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Autism and Universal Credit

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  • kellz
    kellz Community member Posts: 12 Listener
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    Hes not 20 untill next july i understand that he will need to sign in his own right as i keep being told from the job center i get that and when tha time comes he will ,i still get his child benifit untill next year its just the problem iv got to be honest is how do u sit there and watch your child whos not the age he is in the head agree to all the stress u/c comes with iv had hell since i was made to claim this benifit when ur past from pillow to post it gets to ur mental state id totaly understand if i had a few kids and was just after benifits but i have only 2 ones 19 and one is 17 due to wot iv been threw with them since they was babys to be honest it has put me off haven any more kids iv had more than enought to deal with iv never in there whole time grown up ask for help in any sort of way up untill now and im so sorry if anyone has felt affended or think bad of me for asking for advice im not one of them parents just out for wot i can get from the dwp so i do apologize if it has came across that way.
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  • poppy123456
    poppy123456 Community member Posts: 54,184 Disability Gamechanger
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    The issue is, is that because you're claiming Universal credit the rules are different for full time students and the child element stops on 31st August after their 19th birthday. Child benefit is totally different and not part of UC.

    They will always be our children, no matter what age they are but he's no longer a child and needs to claim UC in his own right. I know exactly how you feel because i have a daughter that has autism and a learning disability.

    No need to be sorry for asking questions on a forum. I'm just trying to give you the correct advice about the benefits your son should be claiming and what ever you say or do the child element you lost on UC for your son will no longer be able to be paid because of his age.

    Does he have a social worker than could help with claiming UC?
    I would appreciate it if members wouldn't tag me please. I have all notifcations turned off and wouldn't want a member thinking i'm being rude by not replying.
    If i see a question that i know the answer to i will try my best to help.
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  • Lammy
    Lammy Community member Posts: 21 Connected
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    Hello Kellz,

    I am totally with you on this as we have also been on the treadmill of UC since August 31st.  From my own experience, the DWP staff who are meant to be there to help us are giving conflicting information or in many cases no information at all about further benefits we are entitled to claim for our young so called 'adults' with disabilities. Even the .gov.uk website states that some of these additional benefits are no longer available as of 2017, but that is not true.  Your social worker is likely to be as clueless as mine, but she/he may ask the welfare benefits department to ring you and offer advice.  If she does this, be sure to have your questions written down ready, because if you're anything like most of us single parents struggling to get what we can for our children (not by any means adults), it is easy to become emotional, and hard as it is we must stay solid for our kids.
    I had to ask the DWP for a Work capabilty assessment for my son which decides whether he is entitled to the Limited Capability for Work and work related activity benefit.  This could amount to an extra £80 per week for your son.  I found it is best to ask for this on the help line because they tend to ignore your journal entries for up to 2 weeks and then they don't answer your questions properly.  However this extra benefit may not be payable until 14 weeks after the UC benefit has started.  Try and get someone to help you fill in the form you will get in the post because they may decide from the information you provide that that is sufficient to qualify without the assessment.
    I too have health conditions of my own so I completely understand where you are coming from.  This new system is specifically designed to put us off claiming, I have no doubt about that.
    Do let me know how things are going with you.  We can maybe learn from one other.  I wish you luck.  Remember to take care of yourself.

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  • poppy123456
    poppy123456 Community member Posts: 54,184 Disability Gamechanger
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    Another thing to remember with means tested benefits and students is that any student loans they may have in the future will be counted as income when claiming UC or any other means tested benefits they maybe entitled to. It was the same before UC was launched.

    I know it's very difficult a lot of the time to think of our children as adults, especially when they have a disability and inside their heads they may not think or even act like an adult. My daughter is exactly the same so i know where you're coming from with this. I also have a disability myself so i know how hard it is to look after ourselves and them at the same time. However, in the eyes of the law and for benefits purposes they are adults once we stop being able to claim a benefit for them.

    Students and benefits are a minefield and DWP are the best people to speak to when it comes to UC at the best of times. Even worse with students claiming UC.


    Coping with your own disability and that of your son/daughter is very challenging, i know it was for me. Have you thought about asking for a carers assessment from your local council? I went down this route for my daughter and now she receives direct payments for Support each week. She has a personal assistant (support worker) that takes her where she wants to go and helps with extra things around the home. It's not a massive amount but it certainly helps. I also receive extra money in the direct payments to be used for respite care, so i have extra time allowed for this. When we have a disability our self every little helps. It's made a massive difference to both our lives because now my daughter is able to go out to places she was never able to go to before as she's unable to go out alone and i can't take her myself. Contact your local council for the carers assessment.



    I would appreciate it if members wouldn't tag me please. I have all notifcations turned off and wouldn't want a member thinking i'm being rude by not replying.
    If i see a question that i know the answer to i will try my best to help.
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  • kellz
    kellz Community member Posts: 12 Listener
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    Aww thank you ,it really dos mean so much to me to have people going threw the same thing and whom also understands means the world and ur kind words i will keep u updated on this and also u all take care ur kind words and advice mean the world.
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  • mommysteph
    mommysteph Community member Posts: 1 Listener
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    Hi.. my son has turned 18, He has pip enhanced for both care and mobility. The college refused to accept him back last year as he doesn’t speak and said that all the courses required him speaking. We have been told to get an education health care plan, which isn’t easy to get either once they leave school. But it’s being worked on. I gave out to the council as it’s their college and their plan and now have been sent a form for reduced council tax as he has a Carer. As for the UC I was told he could apply but I know it’s going to send him straight into melt down , already I had to explain he didn’t use the phone and had people even asking if he still had autism. Also have a son with ADHD who I had to home school in the end due to seizures. And he is just about to turn 16 next month. The goverment really needs to sort something other than UC for autism and disabilities. Hard enough to get the pip as it is,
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  • Chloe_Scope
    Chloe_Scope Posts: 10,586 Disability Gamechanger
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    Hi @mommysteph and a warm welcome to the community! Thank you for sharing this with us. I agree, it can be incredibly difficult to get UC. Do you need any support to get an education health care plan for your son? We have an education board which will be able to help if you post on there. Please do let me know if there is anything else we can do to support you :)
    Scope

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