Any benefits available to me? — Scope | Disability forum
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Any benefits available to me?

sunflower
sunflower Community member Posts: 33 Courageous
I have chronic migraine, been off work as a teacher since October. I have met with union, HR and headteacher over the months but been too sick to return. Have seen a neurologist, have another appointment at the end of June. My gp has also referred me to kings college hosp london. I have applied for pip but have only just sent form off. I am on half pay and this runs out in sept/ oct. My union and HR have supported an ill health early retirement application but they are very hard to get. I'm just waiting for neuroligist to return forms. I am a single mum with 2 children aged 13 and 11. I don't know if I'm getting pip, i don't know if I'm getting ill health retirement. But my pay stops in october. 

Comments

  • mehrfarbig
    mehrfarbig Community member Posts: 33 Connected
    You may be entitled to employment and support allowance.

    https://www.gov.uk/employment-support-allowance/types-of-esa

    PIP can take a long time depending on where you live. 
    Sarah
  • BenefitsTrainingCo
    BenefitsTrainingCo Community member Posts: 2,621 Pioneering
    sunflower,

    When your statutory sick pay (SSP) stops, then as Mike suggests, you could claim ESA. SSP is very low, it's probably less than your half pay - it's just £92.05 a week, so you'll need to check that your employer has stopped paying you completely before you can claim ESA.

    Because you've worked until relatively recently, you're likely to be entitled to contributory ESA - in other words, Employment and Support Allowance based on your national insurance contributions. To begin with, you can send in sick notes to the DWP to get this, but sooner or later you should expect to have a face to face medical.

    Meanwhile, you may also need to claim other things on top of ESA - to support your children, and for housing costs, for example. This is complicated because it depends where you are in the country. The relevant benefit might be Universal Credit, but if Universal Credit isn't available, the benefits would be income-related ESA (possibly payable on top of your contributory ESA, but dependent on circumstances), Housing Benefit (if you pay rent) and Child Tax Credit (which you might already be getting).

    You can check whether Universal Credit is available by putting your postcode into this website.

    It's very hard to say whether you will get PIP. PIP is a benefit for the extra costs of disability - for example, if you are struggling with daily living tasks such as cooking, washing, dressing and going to the toilet, or if you have problems moving around outside your home. It might help to look at the PIP self-test.

    It is all a bit of a maze if you're new to benefits, so feel free to ask more questions.

    Will
    The Benefits Training Co:

  • sunflower
    sunflower Community member Posts: 33 Courageous
    Thanks Will. I've applied for pip. My situation has been evolving as my condition has been worsening and it's been harder to return to work. I'm on half pay right now but I'm losing my job. I am applying for ill health retirement but it's hard to  get. I'm in Worcester. I haven't claimed anything because it was always the plan to return to work full time. This situation is a bombshell. In a few months I will not have any money. I have a mortgage, not rent. I don't claim child tax credit because like I said earlier, my situation has evolved and I earned too much as a teacher. It's so hard to wade through this as chronic migraine is debilitating and it impacts my daily life so much that thinking about all this is hard.
  • littleruthie123
    littleruthie123 Community member Posts: 511 Pioneering
    Hi sunflower sorry too hear this .I was in your boat well similar as I ended up being on s.s.p which isent alot at all .I then claimed esa and got in the support group quite easily (I had been diagnosed with breast. Cancer).I would try p.I. P it can take a while though unfortunately; I think mine was around seven months at that time .cab welfare rights and there's scope advisers on here .good luck x
  • littleruthie123
    littleruthie123 Community member Posts: 511 Pioneering
    As you say it's effecting your daily life so that's what p.I. P is for .also try too get as much medical evidence as possible 
  • sunflower
    sunflower Community member Posts: 33 Courageous
    Thank you littleruthie123. My pip form went off last week,  the form was a nightmare to do, I took a while to do it. My gp surgery gave evidence of neurologist letters etc. Who knows eh! Teacher's pensions rarely give ill health retirement so I'm not hopeful there. Haven't had medical part back ftom neuro yet so once I have that I'll be sendi g that off.  A few months ago I couldn't claim esa. Now I can as ssp stopped in March. Trying to deal with my condition, losing my job, financial crisis and try not to let it filter to my kids is beyond stressful. The thought of filling in another dwp form is depressing. 
  • sunflower
    sunflower Community member Posts: 33 Courageous
    Thanks mikehughescq. It took me a while to decide to apply for pip actually. Someone mentioned it on here and it was the first I'd heard of it! I looked at forums, criteria, pip threads, then looked at it all again. I've been so ill since January, that the decision to quit work has had to be made too. Whrn filling in the pip form it made me realise how affected I really am. I take nothing for granted at all.

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