moving house

veryconfused

hi everyone,im on esa in the support group and get some housing benefit.looking to move to a cheaper rental property but its a different local council.is this much hassle?..thanks in advance

poppy123456

HI,

As woodbine as asked, do you claim the severe disability premium in with your ESA? If you're unsure then do you claim a disability benefit such as PIP daily living or DLA mid/high rate care?

veryconfused

no just on esa,no pip or sdp

veryconfused

think I will look into pip

poppy123456

Then moving house to a different local council will mean a claim for Universal Credit because a new claim for housing benefit is no longer possible for you.

Your ESA award will be honoured in UC and you'll be placed into the relevant group, whatever that is. If it's Support Group then this will be LCWRA and you'll receive the extra element.

Actually, UC LCWRA pays more than ESA Support Group, if you don't claim the SDP.

veryconfused

thanks poppy,can I do part time work on uc?im really clueless about it all.brings all the anxiety on

poppy123456

Yes you can work while claiming UC. You will have the work allowance, which means that you can earn a certain amount of money before you'll see any deductions. As you'll be claiming for help with your rent then your work allowance will be £292 per month, once you've reached that amount of earnings for each assessment period then your UC will reduce by 63% for every £1 you earn.

Just so that you're aware you can also do permitted work while claiming ESA. See link. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/employment-and-support-allowance-permitted-work-form/permitted-work-factsheet

Do be aware though that if the work you do contradicts the reasons why you're claiming (LCWRA or LCW) then you could be assessed early and the decision could go against you.

veryconfused

thanks poppy im only doing 12hrs a week at mo

poppy123456

I'm assuming DWP know that you're working and you filled out a form and returned it to them? The maximum you're allowed to earn without it affecting your ESA is £140 per week and work less than 16 hours per week.