carers allowance, job seekers, open university help

[meerkatsandkookaburras]

at the moment my partenr is claiming job seekers for himself and me as a dependant with deduction of carers allowance etc etc though he plans to work when he can find a new job, he was made redundant a couple of months ago. is there any reason why i couldnt do an open university course whilst claiming carers, obviously now in our situation we would get my fees paid, though if my partner got a job things could change in that due to total household income etc etc. am i right that otherwise it wouldnt make any difference??? obviously other than time taken to do it around not sleeping etc etc!!!

I'm a bit confused by the last bit.

You should be able to get full fees paid, and possibly a grant too, to help with study costs (£250).

If your dp goes back to work, you can still get funded provided your income is below a certain level or you are claiming a qualifying benefit, e.g. housing benefit, working tax credit. I don't think carers is a qualifying benefit.

I've nearly completed my degree with them, fully funded.

open university link plus there is a link on that page to an eligibility checker.

seems good, i did psychology at uni but want to try and do something else as feel a bit of a just a mum thing going on and even if i just do a little course and never turn it into a degree that will be fab but hoping to do a degree in soemthing different though undecided what!! id love to do teaching but too mucb practical work and even when ds is at full time school id be struggling to do the on the job type training wouldnt i really and then working as a teacher would be kind of difficult unless very close to ds's school etc. i just want to train for a job i will be able to do before ds is 40 lol not likely though is it i want to be more than ds's mum! not that i dont like that but i feel i want to stretch my mind a bit in not always an autism way and have a chance to think about other things!!

I know what you mean. I started my degree before we really knew the extent of ds's issues, and before I went on to have dts! I hadd plans of becoming a lawyer, but that is out of the question now. I did consider retraining in teaching, but I started a literature course and HATED it!

It can be harder to get funding when you already have a degree, though not impossible. I would apply now, while your dp is unemployed to be in with the best chance, and explain about being a carer, etc. in the further information section and I reckon you would have a good chance at getting it.

Some courses, especially if you start with level 1 don't necessarily require anywhere near the 16 hours a week, so aren't too hard to fit in.

With carers allowance you qualify for free OU courses. I am currently studying through them. Doesn't matter what your family income is.