is it possible to be a single parent and work full time and be better off than working part time?

[juicychops]

im a single parent and dont get any help from my ds's dad

i work part time 16 hrs per week and get working and child tax credits. i have to pay half my rent and all my council tax plus normal bills/shopping etc

i hate struggling and i know im not the only one struggling but im trying to think of options to become a bit more comfortable.

i have worked out that i am slightly better off working than going back onto full benefits, plus dont want to stop working.

im considering even working full time although it will be hard juggling child care etc as ds doesn;t start school until september.

what im asking is- is it possible to be a single parent and work full time? will i still get any tax credits still? will i be much better off or not?
im studying for a degree at the moment so until ive finished that in another 4 years i wont be able to get a professional well paid job, it would jus be a 'normal' job if you know what i mean

[CrackerNut]

You will still get tax credits yes but when ever I have worked it all out for fulltime jobs the result was that I'd be about £10 a week better off.

[juicychops]

CSA are the biggest pile of bo**ocks i have ever come across in my whole life!

i am owed over £1400 in arrears but as my ex has been in and out of work for last couple of years, in and out of claiming various benefits the CSA can never keep up with him and they are just so crap. i ring them every few months and am told something different every time. their staff have no clue what they are talking about half the time and when a manager says they will ring you back they never bloody do!!

CSA are a sore point for me at the moment

[violethill]

I don't know the answer to the OP's specific question, but I am watching this thread with interest.

If anyone, whether single parent or otherwise, is not better off working full time rather than part time, then it's ludicrous!!

[Kafka]

I looked into this from a social policy pperspective. Taking into account the costs of childcare, and the effect on tax credits of a greater income generally not better off working full time.

The only lone parents who will be are those who earn so much as to be out of the tax credit system so earning more than about 60K.

What this in effect means is that social mobility for lone parents is very difficult.

[onadietcokebreak]

I am reducing my hours. Yet to see exactly how worse off I will be but know I have to do it for my sanity!

The best thing to do is look at entitledto.com for an estimate. However the website is only as good as the info you put in so make sure its accurate.

Then do a revised budget taking into account extra petrol, parking, lunch (if not taking packed lunch) and childcare.

You can then compare it with current budget.

I love Moneysavingexperts budget planner. It makes you think of all sorts of things that are normally missed off budgets. Plus you can input figures a mixture of weekly or monthly and it works it all out for you.

Now I need to do mine.....

[onadietcokebreak]

Also how would working full time impact on your degree?

If it is likely to suffer then keep things as they are as a professional qualification/increased earning capacity in 4 years time is too precious to throw away!

[aiden]

hi, i am also a single parent, have worked full time since returning from maternity leave(dd is 20mnths). in all honesty i have found it so bloody difficult, i have decided to retrain for career change. i have a hospitality degree, but work in accounts, first in hotels which didn't work because hrs are v v long (12hrs days quite common), i then downgraded jobs to work normal 9-5.30hrs in the city, hated it with a passion (v v depressing place to work, low staff morale, high staff turn over, absolute tosser for a boss, etc).

i left that to work p/t. i am now temping with agencies because i have struggled to find another job (doing anything) p/t.

so to answer your question, yes u probably will be better off financially working f/t, but the you will stuggle with all other aspect of life unless you have the best support.

[PeppyPiggy]

Are you still active on here op, wondering how things worked out for you? You post seems just like my situation including the part time degree studies too