To be claiming some benefits.....

[CardyMow]

When DP works FT? DP earns £16K before tax. We get : £140 a week Child tax credits. £76 a week Working tax credit. £46 a week child benefit. £ 122 a week Housing benefit. We have 3 dc. I am a SAHM because no-one will emloy me due to my epilepsy, but I no longer get any disability benefits in respect of this. What I can't work out from all the hoo-ha on MN lately about benefits 'scroungers' is whether DP and I are unreasonable to claim what's available?

Soooo. Are we benefits scroungers because we get £384 a week in benefits. Or are we not benefits scroungers because DP works FT and pays tax? Where does the collective wisdom of MN stand on that?

[GypsyMoth]

A single parent who is fully dependent on benefits and is sahm, may have an ex p, father of the dc, who works and pays tax?

The old way, with his maintenence going back in the pot, was fairer

[kayah]

I have aunty who successfully worked in the sam job as a Health Inspector for 30 years with her epilepsy, that's why I would employ someone with this illness.

I guess she was lucky that her medication used to help her a lot, but shesometimes was sent home when she wasn't feeling well.

[Lougle]

shimmerysilverghosty if you wanted to PM me, I could run through it for you

I would need:

Details of income source and amount
How many children
Whether any disability
CT bill per year
Rent per month
How many hours worked or if on IS/JSA etc.
Either Postcode or town or city

Obviously, though, there is a lot of personal info there.

[keepingupwiththejoneses]

Well done loudlass for speaking up. I know how you feel, I am not brave enough to let other MNer's how much benefit's we get, what I will say is DH is a self employed plasterer and can work up to 50-60 hours a week but only brought home 6.5k after tax last year, we have 2 special needs ds's, I have been a sahm since having ds3 as he has been backwards and forwards to the hospital ever since. I find myself having to explain why I don't work.

[2shoeprintsintheblood]

epilepsy is a shit of a thing, I hate it
dh finds it so hard to get work cos he can't bloody drive and in his trade driving is often one of the things asked for , so op yanbu,
I am so glad that there are people on mn who talk about this as it helps me. (I have 2 in my family with epilepsy, dd and dh)
(oh and we are on benefits at the moment)

[earwicga]

Loudlass - you are quite right about not having to state you have epilepsy now. It's in the Equality Act 2010 which came into force on October 1st.

I like your points about SAH single and married/partnered mothers. Where did you get your information about differentiated rates of benefit caps? I've not heard of that before.

[Firawla]

yanbu of course you should take what you are entitled to, i think most people would have an issue more with people who lie/cheat the system etc. i dont have a problem with single mum on benefits either, but do have a problem with 2 parents both on benefits sat @ home IF they could work. If genuinely cant find work its different but people making a decision to be on benefits cos they are lazy, that's the one people have an issue with, not people such as yourself or single mums that need to be at home with their young kids

[CardyMow]

I got the info about the differentiated caps a) Off MN and then b) off a friend who will now have to give up work (she's a SP working 22.5 hrs a week), as she won't be able to afford her childcare and her rent, only one or the other.

That's the thing with being an 'unwaged dependant' of someone working FT, I am not even allowed to talk to anyone in the local jobcentre anymore, if it wasn't for MN, I wouldn't have had a clue about this new equality act and the fact that I no longer have to declare my epilepsy to an employer, which might make it hugely more likely that I can at least get something PT.

[lowrib]

"MN has always been a quite supportive place to be, but just lately it seems that every grou of people is 'ganging up' on other groups of people. I want to know what has happened to everyone's empathy."

The tories got in, that's what

It's divide and rule. It;s a tried and tested method - they did it last time round too: get us blaming each other for societies ills - or better still blaming the vulnerable or people who don't have a voice, so that we're too busy arguing to pay too much attention to what they're really up to, which is pushing through a right-wing agenda.

It's not about cuts or benefit cheats, it's ideological.

[DioneTheDiabolist]

I think it's part of the Big Society, you know, blame, badger and castigate those on benefits in the hope that they will get off their workshy asses and get one of those job things that the government are doing away with.

Take your benefits you are entitled to them. I am a SAH single mum on benefits. It is not a lifestyle choice, and will not be forever and I'll be fucked before I feel bad about anything that is said about it. I live in a deprived area full of benefits recipients and still haven't met one for whom it is a lifestyle choice. The govt and media have hyped stories of extreme scrounging in order to get otherwise sane, smart people to fall behind cuts that hit the poorest worst.[hangry]

Unfortunately it has worked.[hsad]

[Mumcentreplus]

...never be ashamed to claim benefits...its what I pay tax for..to help people who need it no matter what an opinion or a newspaper says...

[Joolyjoolyjoo]

I don't think YABU. Your DP works, you are prepared to work. I wince a bit at some threads when I see how much some people seem to get on benefits, but I do agree that benefits should be given to people earning a relatively low wage. Ideally, workers would be better paid, but until that day people in your situation should get benefits to ensure a decent standard of living.

Fwiw, I have no problem with single mums staying at home to look after small children and receiving benefits either. What does frustrate me is the system which seems to actively discourage people working if they could/ want to.

We both work and pay tax, and I am happy for that money to be used for benefits for people, especially if they are keen to help themselves as well. I try to zone out the stories about the "scroungers" (I have an uncle who is one, I would happily take his benefits away and give them to people like you, OP and to single mums!) because I believe in the Welfare State. I do worry sometimes about the way it is run, but I don't agree with blanket cuts to it either. Although I suppose assessing each case would cost a fortune too...no easy answers!

But I honestly can't believe that anyone is surprised that a tory govt would hit the poorest. I have friends on a low income who get top-up benefits and I was flabbergasted to discover that they had voted tory because "we needed a change!" Change isn't necessarily always for the better!

[theywillgrowup]

a good thread started loudlass

im always amazed at how different peoples opinions vary on subjects like this,at the moment most seem in agrement with your views and you make some very valid points

was a similar thread started the other day and quite a few started the classic benefit bash,seems depending when you post as to what reaction you get

anyway im a SAHM on benefit and each case has its own dynamics,my case on benefits but i have no morgage (all payed of 19mths ago)so i suppose i could say that the benefit money i get approx £900 a month isnt really draining the system so much as im saving Goverment £900 a month if they had to pay my rent,so no i dont feel bad anymore about claimimg benefit,you shouldnt either but how refreshing to read a post like yours with compassion and thought

Really hope things go well for you and your family

[midlandsmumof4]

I don't think you are being unreasonable, you are claiming your entitlement. Pity these benefits weren't around year when my children were growing up........

[SofaKitten]

YANBU you are claiming the benefits you are entitled to.

I do feel a bit envious though as I work 50+ hour weeks to bring home less than you get in benefits... and I'm apparently entitled to diddly squat. But that is not your fault - it's the system's...

[pastyeater]

I think the problem is too many people are working hard for to little or ending up with little after housing costs.The frustration at the seemingly easy ride of others is understandable.The govt. and media are playing on it to make scapegoats out of benefit claimants.I am pissed of reading these threads and all the predictable propaganda that gets spouted.
Maybe you don't have as much as as someone on benefit,but maybe you haven't escaped DV,are mentally ill, disabled had a shit education or grew up in care.All these things disproportionatley apply to benefit claimants.Comparisons are pointless as everyones circumstances are so individual. Some of those getting wound up about how much people get in benefit could do with counting their own blessings.Reminding themselves there by the grace of god go I. Then minding their own fucking business.


By the way I think you desrve every penny, I hope you win the lottery too.

[lowrib]

Well said pastyeater.

[LynLiesNomoreZombieFest]

You are not benefit scroungers because you do all that you can do.

If someone could work, but chooses not to and claims benefit, or works and does not declare their income then they are benefit scroungers.

I can understand why some are upset, your income and benefits means that you are better off than many of those earning £35000 who have worked incredibly hard to get where they are, but that is not your fault.

The only positive thing I can think of about this situation is to those worried about losing their jobs in this economic climate, having to claim benefit may not be as bad as you fear.

[lowrib]

"those worried about losing their jobs in this economic climate, having to claim benefit may not be as bad as you fear."

Um ... have you not noticed the round of cuts that's happening? By the time the next wave of recession hits, I'd be very surprised if the benefits you get are at all generous. Which strikes me as very unfair. You pay into the pot through your hard earned wages, so why shouldn't you expect to get something back in times of hardship?

But with possible economic disaster looming, the government seems hell-bent on taking the safety nets away. Great stuff

[olderandwider]

Slightly off topic but,I resent how the benefits and tax credit system props up employers who pay very low wages.

Imagine enforcing a living wage. Employers would find more people willing to work for them for higher pay, the Government would save money because the amounts of benefits paid to working people would/should shrink, and the Government could pass on these savings in the form of business tax cuts to companies to encourage them to expand.

That way the direct link between income and earnings would be re-established and remove the complexity of people having to make calculations about whether they are better off on benefits or not.

Now, what's a living wage, anyone?

[umf]

YANBU. And I agree with you that the underlying problem is that wages are too low: most families in which one or even both (if lucky enough to have two) parents work fulltime can't fully support a family without tax credits and other benefits. We need a much flatter wage structure, as in Scandinavia, where even the lowest paid workers receive a living wage.

[TotsDaddy]

YANBU if benefits are something you are claiming to tide you over a rough patch and organise your affairs untill you can stand on your own two feet, and if this is the case, good luck.

YABU if this is your financial plan from here on in....

[onceamai]

No I don't think you're scrounging. Your DP works for a pittance, full time, you would like to work and you have 3 children. That's very different from the circumstances on another thread. I take my hat off to you and I hope things get better for you.