JSA when leaving job

[cornerstoned]

would I be able to claim JSA if I leave my job voluntarily?

One of my DC is severely disabled, turning 13 soon and no holiday club round here carers for that age. I desperately need to find something term time but I do not have any time whatsoever to do the job hunting whilst working and caring. I have burn out and depression and need to take one step at a time.

I know you would not usually quality for JSA in this situation but I wondered if there are special rules for those with significant caring responsiblies if there is no childcare available due to SN.

and before anyone suggests CA - that's a lot less than JSA and a stretch too far for me financially (I am a bit in a mess money wise and literally every penny counts and I would be genuinely job seeking).

You won't be able to claim JSA unless you're available for work and looking for work, and you'd probably get a sanction for leaving a job voluntarily.

CA is low but can be topped up with Income Support which is the same rate as JSA.

Have you checked to see if you're in a Universal Credit area? You can put your postcode in here to find out.

I left my job due to caring duties and I get CA and IS - together it adds up to about £107 a week, so more than JSA on its own. My DS gets HRC on DLA, so we get premiums on tax credits as well, which is £150 a week, so that helps a lot. I could claim immediately after leaving my job, and I don't need to attend the jobcentre or have any jobseeking requirements.

Try the Contact helpline or Carers UK - their benefits information is usually accurate. But you can also use Entitled To online yourself as well.

Regardless of what benefit you go on, it won’t be quick and will cause you pain first. You might want to get ahead on your rent by a fair bit before you quit.

Like pp says in your situation you would claim carers allowance and IS. You Income support would be reduced by about £30 a week . so around £110 a week.

You dont say whether or not you have a partner - if you do and they are in work you would not get any IS to top up a CA claim

I have a partner who works. So no IS - I'd be better off in JSA than carers.

thanks anyways - thought this may be the case that I cannot get JSA

The difference is £13 unless you live in Scotland then they are equal.
Contribution based JSA only lasts six months.

I know that the difference is £13/week. but believe it or not - for some this is a lot of money
I would have hoped to find a job quicker than 6 months.But it seems I won't qualify for JSA anyways despite having worked all my adult live and caring for a severely disabled child. Need to go back to the drawing board as to what to do. If only we had access to childcare, I would not be in this mess. being a carer sucks.

But as we've all said, you can claim CA and IS (unless, as ceecee says, you have a partner)

Sorry missed your previous post.

Are you getting tax credits? They would go up if your earned income decreased. Are you eligible for HB or council tax reduction? It would be worth doing a full benefit check.

If your depression is significant you could apply for ESA which can be contributions based and wouldn't have a sanction for leaving work voluntarily. But it's paid at assessment rate until you get a work capability assessment, which is even less than CA.

Make sure you let tax credits know about you leaving work - if you aren't already claiming you might be able to put in a claim with the drop in income. The thresholds are higher with a disabled child. It's worth going for a full benefit check - you might qualify for housing benefit/council tax support as well, as you can get those with a working partner on a low income, with extra premiums for a disabled child.

You could ask social services for an assessment to get more respite care - but it's unlikely to cover full time working hours and IME the quality/choice isn't great.

Corner I didn't say £13 was an insignificant sum. No need to pull a face.