Lone Parent and Full Time Student needs advice please wrt benefits/student finance etc

[PollyCrystalTits]

Hey

OK. A quick run down on my situation. I am 40 My husband 'TG', is moving out on Sunday. He has rented a flat from a colleague. We have two DDs aged 4.5 and 11 months. It was my decision and was down to his addiction issues (a long story and not relevant to this part of the problem). So far things are pretty amicable.

I have not really worked since having DD1 and in September started a full time degree (3.5 years) which involves travelling for 3 hours on a Monday morning to attend uni, staying over in a travelodge, and coming back on Tues night. TG has the children while I do this and is going to continue this even though we are separating.

I was told by the Job Centre Plus advisor that as a full time student and lone parent I would be entitled to Income Support. We are in rented accommodation and being on Income Support means I am entitled to Housing Benefit and don't have to pay any Council Tax. What with the income support, student finance, housing benefit, child tax credits and child benefit etc I worked out that I can continue my course as long as I move to a smaller house that will be cheaper to run. All well and good. Until today.

Apparently I am not entitled to Income Support (and therefore Housing Benefit) because my income exceeds the amount of weekly income support of £67.50 per week. The only 'income' I have is my student loan which I will obviously have to pay back and is to cover the cost of travel/B&B costs for my course.

What I don't understand is that all over the direct gov website it tells you that they have changed things so that lone parent/full time student can get Income Support, but actually when you look at the criteria, it says they will class the maintenance loan you are offered as income (even if you do not take it!). The amount of the loan is equivalent to around £80-something pounds per week, while income support is £67.50 - so surely that means NO student will be able to get it?!

Does anyone have any knowledge of this? Surely this can't be right? I am desperate to complete my degree (in Acupuncture) so that I can support myself and my children going forward. Without this course I will end up doing a retail or admin job (assuming I can even get a job at the moment, seeing as I've been out of the market for nearly 5 years and we have the highest rate of unemployment for 17 years), and having my income topped up with Working Tax Credits, probably until I retire (on the pension that I don't have).

I so want to complete my course and stay in this area - I do not want to disrupt older daughter further by moving her to a new school in a new area, away from her dad, not to mention the fact I have after seven years of living here now made a life and friends for myself and have support around me.

It seems my only option if I want to continue my course is to move in with my parents (in their two bed tiny bungalow, they are going to love that!) an hours drive from where I currently live.

Is there anyone out there who can give me some advice? I will post this in the Education section too. Got to go and collect DD1 now. Thanks in advance.

hi, when I did the first year of my degree (06/07)i received the maintenance loan and a small amount of housing benefit, and the child tax credits and child benefit.(ex does not pay maintenance) also did not have to pay council tax.It was not a lot to live on as the rent ate up so much of it (cheapest property available to me at the time,and that would accept a HB applicant)

I was told I could apply to to the college for a bursary but when i did that I did not get one. Life was very difficult for us (me and 2 DC)and i left the course after the first year as i could not cope on such a low income and i was not able to provide the basics for my kids (heating, decent food-we sometimes had to get food out of skips as we had no money) If i had been given accurate info about what my income as a student would be I would never have done it!

are you able to work as well as do the degree? i managed to find some casual work which helped a little while it was available.

I am now hoping to do some more of my degree via the OU, could this be an option? i am not able to study my subject of choice-marine biology- but there are some related units which will do, as a compromise. Might be worth considering.

NOOOOOo!!!!! Right - so you may not (probably won't be) be entitled to I.S. HOWEVER..... you do not need to receive I.S. to be entitled to Housing Benefit. (but you DO need to tell HB that you are getting a student loan so that they will slightly reduce your benefit in light of that).

You should also get a Childcare Grant (lifesaver - as covers up to 85% of childcare costs up to £135/week/1 child). And I think you'll probably get tax credits too.

The above advice to try to work & do a degree & look after DD's is not good if you want to give yourself a proper chance of doing your best. I'm sorry for the previous poster that it didn't work out, but it sounds as if they had bad advice about benefits & student loans. Word of warning: I have found 'student advice centres' EXTREMELY variable in their quality. Sussex uni - absolutely top flipping notch. My more recent uni (attached to the CAB) - shite.

Good luck! Just give it your best shot, no one can ask any more can they? If I can help any more just send me a message (if I can figure out how to get messages on here!!!!) xxxxxxx

I'm a LP and at Uni. I get a generous amount of HB plus grants including parental allowance, through Student Finance. You are exempt from Council Tax too.
I don't work as well as study because there is no way I could cram in the amount of work, juggle the kids and work outside the home too. I know many do though and I take my hat off to them.

Rent will be eating a huge chunk of your income, I'd ring or go into the council offices and get them to clarify what's what.

Good luck!

11121 I need to revisit my childcare arrangements - at the moment I don't get the grant as I am using friends and family to look after the girls while I'm at uni. We live in the arse end of nowhere and it has proved really difficult to find a CM who can pick up DD1 from school. If I can at least get DD2 into a registered CM then I will get help with that cost (and that is the more expensive as DD1 is at school for most of the day).

I've also figured out that I wasn't paying nearly £200 a month on credit cards (TG went bankrupt a few years back so all debt is in my name) then I would be able to live comfortably on the student loans. God knows how I would pay it all back, but I'll worry about that another day.

Thanks for all the advice y'all. I am more determined than ever that I'm going to be a qualified and working Acupuncturist. Come 2014 anyway!

Could you get a 16 hour a week hob & claim WTC. Will ex give you any maintenance?