Money and Benefits

Disability Living Allowance (DLA) for children may help with the extra costs of looking after a child who:

• is under 16
• has difficulties walking or needs much more looking after than a child of the same age who doesn't have a disability

They will need to meet all the eligibility requirements.

The DLA rate is between £22.65 and £145.35 per week and depends on the level of help the child needs. 

Usually, to qualify for DLA for children, the child must:

• be under 16
• need extra looking after or having walking difficulties
• be in Great Britain, another European Economic Area (EEA) country or Switzerland when you claim - there are some exceptions, such as family members of the Armed Forces
• have lived in Great Britain for 2 of the last 3 years, if over 3 years old
• be habitually resident in the UK, Ireland, Isle of Man or the Channel Islands
• not be subject to immigration control

For more detailed information about DLA for children visit: https://www.gov.uk/disability-living-allowance-children

Eligibility for Child Tax Credit is not dependent on a child having a disability. You may be able to claim Child Tax Credit if you are responsible for children either:

• aged 16 or under - you can claim up until 31 August after their 16th birthday
• under 20 and in eligible education or training

You don't need to be working to claim Child Tax Credit.  Only one household can get Child Tax Credit for a child.

Child Tax Credit is being replaced by Universal Credit and you can usually only claim Child Tax Credit if you don't live in a Universal Credit area.  For Sunderland, this will be July 2018.

In a Universal Credit area, you can only claim Child Tax Credit if either of the following applies:

• you have 3 or more children
• you or your partner have reached Pension Credit qualifying age

If you are unable to apply for Child Tax Credit under the above circumstances, you would need to apply for Universal Credit instead.

The amount of benefit you receive depends on when your children were born:

If all your children were born before 6 April 2017	You could get the 'child element' of Child Tax Credit for all of your children. You will also get the basic amount, known as the 'family element'
If one or more of your children were born on or after 6 April 2017	You could get the child element of Child Tax Credit for up to 2 children.  You might get the child element for more children if exceptions apply. You will only get the family element if at least one of your children was born before 6 April 2017.

 

For more information visit: https://www.gov.uk/child-tax-credit

Carer's Allowance is a benefit for people who are giving regular and substantial care to disabled people in their own homes.  Carer's Allowance is a taxable benefit and forms part of your taxable income.

You can get Carer's Allowance if you meet all of the following conditions:

• you are aged 10 or over and not in full time education
• you spend at least 35 hours a week caring for a disabled person who gets one of the following benefits:
• Attendance Allowance
• Constant Attendance Allowance
• the middle or higher rate for personal care of Disability Living Allowance
• the daily component of Personal Independence Payment (either rate)
• Armed Forces Independence Payment
• you don't earn more than £120 a week after deductions such as tax and national insurance
• you are in Great Britain when you claim - there are some exceptions, for example, for members and family members of the Armed Forces
• you have been in Great Britain for at least 2 of the last 3 years - unless you are a refugee or immediate family member of a refugee
• you are habitually resident in the UK, Ireland, Isle of Man or the Channel Islands
• you are not subject to immigration control that would stop you getting benefits.

For more information visit: https://www.gov.uk/carers-allowance

You may be able to get Income Support if you are on a low income.  It is particularly common for carers, parent or people looking after young children to get it.  Other people can be eligible, so it is worth checking even if you are not in one of these groups.

How many hours you work and how much you earn also affects whether you can claim Income Support.

You can't usually claim Income Support if you are already getting Jobseeker's Allowance (JSA) or Employment and Support Allowance (ESA).

Universal Credit is replacing Income Support,  You might need to apply for Universal Credit instead.

You can usually claim income Support if you are 16 or over and:

• either pregnant, a carer or a single parent looking after a child under 5
• working less than 16 hours per week (you might still be eligible if you do unpaid voluntary work or go on unpaid parental or paternity leave)
• under Pension Credit qualifying age
• on a low income or have no income
• have less than £16,000 in savings

For more information visit https://www.gov.uk/income-support

At 16, your child can claim benefits in their own right such as Employment and Support Allowance.  They can get this if they have a disability that means they are unlikely to get a job.  This will be replaced by Universal Credit in Sunderland from July 2018.

If your child stays on in education, you may have a choice.  Either you can carry on claiming for them as part of your family or they can claim for themselves as a disabled adult.  But, if they do, any benefits or Tax Credits you get for them will stop.  You need to weigh up which option is best for your family.

If you get the maximum rate of Child Tax Credit or you get Income Support or income-based Jobseeker's Allowance you could be a lot worse off if your child claims benefits in their own right.

Each familiy's circumstances are different, so it is important to get advice before your child turns 16.

What is an Appointeeship?

If a person is incapable for their own finances due to a physical or mental health incapacity and cannot cope with claiming benefits, paying bills or managing money they may need an appointee to provide help.  An appointee may be required on a temporary or permanent basis. 

Only one appointee can act on behalf of someone who is entitled to benefits.  An appointee can be an individual, e.g. a friend or relative; an organisation, or representative of an organisation, e.g. a solicitor or local council.  

The process

• Usually about 6 months before a child turns 16, DWP contact parents/carers in writing and ask who is going to manage their benefits
• Parents can request to be made 'Appointee', if it is appropriate
• Involves a home visit by DWP to determine if young person has capacity to manage their own benefits
• Will need to provide bank account details.  May need to set up a suitable bank account
• If approved, the parent will be left with a sheet confirming 'Appointeeship'

Who needs one?

A young person may need an Appointee if they:

• have no (or limited) concept of money or of its value
• are vulnerable to exploitation - e.g. would give all of his/her money to 'friends'
• have difficulties with managing small amounts of change such as bus fares, or with budgeting
• come across like a younger child, or have a specific difficulty - such as learning disability, ADHD, Autism...

What it means

• A parent or carer then becomes responsible for managing the benefits of that young person
• it does not have to be 'for life'
• another truster person can take on the role, if preferred
• there are specific responsibilities attached to becoming an appointee, so need to be fully aware of these

Appointee's responsibilities

As an appointee you are responsible for making and maintaining any benefit claims.  You must:

• sign the benefit claim form
• tell the benefit office about any changes which affect how much the claimant gets
• spend the benefit (which is paid directly to you) in the claimant's best interests
• tell the benefit office if you stop being the appointee, e.g. the claimant can now manage their own affairs

For more detailed information visit: https://www.gov.uk/become-appointee-for-someone-claiming-benefits

What is Personal Independence Payment (PIP)

Personal Independence Payment, known as PIP is money for people who have extra care needs or mobility needs (difficulty getting around) as a result of a disability.  It replaces Disability Living Allowance (DLA) for all claimants aged 16 to pension age.

Like DLA, PIP has 2 components:

• Daily living component
• Mobility component

Each component will have two rates:

• Standard
• Enhanced

Unlike DLA, PIP is a points-based system:  8 points to qualify; 12 points for the enhanced rate.

The process

Around the child's 16th birthday, families receive a letter from DWP advising that DLA is ending and that they need to act now.  They will then need to:

• make an initial phone call to start off the PIP claim.  This must be done within 4 weeks of receiving the letter from DWP.  Only then will they be sent a claim form
• complete and return the form within 4 weeks of receiving it

If families fail to make the initial call to start off the claim, the child's DLA payment will stop.  This can have a negative impact on household income as other benefits may then also stop or be reduced.

For more information visit: https://www.gov.uk/pip

What is Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)

ESA is a benefit that could give you some money if you have an illness or disability that affects your ability to work.

There are two types of ESA:

Contribution based ESA - you can get this if you have paid enough National Insurance Contributions.

Income related ESA - you can get this if you are on a low income, either on its own or in addition to contribution based ESA.

What will I be paid?

Every claim for ESA is assessed and this process usually takes 13 weeks.  While your claim is being assessed, you will receive the assessment rate for 13 weeks.  This will be:

• up to £57.90 a week if you are aged under 25
• up to £73.10 a week if you are aged 25 or over

If the outcome of your claim is that you are eligible for ESA, you will be put into a group, which will affect how much ESA you continue to receive.  You may be put in to either:

• the work-related activity group.  This is for people who will prepare to return to work and will get some support to do that.
• the support group. This is for people who are unable to return to work due to their illness or disability.

Claiming ESA

To claim ESA call Jobcentre Plus on 0800 055 6688 (textphone 0800 023 4488).  They will ask you questions over the phone and fill in the form for you.  Alternatively, you can download a claim form from gov.uk.  You will need to include a medical certificate from your GP and provide your GP contact details.

For more information visit: https://www.gov.uk/employment-support-allowance 

Universal Credit is a means-tested benefit for people of working age who are on a low income.

It replaces six existing means-tested benefits:

• Income Support
• Income-based Jobseeker's Allowance
• Income-related Employment and Support Allowance
• Housing Benefit
• Child Tax Credit
• Working Tax Credit

Universal Credit is paid on a monthly basis.  Entitlement is worked out by comparing your basic financial needs that the government says you need to live on with your finance resources.

You can apply if you are:

• Aged between 18 to pension age*
• In the UK and not subject to immigration control
• Have no income or low income
• Are too ill to work
• Unemployed or jobseeker
• Employed but on a low wage
• Lone Parent / couple / single person
• Carer
• Needing help with rent or mortgage
• Needing help with childcare costs
• Have savings less than £16,000

* 16-17 year olds can only apply in limited circumstances - pregnancy; recently had a baby; carer; responsible for a child; have limited capability for work (illness/disability)

Work requirements

Must accept a 'claimant commitment' where you (or both members of a couple) are expected to:

• Look for full-time work, or better paid work
• Take steps to prepare for work

There are 3-4 different levels of work requirements, depending on your circumstances

There are tougher sanctions on not fulfilling the claimant commitment.

What is included in the payment?

• Housing costs
• Personal allowances for single/joint claimants
• Child allowances
• Childcare costs
• Carer
• Limited capability for work/related activity
• Disable child element (reduced by more than half to about £29 per week)
• Severely disabled child element

Claiming and payments

Universal Credit must be claimed and managed online at www.gov.uk/apply-universal-credit.

• Inform DWP of changes
• upload documents online using 'journal'
• For couples, the payments are made to one person
• Paid monthly in arrears, with an initial 6-8 week wait for payment
• may be able to get advance/hardship payments, but these will be treated as a loan
• help with cost of housing is paid directly to the claimant, not to the landlord

For more information visit https://www.gov.uk/universal-credit

 

You could get Housing Benefit to help you pay your rent if you are on a low income.  Housing Benefit can pay for part or all of your rent.  How much you get depends on your income and circumstances.

You can apply for Housing Benefit whether you are unemployed or working.

Why is age important for housing benefit claims?

Housing benefit for private renters is worked out using local housing allowance (LHA) rules.

There are restrictions on how much housing benefit you can claim if you are single, under the age of 35 and rent from a private landlord.

The shared accommodation rate

If you are single, under the age of 35 and rent privately, you can usually only get housing benefit at the local housing allowance (LHA) rate for a single room in a shared house.

The shared accommodation rate applies even if you have a place of your own, so you may not get enough to pay the rent.

There are no exceptions to this rule.

Under 35 and already renting privately

If you are single and you already have a privately rented self-contained place, you can get the local housing allowance (LHA) rate for housing benefit on a one-bedroom home as long as you:

• were able to pay your own rent when you moved into your home
• have not been paid any housing benefit in the past year

You can claim housing benefit to cover your full rent for the first 13 weeks

After 13 weeks, the maximum you get is the shared accommodation rate.  You may need to look for somewhere cheaper to live during this time.

Housing benefit for a council or housing association home

The shared accommodation rate does not apply if you are a council or housing association tenant.

You will probably get enough housing benefit to cover your rent if you receive jobseeker's allowance, employment and support allowance or income support.

But you might not receive full housing benefit if the council decides you have more bedrooms than you need or if you are affected by the benefit cap.

If you are working more than 16 hours a week, housing benefit won't cover your full rent.  You must pay the shortfall.

If you are disabled

If you are a disabled person you won't be restricted to the shared accommodation rate if you receive regular overnight care or get any of the following benefits:

• daily living component of personal independence payment (PIP)
• middle or high rate care component of disability living allowance (DLA)
• armed forces independence payment

For more information visit https://www.gov.uk/housing-benefit

Localised Council Tax Support schemes provide help for people on low incomes with their Council Tax bill.  The schemes apply differently in different part of Great Britain.

Click here to submit a claim with Sunderland City Council.