Son leaving education

alisha

My son is 18 and currently undecided about returning to college in September.

I currently recieve HB, CTS, CTC, CB + ESA (IR) SUPPORT GROUP WITH ENHANCED DISABILITY PREMIUM 

If he does decide to leave education then Child Benefit and Child Tax Credit stops end of August and I have to notify Housing Benefit as he becomes a Non Dependant and that will affect the amount I recieve which I already know. 

Does he affect my Esa and do I have to call them as well? I know if I recieved the Severe Disability premium it would be affected but I only recieve the Enhanced part.

I'm a worrier and I have no else to talk to and am hoping someone will be able to offer some advice please. I have been advised to make a claim for Pip but I havent done that yet. 

Also for reference I also have a 16 year old who is staying in education so I will still have 1 Dependant child. 

poppy123456

Your ESA won't be affected because that money has nothing to do with your son. If you're claiming single person discount for council tax then you will lose that.

For housing benefit, if he claims Universal Credit then there will be no deductions. If he will be working the deduction will depend on his earnings.  See link. https://england.shelter.org.uk/housing_advice/benefits/housing_benefit_deductions_when_living_with_non_dependants

This is one area where UC is much more generous and even more so because your ESA doesn't include the SDP. As you're in the Support Group then you'll be entitled to the LCWRA element from the start of your claim. This pays more than ESA Support Group. There's also no deductions for a non dependant who's under the age of 21. As you're claiming Tax Credits you will ve migrated to UC anyway anytime from now up to the end of 2024 and heard of quite a few people receiving the migration letter.

You should however, use a benefits calculator just to check before you decide what to do. Make sure you tick the box which says LCWRA. https://www.entitledto.co.uk/benefits-calculator

alisha

Thank you so much for letting me know that information.

Am I better of waiting for the migration letter to arrive? If I wait for the letter will I still have to wait the 5 weeks for the first payment? Which is what I'm worried about? 

Just wish this whole process was abit easier.

poppy123456

When you first claim UC your first payment will always be 1 month and 6 days later, whether it’s managed migration or not.

Any Income Related ESA you’re claiming will continue for 2 weeks once you claim and then stop. Same applies for housing benefit.

You can request an advance payment but this does need to be repaid back and will reduce your future payments. 

alisha

poppy123456 said:

Your ESA won't be affected because that money has nothing to do with your son. If you're claiming single person discount for council tax then you will lose that.

For housing benefit, if he claims Universal Credit then there will be no deductions. If he will be working the deduction will depend on his earnings.  See link. https://england.shelter.org.uk/housing_advice/benefits/housing_benefit_deductions_when_living_with_non_dependants

This is one area where UC is much more generous and even more so because your ESA doesn't include the SDP. As you're in the Support Group then you'll be entitled to the LCWRA element from the start of your claim. This pays more than ESA Support Group. There's also no deductions for a non dependant who's under the age of 21. As you're claiming Tax Credits you will ve migrated to UC anyway anytime from now up to the end of 2024 and heard of quite a few people receiving the migration letter.

You should however, use a benefits calculator just to check before you decide what to do. Make sure you tick the box which says LCWRA. https://www.entitledto.co.uk/benefits-calculator

So my son has decided to leave education I have already contacted housing benefit and council tax as well as cb and ctc.

Like I previously mentioned I receive ESA with the ENHANCED DISABILITY PREMIUM.

Should I call them to let them know as well? He hasnt found a job at the moment but will be looking. Will they need to know if he is earning and will it impact me? I have googled it and lots of different advice has been given. I know it affects the severe disability premium but I DON'T recieve that. 

I'm sorry if I've repeated what I previously asked but only feel comfortable with the advice you give. I get so anxious about all this. I dont want to make an unnecessary phone call if I dont need to as speaking on the phone fills me with dread and fear.

poppy123456

Your ESA won't be affected and the Enhanced disability premium will continue to be paid. It will only be affected if your ESA includes the Severe disability Premium. 

As you're not currently claiming a disability benefit such as PIP then your ESA will only include the SDP if you're registered blind.

Yes, you will need to report the changes to your local Authority. If you're the only adult in the house at the moment then you will lose the 25% single person discount on your council Tax.

For housing benefit then there will be a £18.10/week deduction if he's not working. If he claims Universal Credit in his own right then there will be no deductions, if he doesn't worl.

If he starts working then the deductions for housing benefit will depend on his earnings. See link. https://england.shelter.org.uk/housing_advice/benefits/housing_benefit_deductions_when_living_with_non_dependants

This is where Universal Credit for you is a lot more generous because there's no non dependant deductions for those that are under 21, even if they are working. You will also be entitled to more money because UC and LCWRA pays more than ESA Support Group for you because your ESA doesn't include the SDP.

It will definitely be worth getting a full benefits check from an advice agency near you.

alisha

Tried calling citizens advice today but couldnt get through and couldn't access the online chat as all agents were busy so I will try again tomorrow. 

I have called housing, council tax, child benefit and tax credits so that's all updated. 

The only one I havent called is DWP about my ESA as I was unsure if they still needed to be aware?

Thank you so much for all your help and advice I'm so appreciative to you. 

Hannah_Alumni

@alisha Sorry to hear you couldn't get through. I've read on other threads that calling or logging into the chat first thing in the morning is the best chance if you are able to  

poppy123456

You're welcome. ESA do not need to know because your ESA money is just for you and nothing to do with your son.

You can try using a benefits calculator to check the figures. Make sure you tick the box that says "Limited capability for work related activity" because you'll be entitled to that from the start of your claim because of your ESA Support Group. https://www.entitledto.co.uk/benefits-calculator

Is your ESA just for yourself or are you living with a partner?

alisha

I honestly cant thank you enough for being there. I've been in a such a state about all of this.

I'm single so my ESA is just me.

I did look at the benefit calculator and it says I would be better off on UC so I need to take the plunge. I'm not very good with change although i know it will happen at some point. So have to bite the bullet and get things in motion. 

You hear so many bad stories about switching over it would be helpful if people could also tell us positive stories! 

poppy123456

You're very welcome, i'm always happy to help anyone! One of the reasons for the delay until 2028 for those claiming Income Related  ESA to be migrated to UC is exactly this.. for those that don't have the SDP included in their ESA it means LCWRA for UC pays more so very likely to be better off claiming UC. This means the Government will be saving millions by delaying the migration.

When you do claim UC your Income Related ESA and housing benefit will continue for 2 weeks and then stop. If any part of your ESA is contributions based this will continue but be deducted in full from any UC entitlement.

Once you've claimed i'd advise you to put a message onto your journal and tell them that you're in the Support Group for ESA. It may also be helpful if you can show them your last ESA letter so that this confirms you're in the Support Group.

Very often it takes a few weeks for ESA to send your details across to UC. Yes, they are both DWP but they rarely communicate with each other, ridiculous i know. Once it's done you'll need to accept your commiments, which will just be to agree to report any changes.

You may have to attend an appointment at your local job centre when you first claim. However, if your health condition prevents you from doing this you need to ask for a telephone appointment as a reasonable adjustment and they should agree to that.

When you first claim your first UC payment will be 1 month and 1 week later. You can ask for an advance payment but please be aware that you'll need to repay this back from future UC payments.

alisha

Afternoon I was wondering if someone can give me some advice please. My son has been looking for work and unfortunately not had much luck. He managed to get a days work working at a charity cancer event as a one off. Currently I have £19.30 a week deducted of my housing benefit because he falls into the category of Not in remunerative work or weekly income less than £176. Shall I call housing benefit and let them know he has done one days work? And if so do you know what information I will need to give them please? I know he still falls into the same category as he earnt much less than the £176 so it will remain at £19.30 a week deduction. I'm just not very good on the phone so if I do need to call them I would like all the information to hand so I dont need to call them back again.

poppy123456

You don’t need to ring them because his earnings were less than £176/week.

I’m surprised you’re still claiming ESA and housing benefit because you would be much better off claiming UC.

As I advised in the thread last year there will be no non dependent deductions for UC if the non dependent is under 21. UC that includes the LCWRA element pays more than ESA Support Group because it doesn’t include the SDP.

UC with LCWRA element is £120/month more than ESA Support Group. Add that onto the deductions for non dependent you have for housing benefit and that would be more than £200/month better off.

For me this would be a no brainer and most definitely worth claiming UC. Your ESA and housing benefit will continue for 2 weeks if you claim UC.

alisha

Thank you for your reply Poppy.

What your saying makes sense and I really do need to do it. I struggle so much with change hence why I've been patiently waiting for the migration notice but I would be better off claiming UC. Thank you for pushing me to do it. I don't have anyone else to talk to so appreciate you advising me what is best for me