To think the benefit cap is going to plunge families into poverty

[Firsttheworst]

Next month the benefit cap comes in. It sets out the maximum that can be claimed in a week across all benefits. This doesn't include disability or wtc. Its aimed purely at women (mostly) claiming income support. You can only claim income support if you have a child under 5 and don't work.

The benefit cap is in the government owns words designed to get IS claimants out to work. The cap is currently £500 and will be reduced to £384 a week.

This includes, housing benefit, CT benefit, tax credits, income support. So all in total cannot be more than £384 a week. Over a 30 day month that comes to £1645.

From that £1645 I need to pay

rent £900 a month (no I can't move, its impossible to rent on benefits as it is, not giving this house up and its below market rent as it is)

CT - £60 a month

Electricity £80

Oil £80

Diesel £ 120 (rural don't drive anywhere other than school runs and supermarket/town once or twice a week)

Car insurance £49

Car tax £19.99

Phone/internet £40 (thats a basic mobile and broadband)

House insurance £13

TV licence £11

That leaves 272 a month to pay for food, clothes, car breakdown, school trips, birthdays, miscellaneous and god knows what else. For one adult and 3 children.

AIBU to think that the government have just decided that if they starve us out for long enough we'll be forced to go out and find a job? Like I said rural area so jobs are rarer than hens teeth and believe me i'm looking. It is pure discrimination against single mothers with small children (i doubt many men claim income support)

Butterfly - totally agree with you on this! I work all week in a very stressful job and come out with basically the same amount after tax!

Rent is massive!
And your diesel costs are high too.
And oil is very expensive
And you live in a rural area with no jobs.
So choosing to live in a high cost house in a rural area with oil heating and no jobs is costing you in all fronts.
Do you get child support
Are you allowed to do any work without it affecting your benefits e.g pet walking, pet sitting, ironing? Could you become a childminder?
Otherwise yes you need to explore other options. 💐

What about child benefit? Is that in the cap ?
With broadband can you do something online ? Proof reading etc for example

Its also worth pointing out most people don't get anywhere near the £500 a week benefits im single with three kids the new cap takes about a fiver a week off me I've been trying to find work for ages I've not even had an interview

If you were disabled it would be different but unless I misread you are not

Agree with pp. You are living beyond your means so will have to move.

Why should you be paid more than many families with a parent working (more than) FT?

It certainly will without a shadow if a doubt put people further into poverty, but who voted these cretins back in. Did the last 5/6 years teach people nothing. Its always the poor that are targeted.. Where as what they should be doing is going after their rich silver spoon billionaire mates who've not paid taxes for years. I'm sure that'll get them a fortune. But Instead they choose to penalise the poor who can't fight back. Well that's a bully for you though, isn't it.
Its all well and good creating poverty to force people back to work, but. The suitable jobs have to be there. .
These millionaire/billionaire politicians have never lived in the real. They've never had to do it.
IMO a Prime Minister should be someone who has seen real life, abx knows what its like to struggle.
I hate to say this, but I fear with all these cuts and pressure on the poor. The suicide rates are going to go through the roof, but. Why should TM give a shiny shit. It'll be another one off her books then won't it.
I mean how long are these cuts going to go on for. Its gone way past a joke, now.

A few hundred (after tax) under what I earn working full-time as a teacher. I do sympathise too, though. The benefits system has lead to rents being linked to the levels which can be claimed. People have to live somewhere, they choose somewhere that will accept benefits, then the goalposts get moved. Your diesel bill is a lot - is there no school bus, could you get shopping delivered to cut costs?

Your car insurance is nearly 600 pounds a year?!

384 a week is more than I earn full time after tax. I moved to a cheaper town so I could ensure housing costs of c600 a month.

I finally found shifts in a chip shop on mw, plus i didn't drive at that point so wasn't paying out on a car just hideously expensive public transport.
It might be worth keeping an eye out for cards in shop windows you only need 16 hrs a week to move to WTC.

£1645 per month is £19,740 per year after tax; so what's that £23k p/a gross.

Nearly £1700 a month is a great income IF that's what most people on benefits would get. Reality is that most won't be getting anything like that amount.

Anyone getting that amount will have to feed, clothe and house several children who didn't ask to be born. Much of that income will be in housing benefit....then what's left over has to feed, clothe, heat housing etc etc etc plus cover electricity and water costs. In short it's not much to cover the costs of caring for several children.....and the only people getting maximum will be in that position.

I earn just over 1600 after tax. I have been working full time since I was 17, and the only time I didn't earn was when I took time out to go to university.

Sounds like you're getting a pretty good deal to me. If you need more money, sounds like it's time to hit up your children's father for maintenance, surely he should be contributing?

All of you saying 'thats what I earn in a month'. I presume you claim child benefit and tax credits on top of that? So you're not just living on that amount of money are you?

on a standard 40hr week, that's £9.60 /hour. Plenty of people have to live on that, and less.
Curious how you are managing to use 100 litres of diesel a month on 2 trips to town a week and a school run; you know that if an 8 year old lives more than 2 miles, or 3 miles if older, they are entitled to free school transport?

Where is your child benefit in this?
Unfortunately the system has been abused in the past meaning that things have got tough.

A life on benefits is about surviving more than living.

Can't you take the time whilst your not working to go to college and retrain?

Make use of the benefits and better yourself so that in a few years you don't have to rely on them.

The cuts will continue until enough people who actually vote are affected poor people demographically speaking don't vote

OP nearly £1700 a month take home is a really good wage tbh.

£900 a month isn't much for rent although it depends where you live. I live in the SE and that's 2 bed flat kind of price.

I do sympathise but you do spend a lot of money you haven't earned on living, it's quite an eye opener really. Your fuel costs are astronomical

OP I don't understand- £1700 take home is £32k ish a year wages- do you get tax credit on that?

Yanbu. 272 isn't an awful lot for those everyday essentials. School shoe month would be crippling.

900 isn't a high rent either. Although I'm in the south east so don't know any better.

Anyone with three children whose household income is £500 a week will also receive tax credits. If they are working and claiming childcare costs that wtc will be higher than the income support.
If the op gets a job it will cost the government three times the £72 in wtc.

Yabu and yanbu for all the reasons stated above. I work pt and claim wtc and ctc. My wage and benefits come to around 900 a month so what you get seems quite high.

I think that if benefits are being reduced then help with childcare costs should be increased. I work pt and have a 19mo. I would work ft but a day in nursery leaves me with ten pounds a shift so isn't worth it. The government should also have better plans in place wrt child maintenance.

It must be a scary position to be in but it is what it is. We just have to take any steps we can to protect ourselves and out children. I would look at moving to a cheaper area if you can. It's what I'm having to do unfortunately I split with my ex.

The sad thing is that it's not enough to live on in the OP's circumstances but she's not getting any support just people saying it's tougher for them!

Turn your anger on the people who deserve it, those who brought in the cuts not those having to live with the consequences whether working or not working.

*three times the £72 income support.