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Financial help when you move from benefits into work
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Help with moving into work: a guide for lone parents
If you stop claiming Income Support, income-based Jobseeker's Allowance, Severe Disablement Allowance or Incapacity Benefit because you start working 16 or more a hours a week, or because your earnings have increased, you may be entitled to some extra financial help.From October 2008, Employment Support Allowance will be introduced for all new claimants in place of Incapacity Benefit.
For information see our factsheet Benefits and tax credits for lone parents who work 16 or more hours a week.
Help with your housing costs
If you have been receiving benefits (see under Help if you are thinking about work or training) for 26 weeks before you start work, and the job you are starting is expected to last for 5 weeks or more, you can qualify for: - An extra 4 weeks of Housing Benefit and/or Council Tax Benefit. You need to notify Jobcentre Plus or the benefits section at your local authority within 4 weeks of starting work.
- An extra 4 weeks of mortgage interest if you were receiving help with mortgage interest as part of your Income Support or income-based Jobseeker's Allowance. It is paid at the same rate as the amount being paid with your benefit before you start work. Tell Jobcentre Plus when you will be starting work and the payments will be made to you automatically.
Note: If you were getting help with housing costs as part of your Income Support or income-based Jobseeker's Allowance and you re-claim within 52 weeks, you will get help with your housing costs straight away.
Job Grant
If you have been receiving benefits for 26 weeks before you start work, and the job you are starting is expected to last for 5 weeks or more, you can qualify for a Job Grant of £250. The grant is paid automatically but you must give details of your job to your local Jobcentre Plus office before you start work or within 21 days of starting.
The Advisers Discretion Fund
A New Deal for Lone Parents Personal Adviser (see under Help if you are thinking about work or training) has the discretion (that is, you do not have a right to it - it is up to your adviser to decide whether you qualify for it) and limited funds to help you with the costs of finding work, for example, buying a new suit to attend an interview or paying upfront childcare costs when you first start work. Spending from the fund is very limited, but talk to your adviser about any extra costs you have. You cannot appeal against the decision not to award you money from this fund, but you can make a complaint - get advice about this from the Lone Parent Helpline.In Work Emergency Discretion Fund
From April 2008, if you move into work of 16 or more hours per week and have a financial emergency which would mean that you had to leave work, you could receive payments of up to £300 from your Personal Adviser at the Jobcentre during the first 26 weeks of your employment. The decision to award these payments is, again, discretionary.
In Work Credit
From April 2008, if you have been receiving benefits for 12 months or more before you start work, you could qualify for an in work credit of £40 per week (£60 if you live in London) for the first 52 weeks of working.
Child Maintenance Bonus
You may qualify for this bonus if you were receiving child maintenance calculated by the Child Support Agency under the 'old rules' (generally this means that the other parent had to start paying maintenance since before March 2003) while on Income Support or income-based Jobseeker's Allowance.
The amount of the bonus can be up to £5 a week for each week you were on Income Support or income-based Jobseeker's Allowance and child maintenance was paid. The maximum amount that can be paid is £1,000. You can ask Jobcentre Plus for an estimate of the amount of the bonus you have built up so far.
You apply for the bonus at your local Jobcentre Plus office and you must do so within 28 days of coming off benefit. If maintenance payments stop, you will qualify for the bonus only if you start work within 14 days. If your Child Support Agency case is transferred to the new system of child maintenance, you will be entitled to the Child Maintenance Bonus only if you start work within one month of being transferred to the new system.
How do I know if I am better off working?
A decision about starting work isn't only about the money, but before taking a job you need to know what your total income and any extra expenses will be. To find out if you will be better off in work:- Contact a New Deal for Lone Parents Personal Adviser or your local Jobcentre Plus office and ask for a better-off calculation; or
- Call the Lone Parent Helpline on 0800 018 5026 for advice about whether you will be better off in work.
Next page: Checklist for lone parents returning to work for 16 or more hours a week
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