Just found out daughter is pregnant - what do we do?

[minimees]

I've just found out my daughter is 7 weeks pregnant, she wants to keep the baby as she has Endometriosis which can affect her fertility.
This pregnancy was unplanned and she lives at home with me and her dad, we both work and own our own home and never claimed a benefit in our life.

We have no idea what she is entitled to benefits wise as a single mum and I'm hoping you can put me in the right direction.

Also, do we need to go to the doctors first to get proof that she is pregnant? Please help we have no idea

congratulations, and a big hug. She can self refer to the midwives and should do this ASAP. They’ll have a booking in appointment at 8-10 weeks where everything will be explained & you can talk through it all.
it seems huge, but this was my situation (living at home with parents, quite young although married) but best thing ever. Now very independent and wouldn’t change anything.
good luck & enjoy the ride!! Xx

How old is she and what stage of life? Is she studying/working? This will affect what plans you will make.

In terms of the docs she can self refer to the hospital online. The midwife will then be in touch in a few weeks

Also try entitledto for benefits calculators. The midwives can signpost you too xxx

She should see the doctor with her history of endo but presume she's taken a pg test? How old is she. Does she work. Where is the babies dad in all this.

Well, she will be probably entitled to child benefit when the baby is born, but I don’t see why she’ll be claiming anything else if she doesn’t already. Will she continue to live at home? Is she very young?

It's really unclear from your post why this is anything other than a happy, albeit surprise, pregnancy.

The only issue appears to be that she lives with you. Otherwise, you just have a pregnant daughter.

Is she 36 years old? Does she have a man? Is she employed in a high paid job with plenty of savings and able to move out tomorrow into a suitable home of her own if she wishes?

Or is she 16, unemployed and single?

Also, do we need to go to the doctors first to get proof that she is pregnant?

Why do you need to do anything? It's your daughter that's pregnant, not you.

Knowing her age and ability to manage parenthood would help here.

Her age is important here.

Thanks for all the lovely messages ! She's 19 years old and currently works with children and adults with learning disabilities, she is thinking about giving up as she is constantly getting punched, hair pulled, spit, slapped...........so not good when you are pregnant. She will lives at home with me and her dad.

What about the child’s father?

With regards to her work her employer needs to ensure she is kept safe. I did the same thing when I was pregnant so they put me on more of an admin role and was signed off on full pay from 20 weeks due to complications. If she leaves her job she may loose out on maternity pay but not sure what benefits are available

Aah, well 19 isn't totally un-doable, and wonderful she has a job.

I feel like the employer would have measures they're required to put in place to keep her safe during the pregnancy. It's a protected characteristic, isn't it.

Totally get the wish to keep a baby you thought might never happen.

She won't need benefits, as she has a job. Just maternity pay, and then maybe a UC top up when she returns to work.

Giving up work when you're a young (single?) expectant parent would be a very foolish move IMO. She needs every economic clout she can muster.

Her employer should do a risk assessment to make her work safe for her and the baby. This may mean doing a different role. If she leaves she wont be entitled to statutory maternity pay but may be able to claim maternity allowance instead

OP - how do you feel about it? Are you happy? What about the father? Will you be able to hep look after the baby when she goes back to work?

As she has a job, she would get maternity pay from her employer when she goes on maternity leave, when she returns to work, depending on her income, she would likely be entitled to Child Benefit (£27.05 per week for 1 child or the eldest child, approx £1400 per year), details: Child Benefit: How it works - GOV.UK.

She would also get some tax free childcare and some free childcare hours when she's working (look this up as it's different to when I had mine). She wouldn't get a council tax reduction as she'd be living with you and her dad who both work.

She should also get child maintenance from the father, even if the payments are arranged privately between them they should contact the CSA with confirmation of the agreement and all payments should be made directly into her bank account so there's a paper trail. There's a calculator for this here: Will you be paying or receiving child maintenance? - Calculate child maintenance - GOV.UK

It will depend on the other parent's income, how many nights the child stays with them, how many other children they have etc. If he earns £25k a year and has no other kids living with him she'd be entitled to approx £250 a month from him.

This site is good for entering her specific circumstances to see what she is entitled to: Benefits Calculator - entitledto - independent | accurate | reliable

Also, I understand the concern about the physical safety of the pregnancy while in work (I have a friend who worked in a similar setting when pregnant) and would recommend that she talks to her employer. I know it's early in the pregnancy but she needs to do some research and talk to her employer. Here is a useful webpage about her rights. There is an example given of a woman who becomes pregnant while doing a job which she physically can't do whil epregnant. The employer has a responsibility to find her a safer role to do and to work with her to find an alternative position (e.g. something more administrative or with clients who aren't physically violent) and if this cannot be found, she could be suspended on full pay until her maternity pay kicks in. Find out more here: Health and safety during pregnancy - Pregnancy at work - Acas

How is that any of your business?

My dd was 17 and at home..she made a claim for universal credit..

It’s relevant to the discussion. OP is asking about finance aspects

She needs a risk assessment at work. They have to give her a safe role and if they can't she shpuld get paid leave. She shouldn't give up work as she'd be entitled to maternity pay.

I'd make it clear that having a child doesn't mean she cN just stop work as she has her and the childs future to think of now.

She won’t get another job, so how will she support the baby? When will she be moving out?

Congratulations. Will the child’s father be involved?

I would advise her not to quit her job (unless you are extremely wealthy) as they will have to do a pregnancy risk assessment. From what you have said, this will mean she cannot work with the more violent children, and should be given other tasks that are low risk, such as admin work or even put her on fully paid gardening leave.

She can't just jack her job in because she's pregnant and living with mum and dad.

Well I suppose she could, but why on earth would you encourage it?

It's very concerning that you all automatically want her to quit her job and claim benefits.

Keeping her job is extremely important if she has a baby to support.

Yes.

Not even change her job but quit and claim the dole.

Quite a leap.

Firstly - congratulations.

Secondly - a baby is pretty much always the best thing that ever happens to a person, so your odds are high this will be amazing for all of you, her especially.

Thirdly - she just needs to go to the GP and say she's pregnant. S/he can get on the radar of midwives etc. If she's done a home test they are almost never wrong.

Fourthly: benefits calculator: https://www.entitledto.co.uk/?utm_source=BAdviser&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=GovUK

Fifthly: she'll figure out the career thing. Her current job doesn't feel like a great fit for a single mum. Many many things she can do and life is long.

She needs to work a certain amount in the 66weeks leading up to her due date or she will not be able to access maternity allowance or SMP. She needs to look into that before making any decisions.

Her employer should make reasonable adjustments to keep her safe during pregnancy. So she should inform them.