Working and Benefits - doing it right

[Coffeeinapapercup]

I am a single parent, in receipt of carers allowance, income support, council tax benefit etc.

I have been offered a few hours work with a friend. I very much would like to take this up and I want to do this all properly by the book. I would be working less than 10 hours a week at minimum wage £6.50. I'm guessing I would class as self employed (but I'm not sure) how would I declare this properly with the tax office? What do I need to be aware of?

Hey, I did some temping at our local job centre and there were staff there call Lone Parent Advisors who fave out advice about things just like this so maybe go to your local one? Alternatively citizens advice offer free advice too but the job centre will support you in what you are wanting to do x

I worked and claimed jobseekers allowance. For jobseekers you can work up to 15 hours a week, for lone parents they disregard the first 20 pounds of your wage and then they would take off the rest from your jobseekers money. So you were only like20 pounds better off. So if jsa is 70 and your wage was 50, they disregard 20 making your wage 30. they then take that 30 off your jsa meaning that you would get 40 jsa. Does that make sense?

It's only the first £10 they disregard now.

When did it change? I know the couples rate was lower. I think that its daft the way they do it. The government want people to work but employers only want to give out small 6,8,10 hour contracts.

Not sure when it changed but I'm a lone parent on jsa and asked my advisor about this just the other day.

Wow the jobcentre/government are really squeezing the poor more and more arent they. It was only the start of the year when I stopped working & claiming jsa. Even then it got to the stage where it was pointless, now for ten pounds its just not worth it.