When the baby is born,help!?

[hlfayers]

Hey everyone
I just got my claim sorted for income support due to being unable to work because I am 31 weeks pregnant.
My question is once the baby is born will they stop my payments because I'm no longer pregnant?
I'm a single pregnant woman and will be a single mother,
Thank you

No they won't stop your claim if you are a lone parent - you can continue on Income support until your child is 5 ( although the system is changing). If you meet a new partner then your income support claim would stop. Once your baby is born you claim child tax credits and child benefit for your baby. As explained on your previous thread , the income support id the government paying for you to live and the child benefit and child tax credits are to pay for you to support your baby.

Once you are ready to go back to work, you could work 16 hours a week and claim working tax credits alongside the child tax credits and claim help with childcare costs. Most lone parents find they are a lot better off by working just 16 hours.

Ok thanks so much,do you know if I need to inform them of when the baby has been born?

Yes you will need to make a new application for child tax credits. It's HMRC who give out the child tax credits wheras it's DWP who deal with Income support so it's two different places. Then you need to inform child benefit office and make an application for child benefit. They used to have a form in a pack that they give you in hospital when your baby is born, but I'm not sure if they still do this. People usually do this after you have registered the birth of your baby as you may need to send a copy of the birth certificate.
If you are on your own and on Income support and it's your first baby you should also look at claiming the sure start grant which is a £500 grant which you can use to pay for things like a pram, cot , etc .
If you are in any doubt about what help you can get with benefits then you can always ask your Health visitor or contact citizens Advice bureau who will do a full benefit check for you to make sure you are getting the correct benefits. The benefits system is a bit daunting.
In summary I think you can apply for the sure start grant a few weeks before your baby is born, then once your baby is registered apply for child benefit and child tax credits. bear in mind I think tax credits only backdate a month from application date.