Apprenticeship £5.25ph, no free prescription/dental/opticians and no child benefit

[SamBeckettslastleap]

I take it MN will think this is perfectly reasonable but I think it is dreadful that a child on half the minimum wage will have to pay prescription cost/dentist/eyesight.

They also don't get child benefit, or UC/TCs so in low income families will have to pay rent.

How is this fair? Traditionally it is lower income families that go into apprenticeship at 16 .

However if they are home educated (in any form no checks) or go to college and not apprenticeship (some courses are 9 hours a week) they get it all, and could be earning significantly more in PT jobs.

Yes, having children is expensive.

Can feel the sarcasm.I know they're expensive!
The point I was trying to make is that it's a shame they don't get more help with things when they're trying their best to better themselves and are actually going to work and grafting,and yes I know they'll come out of it with qualifications etc.It just pisses me off when people get more and they aren't even willing to work.

But on the other hand those following a more academic route get literally zero, and have to pay tens of thousands in fees and accommodation costs.

Apprentices by comparison have it quite easy.

Yes exactly. I think OP is slightly confused as to what she should be expected to pay towards her "child". As an under 18, they should be FULLY supported by their parents, including rent, food and other miscellaneous costs. Any wages from their apprenticeship or other jobs should be used to supplement their living, not as their main form of sustenance. Most other 16-18 year olds will be in college, so I wonder why they're expected to receive benefits for not doing so.

@SamBeckettslastleap @ellenc12 You can get a low income certificate for them, by applying here. It's designed for students.
https://www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/nhs-low-income-scheme
They get help for dental and optical costs.

Make sure the dental and optical is checked before they go off your family insurance.
In a few years your apprentice will be laughing.

He's actually just turned 18 and so up until his apprenticeship we were fully supporting him. Now he's 18 and has to pay for all nhs costs and travel fares etc it's just expensive.A little help sould go a lo g way.

Some apprenticeship schemes are just cheap labour and they are the YTS of old.

A friends DS has just started an engineering apprenticeship with a manufacturing firm he will have an HND and his pay is 18k per annum in his first year. DS is on a degree apprenticeship and his pay is now 27k per annum with a degree paid for by his employers, zero student debt, pension, gym and some other benefits. Of any post school training I think this is the absolute best option but it is horrendously competitive. I just looked it up in 2021/22 the amount starting a degree apprenticeship was 37,800 as opposed to 2,182,560 starting a degree course at a UK University.

Some apprenticeships are really only a foot in the door to low paid work. But they are experience and a taste of adult life. Hopefully we learn from those experiences. My first job at 16 was in a shop and it incentivised me to go to night school and better myself, so thank you national supermarket for inspiring me to better myself because you were such a shit employer especially the Weaselly faced manager who made me cry.

Could you get him a bike for his birthday?

@WillowCraft

Did you miss the bit about the AD’s ?????

Money spent on exercise is money well spent for well balanced mental health IMO

He goes to the gym, he trains twice a week, and plays most weekends.

£15 for a phone for a 22 year old is hardly excessive.

He runs a Golf 1.4 again hardly excessive.

My post was not posted for your opinion on how we help him out, my point was that we can afford to, and it enrages me that there are equally capable young people out there who are not as fortunate as our DS.

I am guessing that your children are very young, please come back to me when you have a young person in your house and you need to give them some help whilst they navigate themselves into the world of grown ups.

In fact if I still had a mortgage I would put next months mortgage money on the fact that your children are not even approaching their teens.

Do let me know, there’s a dear.

I would edit there a dear comment if I could, the rest remains.

@HongKongGarden whats a bike got to do with anything,hes got one already.If your making a snarky comment about getting to college then its an hours bus ride away and on college days he has to take some of his tools with him ,is that ok?

It’s “you’re.”

I can see that you’re not someone who sees the value in education.

@HighEndGrifters clearly on here once your kid gets to a certain age and wants to start helping themselves -working etc, then all social life and leisure has to stop for them!
My son loves going to watch his local footy team every weekend and after working 40 hours a week I dont blame him,he doesn't go out drinking or anything else because he needs to pay for his driving lessons and car etc.That's his outlet but I presume people will moan and say well he can afford nhs costs etc if he can afford to do that.

They also either have to train them themselves or send them to college for a day a week.

It’s “how about that”, without the apostrophe and the s, and you need a space after a full-stop.

As I said, I can see that you don’t really value education, but that doesn’t mean that it isn’t valuable.

That includes the education that a good apprenticeship can provide

Yeh I did try and talk him out of going to college and doing an apprenticeship ,so he could sit on his arse and play X box all day,but he wouldn't have it.Oh well.

So speaks the privileged.

A single parent on minimum wage can not afford to fully support another person.

A disabled person or person with caring responsibilities can not afford to fully support another person.

A 16-18 year old in college does 2.5/3 days a week and the parent still receives state benefits for the child

But if they are earning £5.25 an hour for a standard 37 hour week then that’s a take home of roughly £800 a month. If they’re living at home I’m failing to see how that isn’t enough to contribute to living costs, pay for dental/eye care and have a little bit for themselves to spend and save.

What about adults?

With rent or mortgages?

Childcare?

Council Tax?

Travel expenses?

Food?

Clothes?

It's shit money for a substandard learning-on-the-job gig

They'd get UC or council tax support

I agree with this. With that £800 a month the teen can pay for their own clothes, travel and phone etc if needs be. This reduces costs to the parent quite a lot. Mortgage/rent and bills still need paid - whether the teen is there or not. If the heating needs to go on because it’s cold, that is irrespective of how many people live there. If you’re making meals for the family anyway , one more person isn’t costing much extra. Households can’t be subsidised forever.

You can’t have come across many. Accredited apprenticeship programmes, properly delivered, are a valuable route into employment in many sectors.
There is the odd rogue provider and the odd employer that abuses the scheme, but hundreds of thousands of young (and not so young) people benefit from the education and training so provided, every year.

If they are adults they won’t be on the lowest age £5.25 an hour rate. Plus they’ll be eligible for UC to top up their income.