For my adult daughter

YorkshireLass

Hello, I posted this elsewhere in the online community, but haven't had any advice as of yet. I am asking for advice for my daughter. She is 23, and has long term health issues - she has shunts fitted as she produces too much fluid on her brain, so it drains off into her stomach. She also suffers from a lot of gynaecological issues, for which she's already had surgery, and will have more. She has been doing a degree, away from home, for the last two years. Her health has suffered greatly, so she has had to drop out in her last year, this semester. She applied for ESA, and got a letter saying she'd not paid enough N.I to qualify. She was told she cannot apply for income based either, as her partner, who she lives with, does part time work (24 hours) and is a full time student. She was refused PIP three years ago. She's at a loss now. She cannot work due to her disabilities, and she cannot sign on as fit for work. Can anyone advise on what she can do now please? She has zero income for herself.  

Nystagmite

She can reapply for pip.

BenefitsTrainingCo

Hello YorkshireLass

I'm afraid means tested benefits including income related ESA are claimed by partners jointly. This means both members of a couple must be unemployed in order to qualify and your joint income is included in the assessment. Therefore if your daughter's partner works 24 hours per week and your daughter has insufficient NI she will not be eligible for ESA I'm afraid.

It may be that there are other entitlements such as Working Tax Credit/Housing Benefit/Universal Credit, but this will require further investigation. I suggest your daughter gets a calculation done here using the Scope benefits calculator here.

Your daughter can indeed reapply for PIP. If the decision is negative it will be a good idea to get advice on a possible appeal.

I hope this helps
David