages income is £230.44 - £84.44 difference every fortnight.

 

I should to pay apparently 20% towards my rent fortnightly which is £72.42 - its just the fact they say 16 hours is not part time but full time work,

 

Thanks for the reply

[reallymadwoman]

As above, housing benefit is based on income and circumstances, it should not matter how many hours a week you work. I can't work out exactly how much benefit you would be entitled to as this will vary according to your age, circumstances and where you live.

 

If your council insist that the number of hours you work is relevant, ask them why.

[ripples]

Are you claiming working tax credit and are you claiming as a single person? Housing benefit and council tax relief is based on your total income . For jobcentre purposes if you are working 16 hours or more I believe you have to sign off and are considered to be 'full time' ( another manipulation of the employment figures) and have to claim other benefits to top up your wages.

[antone]

Right, I think what's happened is that your "passported entitlement" to HB has ended because you are working over 16 hours per week and yes, the Jobcentre does class this as full time. However, that doesn't mean that you're not entitled to any HB at all.

 

Contact the Benefits Office at your council and explain the situation. Tell them that although you're no longer receiving JSA, you're still on a low income and wish to claim on that basis. They may ask you to fill in a new claim form, and they'll probably want to see bank statements and payslips as proof of income. You may need to send them payslips regularly to confirm that your income hasn't changed.

[DPG]

Are you claiming working tax credit and are you claiming as a single person? Housing benefit and council tax relief is based on your total income . For jobcentre purposes if you are working 16 hours or more I believe you have to sign off and are considered to be 'full time' ( another manipulation of the employment figures) and have to claim other benefits to top up your wages.

 

I am not working above the 16 hours, I am not in receipt of tax credits a I am a single person and am not working the 30 hours to apply for that. What I am trying to establish is 1. Is 16 Hours Only classed as Part Time or Full Time ? - Not one minute above i work so your saying as my income is low, the housing benefit should take in to account my income only, i need that to be correct 100% ? . The Job Centre have told me 16 Hours only is part time and now I have a serious dilema that they are billing me full rent and council tax, with earnings of 440 a month and my Rent and CC coming to 459 a month where is this correct.

Edited April 11, 2016 by DPG

[DPG]

my income is paid over a 2 week period - I am now on £7.20 an hour due to the increase, my current earnings for the past 4 weeks is £444.80 - my rent is £380 a month, the current max rent they pay out weekly is £86.23 which equals £362.16.....My benefit was £146 fortnightly and now my wages income is £230.44 - £84.44 difference every fortnight.

 

I should to pay apparently 20% towards my rent fortnightly which is £72.42 - its just the fact they say 16 hours is not part time but full time work,

 

Thanks for the reply

 

When I applied for the Job i went to HB to make sure of the situation regarding my rent, they said and I Quote 'You will have to pay 20% towards your rent due to only working 16 Hours' Now this is all confusing for me, and very stressful

Edited April 11, 2016 by DPG

[antone]

I missed the part where you said you were working exactly 16 hours per week. The rule is basically "16 hours or more" per week, so that will be what has stopped your passported HB entitlement. When claiming JSA you automatically get full HB to cover all of your eligible rent. Once your JSA claim stops that automatic entitlement also stops, but you can still claim HB based on your low income, and that is what you should do urgently.

 

It doesn't matter, from an HB point of view, whether your work is classed as full time or part time - it is assessed based on your income. I don't know about the 20% thing - it's not a rule I know about, and I suspect there might have been a miscommunication somewhere.