AIBU for wondering how many people on here will be affected by the £500pw benefits cap next year?

[lostgal]

I'm just wondering if there are really people/households who actually receive more than £500 per week in benefits who will actually be affected?

If so, how big an impact will this be on your life?

No, I am not a troll, just genuinely curious to see how common it is and how badly it is likely to affect vulnerable people in our society?

Do tax credits count? I used to get something like £250 a week in childcare tax credits when both DC's were nursery age. If someone received that working tax credit and housing benefit that would presumably tip them over the threshold.

God though, that seems a hell of a lot. If you earn £35,000 you take home £500 per week.

I would assume that this cap doesn't include childcare tax credits?

That would be a backwards step surely, deciding to sop supporting working families?

I would assume the £500 pw would only be found in large(r than 1) families and those in London?

A week? Flipping heck, that's a lot. No, it won't affect me then, I don't get that much per month let alone a week.

I'm sure it will include childcare credits - isn't the whole lot being lumped into the universal credit thingy?

Two adults, three children. We didn't get that much when we were on benefits.

People in London will be the worst hit.

In South West London, the Local Housing Allowance rate for a 3 bedroom house is £340 per week. With the cap, that means that if a couple with 4 children had full housing benefit entitlement, their other benefits would be capped to £160 per week.

That means they'd have £160 per week for everything else - fuel, food, water bills, electricity, clothes, etc.

It does include child tax credit, working tax credit, housing benefit, income support, jobseekers.

Yes, it counts it all. Get calculating everyone!

Not sure if free school meals, milk tokens etc are included thi

agree with Lougle, its the housing benefit that pushes up the amount people get, as londoners get more than anyone they will be the worst hit. I suppose if you have about loads of children you might get a cut too

def not, i get £147 per week and the rent paid (£250 per month).

No council tax benefit?

No, we won't. We only get CB until next year, and that's the only benefit we have ever got. I don't really understand the current benefits system (ie how a family could get £500 a week), but not sure the new universal credit will make things much simpler

I get:

£160 CTC
£75 IS
£47 CB
£157 HB
£25 ish CTax

So that won't affect me, I'm SE about 40mins from London

I also get child maintenance, but that isn't taken into account regardless of how much you get.

I would think it will mainly be blended families living in London that will be hardest hit, and on the flip side it will make financial sense for some families to split.

No, we are a family of 4 on JSA and all of our benefits, including housing, tax credits, child benefit and council tax benefit come to a little more than half of that figure.

I almost reach the cap but only because we have two lots of DLA higher rate coming in, which pushes a lot of the other benefits up, and we are in London. But the DLA means we're exempt from the cap anyway. I think the cap doesn't apply if you get WTC either, it's just those who aren't working at all, or enough to get WTC, and aren't on certain disability benefits. I don't know anyone in that situation.

oh my goodness, Spaniel that's shocking!

according to directgov, if you are in receipt of, or qualify for working tax credit you will be exempt from the cap.

pretty much everything else is taken into consideration.

definitely agree that it's londoners with higher rents receiving hb who will be hit most, and larger families.

I don't think it is that bad. I think if we had to live on that for years, it would be very difficult, but for the short term we are managing. Grandparents have paid for new school shoes and some other school stuff for high school transition. So we are not in the difficult position other people are in where they have no family support and no prospects of being able to work in the future due to illness.

We are paying interest only on the mortgage, so we need to be back in work before the bank starts getting really annoyed, but we do have enough to eat etc.

that amount includes childcare I know nobody who gets 2k a month in cash on benefit

Interesting. I will be back at work by then but currently I get:

£420 pm housing benefit
£99 pm council tax benefit
£420 pm ESA
£80 pm child benefit
£280 pm tax credits

The housing benefit and ESA amounts aren't exact as I get a payment every two weeks and can't remember exactly what it is.

So, no, I wouldn't be affected as that's roughly £325 per week.

Pretty much everything else is taken into consideration

Are FSM included in the amount?

Spaniel, just under half that seems very low if you have 2 children. Do you have a low rent?