Made redundant - can / should I apply for JSA or Universal Credit

[FusionChefGeoff]

Made redundant on Tuesday after trying to return from mat leave. Just had a quick look at the .gov.uk site but can't work out which one I can or should apply for or if I am entitled to anything so before I go through lengthy application processes I wanted to see if any of you can give me a quick opinion.

We're ok for money and had a good chat / budget last night so can carry on safely for a few months whilst I am looking but if I am entitled to anything, I would like to claim it.

Home owner, full NI contributions, married, 2 kids, DH earns 50k and when redundancy payment comes through, we would have a decent chunk in savings.

Can I get anything????

I doubt you'll get anything as oh wage is more than most

www.gov.uk/benefits-calculators
Try here or entitled to web site

You might be entitled to 6 months contribution based JSA. It's £70 ish a week. If you're OK for money, you might find it's not worth the hassle of going to the job centre and ticking all their boxes. Especially if you have young children.

Something you might want to look into is if there are any schemes which fund training after redundancy. I used React but I think that's based in Wales only.

You should be able to get contribution based job seekers allowance if your NI credits are up to date but I'm not sure if being on mat leave would have had any effect on your NI contributions. If you are not entitled to contribution based JSA then you will not be entitled to anything due to your partners earnings.

Its only JSA for a short period isn't it as you have a high household income and equity.

Excellent knowledge and advice - thank you everyone. I'll start the online application for JSA then, and see how much hassle it ends up being!!!