Named changed for this thread. Long term poster.
My son is almost 22. He is clever but severely autistic with very limited social communication skills.
He was awarded high level pip for both care and mobility, backdated to last Summer, and also started on universal credits in October. He has recently had LCWRA assessment and we are awaiting result.
The problem is, the nature of his needs is that he is very non- acquisitive. He isn't interested in clothes or "stuff". He has a pair of shoes and won't buy another pair until these wear out. He goes nowhere. Since he started these payments he has spent about 60 pounds in total; a couple of McDonalds and a computer game. He doesn't want to learn to drive. He doesn't take part in any activities, though this is on his care plan but the care hasn't started yet.
The issue is, he has 5700 in his account now, and I know if he goes above 6k, his benefits will be reduced.
We have just started him paying rent as we have been paying for everything for him (food, clothes etc) He's paying 250 a month as of March. However his money is much higher than this : around 850 a month at present I think. Should we claim back rent? We could start building a savings pot for a flat purchase for example?
Anyone got any suggestions? Recognizing this is a fortunate position to be in.