To want more benefits?

[CheeseAndSprinkles]

I care for 2 of my children but I'm only able to claim one amount of carers allowance. I save the country a lot of money by caring for my children, I wouldn't have it any other way, but the extra money would be extremely helpful. It's a pittance anyway. So am I BU?

It is sad that I'd get an extremely good and generous wage with a better respite package if I was a foster carer, rather than a mother.

Of course the argument that carers save the government money isn't applicable if you look after family. When I got pregnant and had my child I had no idea that she would be severely disabled and through no fault of my own. I save the government money every single day by caring for my child and looking after my child when I could (or should?!) be able to claim respite or specialist carers to come and help out due to how hard it is! The same as if you are caring for an elderly relative rather than them living in a home. I'm sure if my daughter had regular respite or went into residential care she would cost the taxpayer more than £62 a week! Ridiculous argument! Luckily for the government (and for my daughter) I am able to cope as the resources to help her and me seem to be lacking.

Autumnleaves what rubbish! Of course carers save the government money when caring for family. If I put my dc's into care, how much would that cost the state?

Owllady what a fab day that was

Pandas you need a care budget. That's not the same as carers allowance. Of course I understand that situations differ, but I don't think I should be assumed to have an easy ride because I've been able to cobble together 4 hours of help twice per week to enable me to work

I fucking love PiP I do. Ds had his assessment last week. Organised care this end, went two hundred miles to help him, at considerable expense to me. They cancelled. Ds had been so stressed and they cancelled with an hours notice. I did manage to stop him banging his head off the wardrobe, but it took a while. I've got to do the whole trip again in a couple of weeks. Oh, and I can't claim expenses.
Bastards!

OP, YANBU.

I don't know anything about this system but know you don't get much money.
It's disgusting when you think of what you have to do on a daily basis.
I can't imagine what it must be like.
At least minimum wage, because you are saving the state a fortune by staying at home to look after your children.
So sorry You and others have to struggle, it isn't on

I work but don't have any family support or amassive respite package. Mind you I only work 10 hours a week

You are positively spoilt owllady, I'm guessing your letters came on a Saturday, that's the law with brown envelopes.
The reality is that if you're a carer and a lone parent with no family support then you carry on until way past being broken.
Places in residential used to be 2k a week, so that's 6k a week for my three.
We get a support package as I have my own health problems, which has led to be being in ICU and I had a huge battle to get support, involved the MP made official complaints, but I don't get any carers because I get widowed parents allowance, that will stop soon when my youngest leaves education, I will then be able to claim one lot of carers, we get one weekend a month respite, which we have to pay towards, that would use up the carers allowance.

No- I think you are absolutely not BU to wonder about this. Having two children with additional needs brings double the amount of pressure. It's not as if this is a buy-one-get-one-free situation. I bloody hate this government and their penny-pinching, miserly approach to looking out for us all. It's as if they've looked at how much sustaining a humane, compassionate society costs and decided fuck it, let's just save some cash and live in Dickensian England. My heart goes out to you OP- I think it stinks that you don't get the recognition that all your hard work deserves.

Dawn, can't you use a magic carpet next time? All you have to do is rub a lamp...

Of course it was a Saturday :o I got the pip application pack through Christmas eve!

Thanks for all your replies so far. I'm logging off for the night but will be back tomorrow. for all of you in similar circs. It's not easy, but we do it cos we love em

Hang on did someone say they'd got a magic carpet? Is that instead of a free car, spoilt you are
Joking aside, not giving adequate support will cause problems later on, not just for carers, teaching the life skills our children need is hard to do when you're knee deep in fielding kids juggling paperwork and meetings, one to one time goes out the window.

Owl, it was in for cleaning, you know how it is...

There are two options now on the pip form, you can either tick for a free car or a magic carpet. It's an Ian Duncan Smith initiative

I have three kids of 7,6,3. The youngest two have autism. The three year old can't speak. I used to have a well paid job but now can't work as my youngest cannot mental handle more than a few hours a day at nursery and my middle daughter has just started ft school and after school clubs etc require us to pay for a 1:1 for her. Carers doesn't even begin to touch what I use to make. I feel it should be done on number of children. Looking after my kids is exhausting. I adore them but it's such hard work. I'm close to tears most of the times as my children cannot be left with anyone else. It's just me.

Owl will I lose my goat and telly?

Definitely your goat, he's not from a hard working family and you can't even milk a male goat. No amount of faurydust is going to change that

Autumn, you never fail to put the boot in, do you?

Cheese - x

Dawndonna, depends on the size of your tele, if it's a massive all singing and dancing one you'll be ok.
I couldn't even have a goat due to allergies.
Re PIP medicals for your DS, mine was cancelled 4 times, often with an hours notice, after putting in an official complaint it was decided that I didn't need a medical after all.

But does the goat need a medical?

Cancel again and I'll go nuts at them, and I am not a woman to be messed with!

lougle

Surprisingly I'm gobsmacked that you don't already know this but the upper limit on CA has changed I think off the top of my head it's gone up to £110 or £115 pw.

And if you pay any formal childcare or carer costs to enable you to work you can deduct them in full from your income

For what it's worth im a carer I provide care for several disabled people for free for more than 35 hours pw but I do not claim anything (wouldn't be entitled to it) all of them are considered to be severely disabled and severely mobility challenged. I elect to not claim DLA for any under 16 but would facilitate the pip claim should the over 16 require it.

I don't qualify for anything personally due to my income.

For me to work it costs me £500 per 20 hour period per disabled person it's more expensive if I split the time to say 8 hours one day am so on. An that is solely for the carer aspects of the disability ad nothing else.

Who ever thinks DLA/pip is a fair whack or more than enough for many disabled people is a tit, it's not even intended to fully cover the costs it's always been intended to be a contribution towards them.

Msqueen33