Chronic back condition, what benefits would I be entitled to if I stopped work?

[Hesitationisfortheweak]

I have a chronic and debilitating back condition, I've had it since I was 20, I'm 40 now. I work full time in an office but I have also worked part time before.
I am in pain every day- and all through the night and during my flair ups on average they last 10 weeks where I am essentially bed ridden.
Its starting to seriously effect my mental health. Work is a huge painful struggle for me every day.
I feel like I need to finish work now on medical grounds but have no idea what I would be entitled to, if anything. Where can I find this information or who can I ask????
I am a home owner , I need an income of at least £1400 a month for us to survive financially.

I would apply for pip but presume I would get the lower rate if any at all, and would the other thing be ESA? I wouldn't be able to manage of those. How do other people cope?
I feel completely trapped, I'm in agony every day of my life and am stuck working for another 27 years .

How often do you get the flare ups? PIP is based on an average day so you’d need to be in a flare up more than half the time. It’s intended for disability related additional expenses not to replace a wage, the lower rate daily living is £290.60 every four weeks.

You could be entitled to universal credit have a look at a calculator and see what you would get.

Do you have children living at home? What about a partner and do they work?

Same here OP I work in the NHS and already run my clinics in a wheelchair or on a rollator, it's getting harder and harder. I have 4 years before retirement and haven't paid off my mortgage yet. It's horrendous. I can't have any more time off sick. I haven't found any way to be able to leave yet. Commiserations. If you own your own home you are worse off.

You have to manage- I now have a very small ill health pension (I had to evidence I'd not be able to work again in any job not just my job).
Pip is hard to get and they reduce if they can (so I'm always worrying I'll loose it, last time they reduced it even though I was worse but I'm too scared to appeal and loose more). You can apply for Pip while working.
Esa is means tested so mine is reduced because of my pension. It does however give you national insurance years.
Before I was dismissed from my job on ill health grounds I went through a process to see if I could work in some capacity. Maybe speak to HR about adaptions, change in hours, split days, wfh (I couldn't do all my job from home but could do some so did bad days at home better days in work). This process probably helped with my initial esa and Pip application as I had documented proof of what I'd tried and what I couldn't do. You need to have lots of documentation to help with the process.
Try putting your numbers through entitled or similar that may give you an idea. If you have dc that may change your figures.

If you're using one of the benefit calculators, it would be a good idea to run three calculations: one without lcw/ra, one with lcw and one with lcwra

Lcw means limited capacity for work. It is the lower rate sickness support on universal credit

Lcwra means limited capacity for work related activity. It is the higher rate sickness support on universal credit.

You can get ESA and universal credit at the same time, but there's no advantage to doing so as ESA is deducted in full from universal credit

ESA isn't means tested (though some people are still on the old style ESA which is means tested, and some pension income is deducted from ESA). This means you might be entitled to ESA even if you have a partner whose earnings means you can't get universal credit or have savings over £16k.

Pip isn't means tested and doesn't require you to have left work. It could be worth starting your pip claim first before quitting your job. You'll need as much evidence as you can of how your back pain affects your ability to manage daily life for the majority of the time.

Benefits available
Contribution based ESA - just over £500 a month
PIP - about £400 on lower rate for both DL and mobility.
UC - very variable depending on whether you have children or not, single/married and a lot of other criteria.
If you get ESA, you’ll automatically fall into the LWCA (no need to look for work ) but your ESA will be deduced from the UC you get.
To give you an idea, I get about £300 of UC as a single woman with no children at home.
Of course, you need to adhere to the savings criteria.

Not you can work on ESA. There are limits on the number of hours and amount you can earn. This is as long as whatever you do doesn’t go against the reason you say you can’t work (eg don’t go and stack shelf if you say your back is too painful to walk and stand).

Also be aware the process is a long one both for ESA and PIP.
You’ll get a lower amount during the qualifying periods for ESA aka before you’re evaluated. It can take up to a year. You’ll need sick note from your GP during that time.
PIP can a be a bugger. I’d encourage you to gather evidence (letters from consultants, physios, OT if you had one involved at work etc….) before hand. The more evidence you have, the better. It’s also harder to get than ESA but having the ESA helps with getting PIP.

One thing I wouldn’t do is reducing your hours too much before considering stopping work as you might them miss out on ESA (this will be
inked to whether you’ve paid full contributions for the last 2 years. Missing a month of contributions will stop you too - do check out)

Entitled to is a good calculator to give ideas of what you could get.

OP have you asked your workplace for reasonable adjustments such as WFH all the time?

What is your GP suggesting to try to deal with your chronic pain? have they refer you to a consultant?

I work in a school do can't work from home.
I'm in so much pain every day, it effects every little thing I do.

Have you had an ergonomic assessment by a specialist and has your employer implemented all the recommendations? Perhaps a sit /stand desk, specialist chair, workplace adjustments such as avoiding any heavy lifting etc. Have you seen a consultant recently and are you seeing a physio?

That’s quite a barrage of questions that …..

Anyone who has had chronic back problems will tell you that there is so much they can do.
Im sure the OP has been referred at some point to the pain clinic and a physio. It’s an I going issue, not a new one.
But once you’ve done your ‘review’ with them, that’s it you’re on your own. No regular appointment with a consultant or physio unless new issues have come up.

Its the case for many chronic conditions unfortunately

@MtClair The OP is only 40, before she turns her back on any type of work, perhaps part time, it is only right that no stone should be left unturned to help. She has 27 years to go until state retirement age so she won’t be paid up for a state pension. There is also the issue of the impact on mental health by permanently leaving the labour market. I agree, for some there comes a time when with the best will in the world and an understanding employer, carrying on in work is not possible or desirable , but it is not a decision to be taken lightly and I don’t think we can assume everyone not working through disability or health problems has received all the help they should have had to stay in work.