Advice and information on how to claim benefits if you are a single teenage parent

It is important always to get up-to-date advice. Benefit levels are accurate from April 2004.

• Living apart from your baby's father and claiming Benefits
• Living with your partner
• Can I claim any benefits if I am living with my boyfriend?
• I am working. What am I entitled to?

• Income-Based Jobseeker's Allowance (JSA)
• Child Benefit Extension Period (CBEP)
• Severe Hardship Rule
• Housing Benefit/Council Tax Benefit (HB/CTB)
• Tax Credits
• Social Fund payments
• Maternity Allowance
• Other Help

Living apart from your baby's father and claiming Benefits

If you claim income based JobSeekers Allowance (JSA) or Income Support (IS) and you don't live with the father of your baby your JSA or IS application will include an application to the Child Support Agency (CSA) for a maintenance assessment. Your benefit may be reduced if you refuse to give details of your baby's father. The only way you can refuse to apply to the CSA without having your benefit reduced is if you can prove that doing so would put you and/or your child at fear of harm/undue distress.For further information send an SAE to the Maternity Alliance and ask for their Single Parents factsheet.

Living with your partner

You count as living with your partner for benefit purposes if you live with him as if you were married to him. You also count as living with your partner even if you are both staying with your parents, other relatives or friends.

Can I claim any benefits if I am living with my boyfriend?

During pregnancy: If both you and your partner qualify for JSA or IS, you will be able to get IS or JSA as a couple. This will be £66.50 per week if you are both under 18. If your boyfriend is 18 or over the claim should be made in his name and you will be entitled to £67.30 per week.

If you are not entitled to IS or JSA, for instance, because you left home voluntarily and would be able to return to live with your parents, but your boyfriend is entitled to JSA or IS, he will only be paid the single person's rate of benefit even though you are a couple. If your boyfriend is over 25 he will get £55.65 per week. If he is between 18 and 24 he will get £44.05 per week. If he is under 18 he will get £44.04 if he has good cause for not living with his parents and £33.50 otherwise.

If your boyfriend is working full time and is under 25, you won't be able to claim any benefits until the baby is born, except you may get Housing Benefit to help with the rent. If he is 25 or over he may be eligible for Working Tax Credit (WTC) to top up his wages.

After the birth: You will be entitled to Child Benefit and Child tax Credit (CTC). If neither you or your boyfriend are working full time you should be entitled to JSA, CTC and Child Benefit totalling £135 if you are both under 18, or £155.81 if your partner is 18 or over. One of you must be available for work and actively seeking work, but the other one can be at school or college full-time if they are under 19, or part-time (less than 16 hours per week) if they are over 19.

If you or your partner are working, you may be able to get WTC or CTC if you are on a low income. If you are both working for more than16 hours a week you should be able to claim the childcare tax credit in your WTC to help with the costs of childcare of your child. If you are claiming either JSA or CTC you should also claim the Sure Start Maternity Grant of £500.

I am working. What am I entitled to?

You are entitled to the maternity rights and benefits that all employees can claim, whether you live with your parents or not. For more information about rights to maternity leave and pay, please send an SAE to the Maternity Alliance and ask for their leaflets 'Money for teenage parents' and 'Pregnant at Work'.

If you work for 16 hours a week or less you may still be entitled to receive IS. If you work for more than 16 hours a week you may be entitled to WTC. If you are not living with your parents you may be able to claim Housing Benefit.

Aged 18-24

The normal rules for claiming benefit apply. However, your benefit will be paid at a lower rate until you reach 25. For further information please send an SAE and ask for a copy of their free factsheet Money for Mothers and Babies.

What's available
A summary of benefits referred to in this factsheet
Free NHS dental treatment and prescriptionsYou will qualify for free NHS dental treatment and prescriptions if you are under 16 or you are receiving Income Support or income-based Job Seekers Allowance, or you are pregnant or have given birth within the last year.
Child Benefit You will get Child Benefit, whatever your age, for each child you are responsible for, for as long as that child is under 16 (or under 19 and still at school). It is £16.50 a week for the oldest child and £11.05 a week for other children.
Income Support (IS) You may be entitled to IS if you are 16 or over and you are not able to work full time. You are eligible for IS if, for example:

• you are a single parent
• you are more than 29 weeks pregnant
• you are going to school and are estranged from your parents
• you are a carer of someone who is disabled, or
• you are too unwell to work.

You will be entitled to the higher rate if you are living apart from your parents and you can show 'good cause' for not being able to live with them.

Good Cause
'Good Cause' for not living with your parents includes the following grounds:

• if you are an orphan and have no one acting as your parent
• before you were 16 you were living in local authority care or foster care and you have since left that care
• your parents are sick, or are in custody, or are unable to enter the country
• you have to live away from your parents because you are estranged from them, or you are in physical or moral danger, or there is a serious risk to your physical or mental health.

IS is means-tested so whether you get it depends on the amount of money you have coming in and the amount of savings you have.

You should claim IS from your local Benefits Agency.

Income-Based Jobseeker's Allowance (JSA)
You cannot usually claim JSA if you are under 18.

However, there are some important exceptions:

• If you are one of a couple and you have a child.
• If you have just left local authority care you are entitled to JSA for up to 8 weeks.
• If you have good reasons for not being able to live with your parents, or anyone acting as your parents e.g. foster parents, you can claim JSA during a period called the 'child benefit extension period'
• If you do not fit into any of the categories of people eligible for JSA but you would suffer 'severe hardship' without payment of benefit, you may be entitled to a discretionary payment of JSA.

Child Benefit Extension Period (CBEP)

• If you are 16 or 17 and not in full time education, Child Benefit may continue to be paid on your behalf during a 'Child Benefit extension period' if you are registered as available for work or work based training.
• If you do not live with your parents or anyone acting as your parents, you may be entitled to JSA in your own right during this 'Child Benefit extension period' if you are registered as available for work or work based training.The Child Benefit Extension Period (CBEP) will run for a set period from the time when your entitlement to child benefit ends. The set period of time the CBEP runs for will vary according to when your Child Benefit entitlement ends. You should seek further advice and if in doubt claim immediately.

Severe Hardship Rule
To claim JSA under the severe hardship rule you will need to register for work and training with the Connexions Service. You need to make sure that in the 'other information' section in your JSA claim form you state that you are applying on the basis of severe hardship.

You will have to go for an interview at the Benefits Agency about why you are suffering hardship. This will include reasons why your parents will not or cannot support you financially. You should also explain that you are pregnant and that you have extra costs because of your pregnancy. You should take along as much information and evidence as you can. It sounds daunting, and can be difficult, but you will probably be entitled to some money.

It will help if you can bring an adult to the interview with you to support your claim, such as a friend, social worker or youth worker. Or you could visit your local Citizens Advice Bureau (address in the phone book) and ask if they could help.

In order to receive JSA you have to register for work or training at the Connexions Service. The careers service will then refer you to the JobCentre where you make your JSA claim.

There are two different levels of payment of JSA if you are aged 16 or 17:
Lower rate £33.50
Higher rate £44.05
You will be entitled to the higher rate if you are living apart from your parents and you can show 'good cause' for not being able to live with them. See box on page 1 for more information.JSA is means-tested so whether you get it depends on the amount of money you have coming in and the amount of savings you have.

Housing Benefit/Council Tax Benefit (HB/CTB)
HB and CTB are paid by your local authority to help with the cost of your rent and council tax. You are not liable to pay council tax until you are 18.

If you receive either IS or income-based JSA, you will be entitled to receive maximum HB/CTB. If you do not receive either IS or JSA but you have a low income you may be able to receive HB/CTB anyway. HB/CTB is means-tested so whether you get it depends on the amount of money you have coming in and the amount of savings you have.

You should claim HB/CTB directly from your local authority.

Working Tax Credit (WTC)
You may qualify for WTC, if you are 16 or over, if you or your partner (if you have one) are working 16 hours or more a week, have a low income and have at least one dependant child.

WTC is means-tested. The amount you get will depend on how much you earn, how many hours you work, how many children you have, and whether or not you are paying for registered childcare. You will be able to get extra WTC from the childcare tax credit, to help with the costs of childcare if you pay for registered childcare and you are a single parent working at least 16 hours a week, or you are in a couple and you both work at least 16 hours a week, or one of you works at least 16 hours a week and the other is disabled.

You should claim WTC from the Inland Revenue helpline 0845 300 3900.

Social Fund payments
Everyone on income-based JSA, IS or CTC of more than the family element (or family element plus baby addition if you have a baby under one) can claim a Sure Start Maternity Grant of £500. You should claim it from the Benefits Agency any time from 11 weeks before your baby is due until three months after it is born.

There are also Social Fund loans and grants for those on income-based JSA or IS. Your parents can claim these things for you if they are on one of these benefits and you are living at home.

Maternity Allowance
You can get Maternity Allowance if you have worked in 26 weeks of the 66 weeks (approx. 1 year 3 months) before your baby is due and you earned at least £30 a week on average in 13 of those weeks. You can claim it on form MA1 from your local Benefits Agency.

Other Help
You may also be able to get help with fares to hospital; free sight tests; vouchers for glasses; free vitamins; free school meals (for those on IS or income-based JSA); or reduced price baby milk. You can get milk tokens if you are pregnant or breastfeeding, or for your child up to the age of 5, if you are receiving IS or income-based JSA.

THE MATERNITY ALLIANCE
2-6 Northburgh Street
London EC1V 0AY
Information line: 020 7490 7638
www.maternityalliance.org.uk