Finance and studying with a baby

[Indith]

I'm an undergraduate and due in December, the other half and I decided that going part time was best rather than taking a full year out, a decision I'm still happy with BUT, as a full time student there are a million bits of that nice form from the student loans company to do with children, you get student parent money, you get most of your childcare paid etc, all of which he as a full time student will (hopefully) get. As a part time student you get your nice little grant of £250 to buy your text books. Nothing to do with children or anything it taken into account. Are we supposed to live on air?

Anyone else in the same situation? Do you know if I would qualify for any benefits of any kind? Since they don't give you a loan for living expenses as a part timer because you could be working, are you able to claim benefits because you are not working?

your partner cna claim dependants grant for you and you will get chid tax credit as fas as Iknow other than council tax rebate you will not be entitled to benefits as this is covered in the dependents grant your partner claims for you.
I was lucky and manged to continue studying full time and had mmy baby - perhaps if you spoke to the uni they would help accommodate you doing this also there are student hardship grants hope that helps

I think the uni would support my decision whatever I wanted to do (I have the most wonderful flexible department ever) but part time is definitely right for us to be able to relax and also with being due end of December to be able to enjoy those first months without having a full timetable to worry about, especially as it would be my final year otherwise!

Pretty much what I was expecting money wise I suppose, although some people have mentioned incapacity benefit may be possible.....may have to toddle down to the job centre and find out. Otherwise, hardship grants from uni, get in there before all those freshers drink their loans away in the first term.

How did you find you managed being full time?

I had my dd at the end of the first year of my BA and chose to go back full time. The financial situation was such that I just couldn't have managed without my loan and the childcare grant that comes with it. This is an issue which really angers me, and I am currently corresponding with my MP to highlight the loopholes student parents find themselves in and try and get things changed. I do know that many people in my position never declared they were at university and so still recieved benefits (rightly or wrongly, the DWP classes your student loan as an income although it really isn't. More confusingly, the CSA disregards it. So, while I was slaving away trying to make ends meet on my student loan, dds dad, who is also a student, gets away scot free because his loan is not counted as income.) Rant over But, it is worth chatting to your student advice team on campus. They will know what you will be entitled to, such as extra grants which are there specifically for people in our situation but are not very well publicised. I think you can also recicve a list of possible charities from the council which you can apply to for a grant to complete your education. Hope that is in some way helpful, good luck and congratulations

Who is your MP Lamb? I think it really is something to be highlighted and changed and I may well consider getting onto mine (David Davies) so being able to say who else is on it would be good. I'm lucky, dp is a student too but with our combined savings we can just about manage this year, and luckily it is his final year so as long as he gets a job right away we will be ok but the situation is terrible. How on earth can they think its ok to give a full time student all the extra stuff as well as normal loan and yet a part timer, going part time in order to have a child and be able to care for it gets nothing! Plus I have discovered that rules are different on the different forms as to what constitutes a partner which worries me a little as I may not count as a partner on dps loan application which does bring up the question of them counting the child!

Ok rant over now!

It's as easy doing fulltime as part time I think 9have experience of both) plus financial we are better off - just need to eb organised

Really gothic? Can't imagine doing full time and being pregnant let alone having a baby, I can get to sleep at night at the moment but I still have no energy, really admire you for doing full time and baby! Mind you, I wouldn't really want to leave my baby in the creche that takes them from new born, really didn't feel like a nice place and they needed a deposite and exact times I'd be needing it last June to be sure of a place! You are the university creche you morons do you really think I have my timetable now! I get it in October!. There is another smaller uni one that is wonderful but only takes from 6 months. Hopefully between dp and I we can sort our timetables to not clash until then!

a good plan to share it betwen you- I'm lucky in that dh is being a SAHD at the moment, so dd and ds are looked after but is hard to juggle everything