Poverty trap? What to do

[Duckingfun]

I’m on benefits due to having a disabled child who currently isn’t in school.
I want to work, when he’s at a suitable school I will be looking for work. However my rent has now increased in my council house to just under £1k there is no way I can afford it if I work. The better off website says I will be something like £90 a month better off, I want to work but I don’t want to work 40+ hours a week for £90 and then I’d be worse off after travel/childcare etc
Whats the answer? I can’t move and it just feels so unfair that the council raise the rent to the top limit of what they can.

So hospital wise, you've got N&N around Norwich. You've got QE around Kings Lynn. You've got JP nearer the coast. My personal recommendation would be to head closer to the Suffolk border and fall under WSH.

Correct me if I'm wrong but I'm guessing DS is more ADHD/ASD type needs than something like dialysis. WSH is excellent.

That would lean towards Brandon or Thetford for housing. Both dirt cheap. Well covered by your UC. Houses available in both areas.

You could talk with a little more empathy, jeez.

@Duckingfun
Your initial mission should be to buy yourself some time in order to explore your options thoroughly. I agree with others who have said that it would be worth exploring training options and looking to the longer term.

Find some advice on benefits to see how much of the rent increase would be covered. Some advice agencies, such as your local Citizens Advice should also be able to advise if you have grounds to challenge the rent increase. Although successful challenges are most often for tenants of clueless private landlords https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/housing/renting-privately/during-your-tenancy/challenging-a-rent-increase/

Also check your local council’s website for other locally tailored help:
https://www.norfolk.gov.uk/what-we-do-and-how-we-work/campaigns/help-with-living-costs

If you prefer, you could contact Carers UK, or your local Carers support agency.
https://carersmatternorfolk.org.uk/
Carers charities have an advice line and they signpost to other services if it’s something they don’t have expertise in. It is worth signing up with them as a carer if you aren’t already. They are there to support you, and it sounds as though you’ve been battling to get help for your child. 💐

Finally, please check this grant finder https://grants-search.turn2us.org.uk/

No I'm very knowledgeable in the SEN system through having a disabled child within that system for the last 15yrs. Specifically in Norfolk.

Clearly not.

Your're thinking about this wrong. The amount you earn isn't the difference between the amount you earn and what you could be getting on benefits! It's just the amount you earn. You will be off (some of the) benefits and building a career which you can progress in. If I work and earn an hourly rate of say £12, I don't think of it as £4 because I would be getting the equivalent of £8 on benefits... It's £12. If you can reduce benefits and support yourself financially you should be proud of your efforts, not thinking it's not worth it.

Well considering you've already had to relinquish that a situation you declared couldn't exist, does in fact exist...

I haven’t had to do anything. SS without an EHCP these days is extremely rare (flying pig rare) and just doesn’t happen unless in situations which don’t apply to OP. Even with an EHCP many have to appeal.

Ok, right you are....

Anyway @Duckingfun if you really want to start making the right changes, there is a lot of support available. Your assumptions about what you will receive vs lose via a part time job, are not correct. You will be significantly better off as long as you keep your assessable amount under £602 per month. This will depend what your nursery fees are as there's a calculation to follow. If you want to PM me your monthly fees, I will tell you what you can earn and not lose your CA.

The priority for you is getting DS into the right provision. Nothing else can happen until this child is not at home with you all day every day. You need to keep on at the LA. On and on. They have not given you an adequate solution.

Housing wise, there are many places in Norfolk to choose from. The swap method is not really a thing, people sit on that for years and the odd one gets lucky, so honestly, stop wasting your time. Norfolk is one of the cheapest places to live. Rent under £1k is very easy to find. The council can help with deposits and moving costs.

As a side note, you need to look at why, with full UC for you and two DC, circa £800 free rent, DLA for one child (two? do you get it for DD as well?) Carer's allowance, 85% of your childcare costs paid plus double child benefit....you can't afford potentially £200 a month rent top up?

As I posted, in a council property the LHA does not apply. But the housing element will be subject to the earnings deduction just like every other UC element.

Having multiple disabled DC can be extremely expensive. It is brilliant you don’t find this and think OP should be managing better, but for many with multiple disabled DC money is extremely tight.

It's essentially the same thing. Very little difference in rent covered/payable.

OP has many housing options in Norfolk. Many.

I'm going to do a brief calc to see what OP is most likely receiving. Because, whilst I know first hand there are some extra costs inherently with a disabled child, (just DLA for my DS is over £400 p/mth so not insignificant and that's without child benefit, carers allowance and the child element of UC) some people are bad at money management.

I did a calc the other day, as I knew what I received previously as a single mother on tax credits etc, and with my 19hrs I'd take home over £4kp/mth of income and benefits as a single mother now. I think that worked out to virtually the same take home as someone on £70k a year. I think it should be looked in to if I then said I couldn't afford to live. That's a lot of money to account for each month.

ds had a statement of special needs and then ehcp and I’ve never known of a ss having a child without an ehcp.

I dont claim dla for dd because she’s currently in nursery and I don’t feel we need it at this point. I’m not willing to disclose their diagnosis but they both have different scans/MRIs/xrays/hospital stays along with different medication and equipment etc

I won’t be renting private as I like that I have the security here, there’s not going to be a landlord wanting to sell/move back in etc and the house is suitable for dc. Where we used to live we were an hour away from the closest hospital so it’s not a case of just choosing the best house and moving in, that’s not going to happen.

In my opinion Norfolk is one of the most expensive places to live, I’ve lived all over and other than London and potentially Cornwall I would say it’s up there for expense.

and with my 19hrs I'd take home over £4kp/mth of income and benefits as a single mother now. I think that worked out to virtually the same take home as someone on £70k a year.

oh how I wish I lived in your made up world 🙈

No, it’s not essentially the same thing. One means only the LHA is the housing element. The other means the full rent is the housing element. The difference may be a drop in the ocean for you, but for many it isn’t.

Scope’s latest disability price tag research shows households with a least 1 disabled person on average need an additional £975 per month for the same standard of living as non-disabled households. This is on top of disability benefits such as DLA. Scope state if the figure was updated to account for inflation during 22/23 that would rise to £1,122. Presumably even higher now, especially for a family with 2 disabled DC.

OP you should apply for DLA for DD.

Are you saying that your UC for you and 2 children, DLA for one child, Housing paid, Council tax paid, Child benefit, Carer's Allowance, 85% childcare reimbursement is significantly less than £3k a month?

If yes, respectfully what the actual fuck are you doing?? It's not a made up world. At all. Why aren't you receiving it? Take the below figures (which should there or thereabouts be your figures) Add my £1000 income (and the fact I have a third child) would take me to just over £4k on that calculation. Not to mention any CMS I'd get on top of that.

Calculations attached. Childcare/nursery guessed at £500pcm. DLA guessed at zero mobility and mid rate care. Rent at £1000. Norfolk area.

So why are you not getting what the calculation says you should?

Op ,have you looked at a house swap
I'm sure there are websites where people who want to move ,swap housing association houses .. literally a straight swap.
It's just a thought
Apologies if you have already rules it out
I also think you should think about applying for DLA for your youngest
You can't claim carers allowance for two children,but you can claim DLA for two
I'd no idea Norfolk was so expensive,
Could you downsize,could you drop down a bedroom,take a house with a dinning room and use that as a bedroom,just thinking,like if your desperate to stay in same area

Oh, is she not on LHA, sorry as you kept banging on about non LHA I didn't go back and check if that was her case. In which case, her award would be a little less.

But still looking forward to OP explaining how she's managing to claim full UC for her, two DC, double child benefit, best part of £1000 rent, carer's allowance, DLA, 85% of childcare costs, council tax reduction and all this to come absolutely nowhere near £3k a month. It should be £2,600 lowest estimate. And she's got two children that she should be receiving CMS for? I guess that's another story though.

Ds gets hrc and lrm and I don’t get anywhere near that much? I’ve done the entitled to calculation and it says I’d be better off working but not by much.

Ok, so line by line, check that calc I've done against your UC calc, and see where the differences lie. Because I've underestimated your DLA, so actually that should be an even higher figure.

The things I have guessed are rent at £1000, which should be under LHA and more like £950? And DD nursery I've put in at £500pcm. Is that far wrong?

OP, your UC claim should be as below. I have assumed you are over 25 and used £1k rent. You say it is slightly below that, just insert the actually amount. The housing element would be the full rent since council property unless there is a bedroom tax reduction to be made.

Standard allowance. £368.74
First child. £315
2nd child. £269.58
Severely disabled child element. £456.89
Carer element. £185.86
Housing element £1000
Total = £2596.07

Carer’s allowance is deducted £ for £. Currently that equates to £332.58 per month. Total UC minus this deduction = £2263.49 but then you get the equivalent deduction via CA albeit 4 weekly rather than monthly.

Child benefit - £39.90 per week - £172.90 per month

You will then be eligible for council tax support/reduction and a single person discount. This may be the full council tax amount or it may leave some to pay. It depends on area.

Single claimants on UC who are carers can’t claim childcare costs via UC. Households where one works and the other is a carer can, but a single carer can’t.

So, now I've updated an est £950 rent (of which you get circa £800 paid) and DS correct DLA award, the figure jumps to £3220.

The only way we can be miles apart is through the nursery amount? Seriously OP, check your UC award, something isn't adding up.

So OP’s total monthly income minus DLA which is for disability related expenses would be £2768.97 with £1k rent. If you minus rent that leaves £1768.97. If you then take off extra £1,122 Scope say is required on average by disabled households for the same standard of living as non-disabled households that leaves £646.97 for all other expenses (except some or all of council tax). Hardly rolling in it like some people think.

I wish it was that much. Dd gets free nursery hours. I will look at my uc

Your UC award may be lower if you have anything like paying back an advance or previous overpayment being deducted.

So just to clarify, you want to ignore the £557 DLA she gets for having a disabled child whilst deducting an average amount given by a charity because she has a disabled child...

Or we could look at the actuals. Using your £2768, and the £557, she gets £3325. (Actually £100 more than the calculator suggests, but let's use the highest amount of rent too at £1000). So once you deduct the £1000 rent which she hasn't earned anything to cover, she has £2325 a month after housing costs. £536 a week to live on.

I think a lot of people, including those with disabled children would like £536 a week to live on, no work required. That £536 grosses up to £27900 a year. That's the equivalent of a salary of £34500. With no rent or mortgage.

To make it more comparable, you add back the rent, most people pay rent or a mortgage. £3325 take home. That's an equivalent salary of £51,900 a year. Do you think most people would be able to cope on £51,900 with £1000 a month rent to pay. I think most people would be delighted at that. Especially if they didn't actually have to work to receive that net amount in their bank. Many parents of disabled children have to work.

And it's looking at this £536 a week with no rent or mortgage that OP needs to ask, "why can't I afford to live?"