to worry about my next job and not accept going on benefits

[maidenvoyage]

Hi all, I have posted here before a long time ago (bout ds who was and still is a waste of space) and do watch mumsnet in my lunch break. Long story cut short I am finishing my contract at the end of July and friends are advising that dont worry bout getting another job and I should just claim benefits and let the social pay rent etc. Must admit even though i earn a good wage the rent here is £950.00 a month and as a sole earner (been on my own with two kids for long tine now) its crippling me. Have no social life, dont buy new clothes, dont go out etc but I want to work. I love the challenge of my job and have a personal pride in it. But in truth cant afford to work. Do get a tax credit and family allowance etc. I bring home £500 a week without the help but its not enough. If i dont look for another job and have to rely on the state I know they will not help me because I have been told that I am capable of earning a decent wage, that is fair point but they are not taking into consideration that I am paying £50.00 short of £1000.00 per month rent. For gods sake I just want to earn a good wage and support my family I dont want to live on benefits but why cant the local council house me at £400.00 rent and then i can carry on working, (not that there is anything wrong with that) please no attacks feeling low enough as it is. (rent is due on Friday and I cant meet it). I am worrying bout bills etc and struglling to cope now just want a friendly constructive chat. In these sad times where there are so many redundancies I am really worried that I wont get another job, but on the other hand think that if after paying tax and insurance all these years the goverment cannot help me maybe my friends are right. Let the landlord evict me, go on the dole and let life take me over. Sorrry feeling very sorry for myself and very tired and sick of struggling lol.

[limonchik]

Are you on the council housing list? If you aren't on it, then they won't house you.

"If i dont look for another job and have to rely on the state I know they will not help me because I have been told that I am capable of earning a decent wage"

I don't understand this - if you lose your job, surely you are entitled to benefits? Of course you still won't be able to go out and buy loads of new clothes on benefits either.

[maidenvoyage]

Hi thanks for replying to me. Yes put myself on the list in jan of this year when i realised that i was going to struggle. The council told me that I am a band E which basically means that I can afford alternative housing. When I said to them the reason why I was applying for housing was because private rental was crippling me they said "but you are capable of earning a decent wage" and that was that. lol. As for benefits because i have been working I am only entitled to £62.00 per week job seekers, not entitled to anything else. Seriously I have paid tax and insurance for a million years since i was sixteen. Ok not a million but I am now 44 and worked all my life and loved working but I cant afford to anymore and dont know where to turn. x

[limonchik]

You'll be entitled to housing and council tax benefit too though, right? I would get independent advice on exactly what benefits you are entitled to, because the people at the job centre will NOT tell you - they will give you the absolute minimum they can. If you go in there with all the details knowing exactly what you are entitled too, you will get it.

It's worth being on the housing register even in a low band - and if your circumstances change you may be moved up a band, especially as a lone parent with young children. When they allocate houses (or in some places you have to bid/apply for them), they run through all the bands, so if no one in higher bands want the house you may still get it. And it depends on where in the country you are as to how much housing is available. In London you probably have little chance unless you are really in need, but I have known single people in their 20s to get housing association flats in Bristol.

[trixymalixy]

Wow £950 a month is a lot to pay on your own even on a good wage. Is there really nothing cheaper in the private sector?

[FAQinglovely]

if you were to lose your job you would get full housing benefit, IS (or job seekers possibly depending on the age of your children), then you'd get child tax credits as well - oh and council tax benefit.

What the council told you in the past about help would no longer apply as you would no longer be earning a decent wage. So although you may not be high on the list for council housing now - if you lost your job then you would be.

[Mspontipine]

You're taking a load of crap limonchik. Every benefit customer's benefit is assessed according to their individual circumstances not on how much knowledge they have of the system.

Each individual claim is assessed on the information provided therefore their entitlement is based on their personal needs not what they know fgs. The staff are there to assist claimants not to hold back as much as the money as possible.

[FAQinglovely]

"Every benefit customer's benefit is assessed according to their individual circumstances not on how much knowledge they have of the system."

hmm - yeah right - that's why when DH first called up to claim JSA he was told he couldn't as he was "involved in industrial action" (he wasn't - and he'd used my phone to call and he clearly DIDN'T say that). He was told to wait a month....

I came on MN and posted about it and was told by several people that it was rubbish and he should call back. He called back and was told something different - he could claim straight away.

And - something I want to know for myself.

Do you have to be claiming IS as a Lone Parent before you can get an appointment with a Lone PArent advisor?

[Mspontipine]

Whyever din't he make it clear he wasn't if that was the reason they were giving him not to claim FAQ??

[Mspontipine]

OOOh that word was "didn't" not "din't" can I make that clear!!

[FAQinglovely]

he did make it clear - when he rang back up he gave the EXACT same information to the questions as he did the first time and was told "fine no problem".

He explained himself very clearly (that's his biggest "skill" is his clarity) on both occasions.

And it's not the first instance I know of of different people saying different things.

[FAQinglovely]

lol - I knew what you meant

(what about the Lone PArent advisor thing though?)

[Mspontipine]

Do you know - I really don't know that one but can I just say before I beetle off to bed - the best thing to do if you think you could be entitled to any benefits is to fill in the claim forms. Benefits and in particular IS and JSA are so incredibly complex and involved - believe me it was my job pre-ds. Not excusing anyone but sometimes the call centre staff do not get the extremly indepth training that the actual form processors do. It is sometimes hard to judge entitlement from a quick question on the phone there are so many ifs sos and wherefores. The actual guides to entitlement used to be about 8 huge lever arch full (Prob all online now) with changes and updates going on every week.

Most staff at jc+ etc are trying to do the best job they can which is to deliver the correct amount of money to the correct people.

If you checkout their website you should find the answer to your lp advisor question.

[FAQinglovely]

a quick question - it was no quick question - they were going through the form on the phone with him!

[lowrib]

"Every benefit customer's benefit is assessed according to their individual circumstances not on how much knowledge they have of the system.

Each individual claim is assessed on the information provided therefore their entitlement is based on their personal needs not what they know fgs."

Sorry but that's a load of rubbish.

[limonchik]

Mspontipine - not in my experience I'm afraid. I still stand by that the best thing to do is to arm yourself with as much info about what is available and what you're entitled to before you go in, so you can't be fobbed off. Knowledge is power!

[Mspontipine]

They're not there to fob anyone off.

[roulade]

Go to www.entitledto.com and fill out all your info, it will give you a rough guide of what you will be entitled to. You may even be entitled to housing benefit now depending on your circumstances. My Dh and i are even though we both work full time due to our childcare expenses.

[MissSunny]

Message withdrawn

[MissSunny]

Message withdrawn

[expatinscotland]

we'd never, ever be housed by the council as we work. it's not enough that our tenancy is actually coming to an end. it even has an end date written into it because our landlord is living abroad but coming home.

but the council (it's all HA here) still wants him to go through, and pay for, the formal court process of evicting us in order for us to be considered homeless.

my mum doesn't believe the tenancy laws here. she think i'm making it all up. so they're no help even though they're loaded. whatever.

we'll probably wind up in more debt getting another place, but that's how it is.

i don't blame people who go on and stay on benefits, tbh.

in a lot of ways, you wind up at least as good off if not a smidge or two better, depending on your circumstances, than if you are working poor.

[maidenvoyage]

Hi everyone, thank you for your messages. I am sitting here and worked out what i can pay the landlord and its £550. Have been talking to friends and my siser who says let him evict you, go into a hostel with 16 year old girl and sit and wait. Why would or should i pack up my honme that i work bloody hard for to go into a hostel. Saying that I have no choice, landlord will go mad morro when i pay half the rent into his account. Work today was told end of July. Told agency he said most he can get me now is £27k thats going to be less than what i am on now so fighting a losing battle. I am going to housing people morro took the day off cant sleep with worrying about it and tell them i am prepared to work but they need to help me. Someone said if i work part time i can claim benefits, housing etc is this true?

[roulade]

Yes Maiden, Dh and i both work full time and are entitled due to our childcare costs and terrible salaries!

[expatinscotland]

'Someone said if i work part time i can claim benefits, housing etc is this true? '

Depends on your income.

IF you earn about £15,000 or less/annum and have dependent children you may qualify for working tax credit and, depending on your council and how they assess your needs, you may also get partial housing benefit.

and you'd still get child tax credits for children under 16 if you have custody most of the time.

[PeachyTheRiverParrettHarlot]

Well Im not sure the system specifically encourages poeple not to work to get a house- TBH the only way you get one here is absolutre homelessness, even those who cannot work (carers, disabled) have a silly wait to get a house; those of us who can at least try to get a job should IMVHO be at the bottom of the ist- we can still get HB if qualified after all.

Do try the entitled to webiste- dh lost his job recently (is self employed now but at that pesky all input little profit stage LOL0 and it helped wor out where we stand- which is not in luxury but not in starvation either 9though we refused HB as we would ahve lost our house and nowhere in village will take HB)

Hope some work comes along soon

[PeachyTheRiverParrettHarlot]

oh and part time- income assessed obv, but yes if16 hours plus