Council housing waiting list household income threshold

We want to hear from you: please tell us about your experience of the online community.

Reddragon69

Hi everyone, 

we have been issued a Section 21 due to end at the end of October. I am on income based ESA support group and PIP. My partner has had to give up work to have two full shoulder replacement operations due to having no cartilage from Osteoarthritis. He worked before that and intends on returning to work afterwards. He is now on my ESA claim and gets Pip standard daily living. We have just become Special Guardians for a child that was previously Looked After. He has significant needs and gets DLA and we now receive a Special Guardian allowance from the Local Authority - it’s classed as a Kinship payment and is not classed as income for benefit purposes. 

We have made a homeless application to the council but in filling the financial forms out, we have discovered that there is an income threshold and the SGO allowance takes us over that. We are worried sick now as we are facing homelessness and are worried about our child’s placement with us. The allowance is for his additional needs due to trauma and disability but I don’t think the council will discount it. 

Does anyone know if they have to exempt PIP and DLA as that payment is meant for additional support for disability, not paying rent? I have mobility problems and my PIP is used for taxis. If I have to use it for rent I won’t be able to go out. 

If anyone can advise I would be extremely grateful. 

Thank you 

Sindy61

Good afternoon. 
Were you granted (special guardianship) through court for this child or is this a long term kinship/fostering arrangement? Either way you would have gone through an assessment. 

I do not believe either option means money paid to you should be included as ( income) as it's a local authority allowance. 

Please refer to gov.uk website re housing benefit. It should say what the criteria is on their. 

Good luck 🤞

Sindy61!