Welfare Benefits Maternity & Early Years Benefits
Maternity & Early Years Benefits
This course looks at the range of benefits and tax credits that can be paid around the time of a birth and during a child's first years. We cover the benefits for all families, but focus on younger women, including those under the age of 16.
We look at claims by:
- Young Women, including under 16s
- Women in work who take maternity leave
- Women who are not working at the time of their pregnancy
- Lone parents
- Couples including partners who take paternity leave
- Adopters
After a brief look at the non-means-tested benefits that can be paid to pregnant women and parents, the course focuses on the means tested benefits to boost a family's weekly income: Income Support and Employment Support Allowance for parents who are not in work; Working Tax Credit for low paid parents and Child Tax Credit for all low and middle income families.
The course moves on to look at the one-off payments, Sure Start Maternity Grants and Community Care Grants; and at health related benefits.
The focus of the course is on understanding how to maximize parent's incomes, and how to deal with common difficulties. The aim is to promote understanding in a practical context – not to fill participants with detailed technical knowledge.
Course Content
Non-means-tested benefits – Maternity Allowance and Statutory Maternity Pay are the main benefits for women who are pregnant or who have recently given birth. Statutory Adoption and Paternity Pay cover partners and adopters. Once a child is born Child Benefit can be claimed. We look briefly at these benefits to see who can claim which, and to understand their importance in relation to the rest of the benefits system
Income Support and Employment Support Allowance – These benefits are intended to provide a (very) basic weekly income for adults who are not in full-time work, including many new parents. We look at the rules for each to see who can claim. We look very briefly at how these are worked out.
Working Tax Credit – WTC is paid to low paid workers including women who are on maternity leave from work. We see the rules of entitlement and consider how changes in income around the time of the birth are reflected in the Tax Credit award.
Child Tax Credit – CTC can be paid to most low and middle income families. We see how parents, including parents under 16 fit into this scheme.
Housing Benefit – Gets a brief mention. We see how it's linked to Income Support and Employment Support Allowance.
One Off Payments - we see the rules of entitlement for the Sure Start Maternity Grant, and think about how new parents fit into the Community Care Grant system.
Health Related Benefits - We cover the health costs scheme for new mothers, children and low income households.
