To ask you to help me work this out?

[Lulu2021]

My head is a mess as I'm going through some relationship difficulties with a young baby and I'm trying to make sense of my entitlement to financial help.

I've done a UC calculation a few times but it comes out with an amount that i think is an overestimate.

My details are;

• FT salary of £47,126, net monthly income £2,516 after deductions.
• 2 DC (ages 15 years and 6 months) - no childcare costs for eldest, costs of £700 pm for youngest when I go back to work from mat leave.
• child maintenance of £120 pm for the eldest child only.
• private rented property
• no other benefits claimed
• no significant savings

It's telling me I'd be entitled to in the region of £650 pm as a single parent. Does this sound right? Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

My partner and 1 have a combined annual income of £34000. We get £6.49 a week in child tax credits.

@NoSquirrels

£175 x 4 weeks (on an average month) = £700.

I accept there will be slight variation on a 4.5 week month, for example. I've worked out an a rough average

Work everything like this on x4.33 and then you’ll get a better average to aim at.

Ah ok. Thank you for the tip

But I do suggest using the citizens advice help to claim service to check the calculation and help you start the claim if you are not used to the benefits system.

www.citizensadvice.org.uk/about-us/contact-us/contact-us/help-to-claim/

We are on a joint income of £39K and we are not entitled to UC

because its a joint income?

@Babyroobs

I am also surprised at any entitlement on that kind of salary but op would only get Uc because of the childcare costs and the rent. At the end of the day UC is pretty generous to working people to keep them in work and give an incentive to work which is exactly what op wants to do having built up a career. Once student loan is paid off in a year or so, take home pay will rise and there will be very little Uc to be had so all those thinking she shouldn't get help can be reassured that it is only for a short while. By being able to continue working op will be less reliant on benefits in the longer term.

I was hoping you would come along to advise OP. Your advise is usually fab on money and UC topics.

Because it mainly depends on childcare costs and rent.

We have childcare costs and we rent.

@slapmyarseandcallmemary

My partner and 1 have a combined annual income of £34000. We get £6.49 a week in child tax credits.

Old systems so the way UC works out is totally different if you put your own figures in and compare you will see yourself and you may find UC better.

@NoSquirrels

£175 x 4 weeks (on an average month) = £700.

I accept there will be slight variation on a 4.5 week month, for example. I've worked out an a rough average

Work everything like this on x4.33 and then you’ll get a better average to aim at.

To those saying child maintenance payments would mean she wouldn't have to rely on benefits - well CM payments are not even taken into account so op would get exactly the same UC whether he pays CM or not !!

@Babyroobs

I am also surprised at any entitlement on that kind of salary but op would only get Uc because of the childcare costs and the rent. At the end of the day UC is pretty generous to working people to keep them in work and give an incentive to work which is exactly what op wants to do having built up a career. Once student loan is paid off in a year or so, take home pay will rise and there will be very little Uc to be had so all those thinking she shouldn't get help can be reassured that it is only for a short while. By being able to continue working op will be less reliant on benefits in the longer term.

Thank you!

Yes in about 18 months by student loan will be gone and my take home will be £2,600. I'm not sure if my entitlement to UC will end at that point as other pps have pointed out that my student loan deduction isn't taken into consideration for the calculation anyway.

I've just run the calculator and for where I live you are entitled to £35 a week once your youngest turns 1, before that you aren't entitled to as much rent money.

The calculations Questionable dance moves has given is the lowest possible as it uses the lowest lha rate, you will need to look up and substitute your own lha rate in the calculations which should not be to difficult, unless you are just terrible at maths.

The childcare is reimbursed in the assessment period in which it is paid or it happens, whichever is later, you will find that it does get split over assessment periods if the childcare you pay for is in advance

[quote FlemCandango]But I do suggest using the citizens advice help to claim service to check the calculation and help you start the claim if you are not used to the benefits system.

www.citizensadvice.org.uk/about-us/contact-us/contact-us/help-to-claim/[/quote]

Thank you

To those saying child maintenance payments would mean she wouldn't have to rely on benefits - well CM payments are not even taken into account so op would get exactly the same UC whether he pays CM or not !!

Oh really. So by some miracle if he chucks his daughter a few measly quid each month, it won't affect my entitlement. Thank you that's good to know!

@Briony123

Most couples don't earn your salary and most have worked hard all their lives too. If you earn over a certain amount (£40k maybe?) you are, quite rightly, not entitled to tax-funded handouts. UC is for families who could not cope on their salaries. Not for families on nearly £50k a year.

There is no upper limit for UC entitlement. If you had a few kids born before the two child limit came in to play and they are all disabled and you have a high rent , you could still be earning way over 50k and still be eligible for UC. UC is calculated based on elements you are entitled to.

@Musereader

The calculations Questionable dance moves has given is the lowest possible as it uses the lowest lha rate, you will need to look up and substitute your own lha rate in the calculations which should not be to difficult, unless you are just terrible at maths.

The childcare is reimbursed in the assessment period in which it is paid or it happens, whichever is later, you will find that it does get split over assessment periods if the childcare you pay for is in advance

I PMd this poster with my location

@Lulu2021

To those saying child maintenance payments would mean she wouldn't have to rely on benefits - well CM payments are not even taken into account so op would get exactly the same UC whether he pays CM or not !!

Oh really. So by some miracle if he chucks his daughter a few measly quid each month, it won't affect my entitlement. Thank you that's good to know!

Yes absolutely correct. There is no deduction from Uc for CM payments.

@Lulu2021

Everyone making snidey "you earn enough, the system isn't for you" type comments ought to reflect on the situation they would be, financially, if they suddenly had to find an extra £700 per month on their wage alone. I'm sure you'd all do fine and dandy, right?

I bet the families on joint income of under £40k, with equally high or higher childcare costs, are loving the fact their taxes are going to be funding this person. My blood would be boiling.

Just saying I hope you are ok OP. Some comments on here are disgraceful.

@Babyroobs

And student loan. Can I just check I've got this right. When I've finished paying this off and get that £200 back for myself each month, will that affect my entitlement? I've been advised on this thread that they ignore my student loan deductions for the purposes of the calculation, so I'm assuming when it's paid off, they will continue to ignore and it has no impact?

@Briony123

I'm a tax payer too and I've never not worked, my whole life. What's your point? Anything constructive to add?

@winterescape

Just saying I hope you are ok OP. Some comments on here are disgraceful.

I've had a number of panic attacks today - some induced by my partner and some by this thread. But I am ok. Thank you for asking

[quote Lulu2021]@Babyroobs

And student loan. Can I just check I've got this right. When I've finished paying this off and get that £200 back for myself each month, will that affect my entitlement? I've been advised on this thread that they ignore my student loan deductions for the purposes of the calculation, so I'm assuming when it's paid off, they will continue to ignore and it has no impact? [/quote]
Uc is based on net pay, so presumably when your student loan is paid off, your net pay will rise by £200, so you will get less UC as take home pay will be higher. For each £1 higher your take home pay is, you will lose 63p of UC.

There is no upper limit for UC entitlement.

See I hadn't realised this before today. I'd always assumed my salary would be way above the cut off.

Please do double check the spreadsheet I linked to as the weekly lha rate on the lha website is not quite the same as the lha rate universal credit uses , there are some discrepancies due to rounding that means the rate they used might not be quite right

Sorry I'm assuming student loan payments are recovered directly from earnings ? i have never had to pay student loan as was fortunate to have gone to Uni in the long gone days when people received grants, so not exactly sure how they are recovered?