additional financial support for ex with bad mental and physical health issues (on top of ESA)

[griselda101]

My ex has debilitating and disabling long term IBS (stuck on loo several days & nights per week) so he can't work and is claiming ESA. On top of this he has PTSD and other mental health issues (OCD, anxiety, depression etc).

This affects his ability to help with our DS considerably (limited practical support, unreliable, and cannot contribute financially). The lack of financial support is fine by me but I would like to see him with as much support as he can get as I know it would make a real difference to his limited quality of life.

He currently gets ESA (about £70 p/w) and housing benefit.

He is very poor due to debt and not being able to work, and bad at organising his financial life due to MH issues, so would need some support with applications for additional benefits.

I am wondering if there are benefits he could claim on top of housing benefit and ESA and if so what these might be and how we could claim.

Recently went through psychological support (NHS counselling) but finished his 16 sessions and is out of the system again trying to get readmitted for further therapy.

We had heard about some additional MH payment of £50 per week he might get as well as the £70 p/w ESA. Or maybe there's an additional disability benefit he might get?

Any thoughts welcomed as any additional support or benefits he could receive could greatly improve his quality of life and his mental state (and thus his physical condition which is impacted greatly by stress).

thanks Iwas, I've had a quick look at PIP and I'm not sure if he would qualify but we will certainly look into it with Mind or another local MH charity as they may be able to help.

I'll mention re. the group stuff too.

I get ESA and PIP for mental health issues. It is not easy to get but it depends a lot on how you present your evidence. Getting PIP increases the amount of ESA he'd be able to get - I get £186 ESA pw plus £104 PIP pw so it's quite a significant increase on the basic rate. It might also increase his HB as well (I get HB which covers my whole rent). He should be getting council tax support as well. I also get a free bus pass provided through my council.

I agree with getting support on applying for PIP from a good MH charity, although it's also a good idea to do your own research on how to present the case, as their sessions are quite limited. My local MIND filled out my form, but I added a lot of additional detail and submitted extra evidence, which probably made the difference between getting the standard and enhanced rate. The Benefits and Work website is very good.

I had support from an Occupational Therapist at my CMHT who helped me access some activities for those with MH issues. They offer things like art, sports, gardening and cooking classes. If you have a bit of a Google you can probably self-refer, which will be quicker than waiting for an OT.

thanks so much, glasses, really useful information.

We are definitely going to enquire about PIP and we will seek support with this. We will make sure we include additional evidence as you suggest would be helpful.

I'm hoping that we get support with it. Due to all his issues he is terrible at organising himself to do things so it feels like I am fighting a losing battle most of the time. But I will persevere and if he has support from an outisde body it would help to spur it on a bit.

He is a bit nervous about his upcoming ATOS (?) interview so we have some preparation to do as I have heard they are a nightmare. I fully know that he is unable to work but proving it is another matter. Wish us luck!!