Single parents to lose child benefit

[vikkiville]

I am a single mother and work full time as a teacher, I have since my son was 1 year old. I have struggled and fought to work full time and climb the career ladder for the benefit of my son. I am not yet a high rate tax payer but was hoping to climb the career ladder even further, meaning I could be soon. I and my son will lose the child benefit but a family of two earners, say both earning £39,000 (a joint income of £78,000) will get to keep it! How is that equitable and fair? Why is their child more worthy than mine to receive this benefit when my son is worse off?

Apparently it's too expensive to means test for child benefit - I am means tested for tax credits, why cannot it not be done like that?

If you're from a two parent family and have a disabled child, meaning only one parent can work, earning £44,000; you lose it! If you choose to stay at home as a mother and your partner earns £44,000, you lose it! But your neighbours with a joint income of up to £82,000 get to keep it!

Join this facebook group to fight against the injustice: Single Parents Against Child Benefit Cuts!
www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=155200177847085

well, we will have to use our votes wisely...if we are still allowed to vote by the next election.

yes, in the interests of what's fair, vote will be taken away from single mothers (the single cheating/abusive/gambling/alcoholic father of their child will be given their old vote)

"they know it's discriminatory against single parents, and they don't care. I rather think that was the point. The Conservative Party still treats single parents as feckless slags who deserve to be social pariahs. They hate us."

Absolutely. I am shocked by how much this has upset me because 1) I'm not British and 2) I don't live in the UK anymore. But this is like carte blanche to blame single mothers for everything isn't it?

Lynne Reid Banks probably thinks that 'The L-shaped room' isn't relevant anymore. Ha!

Surely Gingerbread have a statement to make??

I don't think they will take away people's votes for a long time. It doesn't mean they don't want to, but they would never get away with it. Not yet anyway.

They will however make it exceedingly difficult for a single mother to get by in this country.

It's filtering through already: the validation of Daily Mail reader sentiments among everyday people.

Yesterday in the corner shop I joked with the woman in her 50s behind the counter, that I felt sometimes I had too many children. (the boys were playing up a bit)
@How many have you got?' she asked. 'Just the two'.
'Better than some of these folk who have ridiculous numbers of children' she said. 'Some of them only do it for what they can claim'.

I remarked that if they thought that was a good plan they were shooting themselves in the foot rather.

I wasn't going to give her the knowledge that I claim benefits. She would only bitch about me. Or not believe me - I looked really smart yesterday and I was polite. Surely not.

Well, the good news is, if you pay more in to your pension your taxable pay will be lower so you may well keep your child benefit.

To answer your question Mollie O. I pay 40% tax so will lose my child benefit. One of the guys who works for me and his wife together have a larger income but because they are both just under the 40% tax bracket they keep theirs. We both have 2 kids. We work in the same office. Hardly fair.

BUT I am a single parent, so I dont think the tories care what I think anyway!!

I agree with all the comments on thread re/ the unfairness of the situation.

But wildcard, you say you would rather live off the state than your dp?

I'm a single parent on just over 45k. I have worked hard all my life to support myself and my daughter. I know cuts have to be made, but I feel this is an attack on single parents. I have also written to my MP, although doubt it will do any good.

gingerbreads statement:

www.gingerbread.org.uk/news/77/Child-benefit

agree with everything said by the way!

Jeezy, when you say pension, does that mean the sort of pension you actually pay into from your income? Like, with spare money?

I don't even have one of those.

chandra, you'll find that though the site it still up petitions.number10.gov.uk/list let you start a new petition , (it's under review by new govt apparently) anyway, I've started a petition
CHILD BENEFIT CUTS: Stop chancellor from unfairly targeting one-parent & single-income families.
www.ipetitions.com/petition/unfair-childbenefit-cuts/
Thanks

Why is it that there aren't any women in the cabinet who can put forth our interests? Not only is this discriminatory towards SP, it also penalises married women who choose to stay at home for their children. I really feel that the both the role and worth of women and children in british society has become increasingly devalued and now, rubbished. All that matters now is how much £££ you can generate.

MsByte you have to be really careful how you word your petiton. Because they will twist it to say whatever they want to in their response. That's why their politicians after all...

For goodness sake IT'S NOT FAIR AT THE MOMENT.
Everyone getting £20 a week is hardly fair is it when some people depend on it for food and for others it's savings account for their child.

CTC and WTC are a complete minefield, often wrong and involve huge amounts of paperwork. What could be simpler than saying you lose it over a certain income.It's only the same as the way tax is worked out.

Isn't it only in one persons name anyway? I'd always thought it was given in the main carers name and therefore if you are a SAHM wouldn't you keep it?

justonemorethen,

its not just that is unfair on certain groups. it is also not making any huge savings. it is not making huge savings because of the married persons tax allowance being brought about to reward those who sleep with eachother [on a lower income].

regarding SAHM's; if you are a sahm, you are not counted in-it will be assessed on the highest earner your household. so, a couple both earning 40k will keep CHB and single parent on 42k will not get it.

so, lots of people will still be able to save it up to buy their kids a car at age 18 and lots of people will be going without it who did previously use it to buy food for their kids.

hope that helps!

The tax allowance won't make a difference to child benefit though. You are measured on your gross salary surely?

I agree that (some, how many earn that amount?) single parents will miss out however I think the 42K is high enough to live on and raise children. If you can't then drop some hours and you'll get your child benefit back or ask for a pay cut until you are under the threshold.

Two parent households are less flexible and have the disadvantage of one CB payment yet have an extra person in the household.

Simple is best IMHO...means testing is worst then just changing your own salary.

bytheMoonlight - I don't really see it as living off the state, I paid taxes when I worked full-time when I was well, just like the other working single parents here. I believe that help should be available those who are vulnerable and unable to work due to disability, it could happen to any of us. And DS isn't DP's son so that's not his responsibility either.

We simply couldn't afford to rent anywhere locally for all three of us on just DP's income - and we need to stay local because I depend on my extended family network.

justonemorethen, child benefit is not there to feed your wife or husband!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

and in 2013 it won't be 44k or 42k it will be lot less because personnal allowances are changing next year.

As a matter of fact, if you live in London or the SE with 2 kids in childcare [one pre schooler at childminder and minder before and after school for older child] while you work and earn 42k. it leaves all three of you about £37 per week to live off. Rent is in excess of 950 pcm for a 2 bed home [flat or house].

the marriage tax allowance will cost to calculate, and is set at around 150 i beleive. CHB for 2 kids is less than that pcm. It will also cost to calculate who gets what for CHB. that is why it is not saving money.

hope that helps!

Child benefit isn't there to feed your wife or husband but the money that is not child benefit always needs to do one more person. That puts two parents at a cost disadvantage to lone parents especially on low income.

Does your post mean that despite earning £42,000 you can't adequately look after two children without Child Benefit in London/SE?

If that's the case then we need to worry about something bigger than child benefit.

justonemorethen if you're in london and paying out childcare for 2 kids from one albeit reasonable salary then you're a long long way from well-off.

this cut is ridiculously unfair, a couple could earn close to double what a single parent earns and keep the CB while the lone parent loses it. It's also unfair on couples where only one works, but less extremely so as at least then their childcare costs are minimal.

What happens to the NI contributions made for stay at home parents who claim CB?
I'm a lone parent with three children who get DLA, I'm also a widow and get in cap due to a back injury, my in cap is being currently reassessed, I expect it will be taken away.

I don't understand when someone poorer complains about rent, childcare etc the general advice is move somewhere cheaper, get a second job or claim more benefits.Why doesn't this apply if you earn £42,000?

CB is not a fair tax but is meant as a simple cost effective way to ensure children can have their basic needs met.It's not there for childcare or rent as this is covered by WTC, TC or childcare vouchers.

Lets scrap the whole thing then.
The poor can get more means tested benefits, the higher earning single parents will get what they earn and the two income families will earn twice as much.Doesn't make it any better but it will be "fair".

well, a low income 2 parent family, has 2 parents. There is a 'potential' of two sets of earnings. in a LP houselhold there is potential of only ever one. i see what you mean but lower income families will get CHB and tax credits if less than a certain amount. if one parent stays at home that is less or zero childcare.

yes you are absolutely right that a LP in london is pretty much done for.

Check these figures for a lone parent and 2 kids, one pre-schooler and one at school: [and these are real figures]
salary: 42k [have used this figure as by 2013 it will at least this low] is after deductions [2575.35]and inc pension contributions [no choice if you are a teacher etc]is left with: £2325 [pension contributions £250 pcm].

average rent for 2 bed flat/house @ £1000 [excluding council tax and this is todays renatl price not the future whereby it will have risen again].

childcare; no fancy posh nursery, a normal childminder for one pre schooler and one at school [b4 and after school care], 4 mornings at nursery [partly funded by governemnt] totals £265 p/w which is £1148 pcm.

so take rent and childcare [which you need in order to earn the massive £42k!] leaves that family of 3 with...£177 per month.
177 multiply by 12 months and divide by 52 weeks leaves: £40.84 per week for family of three. And that LP is going out to work at 7.30am, 5 days a week and getting home at 5pm.

Child tax credits will be taken away from £40k+ in january or april which would have contributed to the childcare in this case. but not now. child benefit would bring up this persons income by £30 p/w, totaling £70 p/w. Without CTC and CHB there is a massive difference.

sorry but am so fed up of hearing that 44k is LOADS of cash! It really honestly isn't in london. child tax credits to help pay for childcare are/were essential to afford a family to work and CHB is/was essential to help this family live. hope that makes sense?

sorry to hear all that onlyjoking, i dont know about about SAHM's and their NI.

maybe to scrap it would be fairer but the governemnt still wont help out with affordable childcare, or affordable housing or even give the poor more benefits. so then where does that leave everyone?

as for cutting your cloth...people do say it to £42k earners. however, just who will teach in london schools, or bournemouth schools, or anywhere else that is expensive. who will work in the hospitals in cities?