To ask for help with universal credit? As a sahm

[CallingPeopleACuntOnFb]

I honestly cannot find the answer to this anywhere 😩

I work in a support role helping parents and i have a service user who’s very worried about UC coming in. She has depression / anxiety anyway and it’s really getting her down.

She’s a SAHM to 3 dc, 3 year old twins and a 6 yo. Her dp earns 26k a year working long and irregular shifts. He works 45-50 hours a week. so being a SAHM is her only option atm as they also both have zero family support.

They have a mortgage so wouldn’t need or be eligible for the “housing benefit” element. She’s in Leicester. At the moment they receive tax credits but will move to UC at some point (no idea when)

She wants to know if she will still be able to be a SAHM as work isn’t an option for her while the DC are so small.

I have no clue, I don’t claim myself, we don’t even get TCs anymore and as I said I can’t find any info online other than the benefits checker on entitledto. Which says she’s eligible for UC at a similar amount to her tax credits. but says nothing about whether she’s going to have to job search as a condition of getting the money.

It’s so bloody complex ! Hope someone can shed some light 💡 x

I cheated and used the calculator on my phone

I know belle!! I’ve got 3! The first 1 I had while single and on benefits! Then my other 2 are with a different Dad! And I used to live in a council house omg oh the horror 😱

🤣

Funny enough my life’s pretty damn awesome these days. We earn very good money and we’re comfortable but I’d never ever look down on others or begrudge a sahm a fucking few measly quid tax credits so she can be at home with her kids for a while x

Heaven forbid that somebody should have to dip in to their own £15K to look after their own family. Much better to rely on other people's taxes. It's this kind of sheer entitlement that forced benefit reform.

If I was a person who used services and found out my support worker posted about my life on AIBU, I’d be mortified and furious. Look at the comments this thread has generated; people are passing twatty comments on her mental health. It’s not a social media forum for professionals and the OP has demonstrated a lack of professionalism by not realising that she has given too much detail on this individual’s life.

Lol 😂

Have I named her ?? No

Have I posted her full fucking address and postcode and shod size ?! No

Have I named her dc ?? No

Have I named her dp? No

Have I gone into any detail about her exact mental health issues? No

Do anyone of you have a clue whether or not I’ve actually changed some details anyways?? Guess what No you fucking don’t 🤣🤣

So Stop getting your knickers in a twist about me supposedly “identifying” someone. It’s so transparently disingenuous anyway you couldn’t give a fuck about the person, it’s just annoyance that someone is getting a little bit of money and not working

Basically Wind your neck in 🤣🤣👏🏻👏🏻🙈

CallingPeople- there is always the option of not claiming at all. If she disagrees or does feel that she can't meet some of the criteria for UC, she should close her claim when she is moved.
I think living on 26k is possible with budgeting and going without some things.

See that’s what I’d do Ylva

Would I fuck be jumping through the job centres hoops for a measly few quid. no way

I’d rather be broke, genuinely

I wish ‘budgeting’ would make £1600 a month stretch to support 5 people when rent on a 3 bed semi is £1250 here I really do. Most people don’t want to claim! Besides which, ‘other people’s taxes’ don’t pay our tax credits - the amount to just under the monthly amount DH pays in tax. It would be cheaper for the government to just not tax him, in terms of admin etc. Doesn’t work that way though.

😱😱😱😱 That rents shocking

My god I feel for you x

You’re funny. I spend all day helping people get money from the state, quite large amounts actually. Interesting that you think it’s envy (?) when it’s actually surprise at your ignorance. It’s quite common to ask for advice on social media but this is AIBU (not even a benefits forum) and you’ve invited comments from spiteful people about her mental health. How can you not see that’s not ok?!

also I think you’re right re the tax thing ...last time I received TCs it was pretty much the same as DHs tax deductions or a bit under

You’re right it would be much easier to just take people out of tax

Op I think we would get in great irl. Also I can tell
You work in social care because you actually have a grasp of what ‘identifying details’ means and doesn’t mean.

For somebody who is meant to be helping others sort themselves out re benefits you seem pretty clueless yourself. And you do have a lovely way of expressing yourself. Hope you are a bit more pleasant to your 'clients' when you need to communicate with them.

I think we would Queen!! 😘

Sunny skies

I totally agree the comments the mental health are utterly disgusting (although sadly not surprising 😔)

However I don’t agree that the details I’ve posted are in any way identifying.

Couples, particularly women, need to be think about the accessibility and cost of childcare before they have children

Here's a clue, babies are born to parents who come as free childcare to their children
If both parents want to work then they pay for childcare, or ask other tax payers to fund their choice.
This is no better or worse than a sahp receiving money from the tax payer in form of tax credits.
Win win for all.
Oh and the title "Tax Credit" should give those who believe it to be a welfare benefit some idea as to it's meaning
UC is a benefit that people who receive TC are being moved to, so we all become benefit claimants.

Gillybeanz 👌🏻 👏🏻

UC is a benefit that people who receive TC are being moved to, so we all become benefit claimants.

Yes it feels like a shameful thing now. Yet not everyone is able to earn enough not to claim them, nor are there enough of those sorts of jobs to go round.

If she has 3 children then she won’t move over until at least 2019

Absolutely WhatIsThis ..,I said similar up thread

Tell her to pop into her local job centre and ask. Google and the daily fail won’t give her advice on her personal circumstances.

Some people really have no idea how this will also affect non claimants.

UC ALSO affects part time workers So you could be served your morning latte by someone who hasnt showered for a week due to not being able to afford to put the gas/electric on.

Ditto the care assistant who cant afford to come into the nursing home to do the Christmas Day / Boxing Day shift because they havent recieved anything for weeks so cant afford to pay for that expensive bank holiday taxi to get in to do that shift or even afford the bus IF there is one running.

There are actually people who are going to be inadvertently affected by this and a lot just cant seem to see it.

Far better to find childcare for a few years where the person is contributing to society and will continue to do so after those costs cease than pay people to do nothing and curtail their prospects of finding work again.

Tax credits are a benefit, they don't need to change to UC to be that. The government website lists them as a benefit alongside JSA etc.

If she’s not working, how have they got their mortgage? Is one person earning just 26k enough to get a mortgage? Genuine question.

Anyway, I highly recommend CAB for info regarding UC. CAB has a very big hatred for UC and therefore they know EVERYTHING about it!!!!