Housing benefit help required!!!

[humptydidit]

I am currently on income support, full housing and council tax benefit etc etc.

I am looking to get back to work and trying to do my sums.

I went to the job centre and they did a better off calculation which told me doing job x I would get full housing and council tax benefit still. In this job I would be paying approx £190 per week averaged for childcare and claiming working tax credtis with childcare element.

A friend of mine was in the exact same situation and got a job and now finds out she does not qualify for full housing benefit as she was told by job centre.... So I rang local council to enquire and they said I wouldn't get it either...

Now I'm not upset cos I don't qualify, but I'm trying to do my sums here and cna't seem to get a straight answer about what you do or don't get...
Can anyone advise or is it best to just take the job and make the best of it and scrape by till ds2 starts school and childcare costs go down???

In general, you won't get full housing benefit if you are working. The worst thing is that if you are working FT, even at min wage, you won't get CTB, or extremely little. This is the reason many lone parents find themselves better off on benefits, particularly if they have childcare costs.

hi lachesis that's what I thought from speaking to friends in similar situations, so what I don't get is why according to the job centre I will get full benefit???

Is it just a con to get you back to work?

What would you recommend to do? Go to work and try it and go back on benefits if I'm totally out of pocket, or just get over myself and count myself lucky to get any help?

You may get some hb & council tax help.

'Is it just a con to get you back to work?'

Yes.

Again, you may get some HB and CTB, but you definitely will not get full.

ok, sorry, feel like I am being pathetic... but just struggling to get my head around the figures.

I have 3 kids and average childcare costs will be £190 per week, plus £195 per week rent and the job i'm looking at doing is school hours only take home less than £150 per week.