The benefits that you will be able to get will depend upon your individual circumstances. Listed below are some of the main benefits that you may be able to get.
Housing and Council Tax Benefit
Maternity Allowance
You may be able to get Maternity Allowance (MA) if you do not get Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP) from your employer and:
you have a new baby; or
you are pregnant and due to give birth in the next 12 weeks.
You will also need to have:
worked for at least 26 weeks in the 66 week period immediately before the week your baby is due; and
earned at least £30 a week.
If you have more than one employer, and you get Statutory Maternity Pay from one employer and not the other, you cannot claim Maternity Allowance.
If you're employed and self-employed, you can get Statutory Maternity Pay from your employer but you will not be able to claim Maternity Allowance for your self-employment.
The allowance can be paid for up to 39 weeks.
For more information on Maternity Allowance, visit the Directgov website available on this page under external links.
Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP)
Statutory Maternity Pay is a weekly payment from your employer to help you take time off work before and after your baby is born.
To qualify for Statutory Maternity Pay you must have been:
employed by the same employer continuously for at least 26 weeks before the 15th week from when your baby is due; and
earning an average of at least £102 per week (this rate is correct for 2011/12 but may change).
If you qualify for Statutory Maternity Pay, it is paid:
for the first six weeks at 90% of your average gross weekly earnings with no upper limit; and
for the remaining 33 weeks at the lower of either the standard rate of £128.73, or 90% of your average gross weekly earnings.
Your employer will pay Statutory Maternity Pay in the same way and at the same time as your normal wages would be. It can be paid for a maximum of 39 weeks and is treated as earnings meaning you will pay tax and national insurance on it.
For more information on Statutory Maternity Pay, visit the Directgov website available on this page under external links.
Statutory Paternity Pay (SPP)
Statutory Paternity Pay is a payment from your employer to help you take time off work when your wife, partner, or civil partner gives birth or adopts a child.
For you to qualify for SPP you must be one of the following:
the biological father or adopter of the child
the husband, partner or civil partner of the child’s mother or adopter; or
responsible or expect to be responsible for the child’s upbringing.
You must also meet all of the following criteria:
you must have worked for the same employer without a break for at least 26 weeks before the 15th15 from when the baby is due; or employed up to and including the week your wife, partner or civil partner was matched with an adopted child.
you must continue to work for that employer without a break up to the date the child is born or placed for adoption.
you must be earning an average of at least £102 a week before tax.( rate for the year 2010/11)
If your average weekly earnings are £102 or more (before tax), Statutory Paternity Pay is paid for one or two consecutive weeks at £128.73 or 90 per cent of your average weekly earnings if this is less.
Your employer will pay Statutory Paternity Pay in the same way and at the same time as your normal wages would be. It can be paid for a maximum of 2 weeks and is treated as earnings meaning you will pay tax and National Insurance on it.
For more information on Statutory Paternity Pay, visit the Directgov website available on this page under external links.
Additional Paternity Pay
If you're a new dad and your partner is returning or has returned to work, you could have the right to up to 26 weeks' Additional Paternity Leave.
For more information on Additional Paternity Pay, visit the Directgov website available on this page under external links.
Statutory Adoption Pay
You may be able to get Statutory Adoption Pay, if you are adopting or jointly adopting a child.
In order to qualify you must be:
matched with a child for adoption
employed continuously with your employer for at least 26 weeks including the week you find out you have been matched with a child for adoption.
earning an average of at least £102 per week ( rate for the year 2010/11)
If your average weekly earnings are £102 or more (before tax), Statutory Adoption Pay is paid at £128.73 (or 90 per cent of your average weekly earnings if this is less).
Your employer will pay Statutory Adoption Pay in the same way and at the same time as your normal wages would be. It can be paid for a maximum of 39 weeks and is treated as earnings, which means you will pay tax and national insurance on it.
You must tell your employer when you intend to take leave. This must be within seven days of being told by the adoption agency that you've been matched with a child.
For more information on Statutory Adoption Pay, visit the Directgov website available on this page under external links.
Income Support
You may be able to claim Income Support, if you're under the Pension Credit qualifying age and one of the following:
a single parent
incapable of work because of pregnancy;
pregnant and within 11 weeks of your due date (you can claim for this reason for up to 15 weeks after your baby is born.
In some cases you may be able to claim, if you're on paternity or parental leave.
You will not be able to claim Income Support if you:
work 16 hours or more a week and/or your partner works 24 hours or more a week; or
have savings over £16,000.
Income Support is a means tested benefit and will be affected by most income that you or your partner have coming in. It can help with mortgage payments.
For more information on Income Support, visit the Directgov website available on this page under external links.
Surestart Maternity Grant
The Surestart Maternity Grant is a one-off payment of £500 per child to help you with the cost of maternity and baby items. The grant is tax free and you won’t have to repay it.
From 11 April 2011, you can only get a Sure Start Maternity Grant if there are no other children under 16 years in your family (the rules are different for multiple births).
You may be able to get the grant if you or your partner get any of the following:
income Support
income Based Jobseekers Allowance
income-related Employment and Support Allowance
pension Credit and
child Tax Credit at a rate higher than the family element
working Tax Credit where a disability or severe disability element is included in the award
You can claim the grant from 11 weeks before the baby is due, up until 3 months after the baby is born.
You can also claim this grant if you have adopted a child but you must claim within 3 months of the adoption and the baby must be no more than 12 months old when you claim.
For more information on Surestart Maternity Grants, visit the Directgov website available on this page under external links.
Child Benefit
Child Benefit is a tax-free payment that you can claim if you are responsible for a child. The benefit is not means tested so if you qualify you can get it no matter what your income or savings.
You may be able to get Child Benefit even if your child doesn't live with you, as long as:
you pay towards their upkeep
what you pay is at least the same as the amount of Child Benefit
somebody else is not getting Child Benefit for them
Child Benefit will normally stop once the child is 16 years old unless they are still in full-time education or training (no higher than A-level). Child benefit can not be claimed once the child reaches the age of 20.
The amount of Child Benefit you can get depends on how many children you are responsible for and the current rates.
You get a higher rate of Child Benefit for your eldest or only child, and then a lower rate for any additional children.
When you start getting Child Benefit you'll get paid at the rates for the current year. From 6 April 2011 the rate of Child Benefit will be frozen for 3 years.
If you become responsible for a child, such as a grandchild or nephew, you will normally need to get Child Benefit before you can get other means tested benefits for them.
For more information on Child Benefit, visit the HM Revenue and Customs website, available on this page under external links.
Housing and Council Tax Benefit
Housing Benefit and Council Tax benefit are payments which can help you pay your rent and Council Tax if you are on a low income.
You may be entitled to Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit if you are:
responsible for rent and/or Council Tax; and
on a low income with savings of less than £16,000.
These are both means tested benefits and are claimed from the Local Authority.
Housing and Council Tax Benefit will not cover your mortgage but you may be able to receive help with this if you're on Pension Credit, Income Support, Income Based Jobseekers Allowance or Income Related Employment and Support Allowance.
If you have savings over £16,000 and under the qualifying age for Pension Credit, you will not be able to claim either of these benefits. There are special rules if you are over the Pension Credit qualifying age.
Some childcare costs can be taken into account when you claim Housing and Council Tax Benefit. You may also qualify for a banding reduction on your Council Tax if you have adaptations made to your home to help a disabled child.
For more information on Housing and Council Tax Benefits, visit the Directgov website, available on this page under external links.
Tax Credits
If you're responsible for at least one child or young person, you may qualify for Child Tax Credit. If you work, but your on a low income, you may qualify for Working Tax Credit.
You can often get both types of tax credits.
You may be entitled to Working Tax Credit if you work at least 16 hours a week and you are:
aged 16 or over and responsible for at least one child; or
aged 16 or over and disabled; or
aged 25 or over and usually work at least 30 hours a week
There are special rules if you are aged 50 or over and work at least 16 hours a week.
From April 2011, people aged 60 and over who work 16 hours a week will qualify for Working Tax Credit.
Child Tax Credit can be claimed if you have at least one dependant child:
up to age 16; or
up to age 20 and still in full time education or unwaged training of at least 12 hours per week and the course being studied is no higher than A levels.
Tax Credits are means tested and paid by HM Revenues and Customs but the means test is more generous than for most other benefits. This means you can still receive the basic amount even if you are on quite a high level of income.
You may also get help with certain childcare costs through Tax Credits. Tax Credits can only cover a maximum of 70% of the actual weekly childcare cost (for example 70% of £175 for one child and 80% of £300 for 2 or more children).
Mothers who are already getting Working Tax Credit can continue to receive it while:
they re getting Statutory Maternity Pay;
they are absent from work during an ordinary maternity leave period; or
during the first 13 weeks of an additional maternity leave period.
Mothers who were working at least 16 hours a week immediately before going on maternity leave may be able to claim Working Tax Credit while they are due Statutory Maternity Pay without having to wait until they return to work.
It may also be possible to get help with the costs of eligible childcare both for the new baby and for other children in the family before a mother returns to work.
For more information on Tax Credits, visit the HM Revenues and Customs website available on this page under external links.
Health Benefits
Most National Health Service (NHS) treatment is free but there can be charges for some things. You may be able to get help with NHS health costs if for example you're on a low income.
You and your partner may be entitled to Health Benefits if you:
are on a low income;
do not have savings over £16,000; and
need help with prescription costs, dental or optician fees, travelling to hospital or for surgical aids.
You may also qualify for other reasons such as your age, certain named health conditions, pregnancy or if you are responsible for a child under 12 months of age. The savings and low income rules do not apply in these cases. You may also qualify for help with NHS costs if you get working tax credit or child tax credit over a certain amount.
Disability Living Allowance
Disability Living Allowance is a tax-free benefit to help with extra costs you may have because you are ill or disabled. It is not based on your disability but on the extra help you need for personal care and getting around.
You may be able to get Disability Living Allowance if your child has an illness or disability which means that you need to give them extra care compared to a child of a similar age. For example if the child has care needs for some time during the day, or if the child can only walk a short distance before they feel severe discomfort.
DLA has 2 parts, one for personal care and one for mobility.
Children can only get Disability Living Allowance for help with personal care if they are 3 months old or over.
Children can only get Disability Living Allowance for help with getting around if they are:
3 years old or over for the higher rate; and
5 years old or over for the lower rate.
The rate of Disability Living Allowance that children get depends on the type of help or supervision they need and their age. If it is difficult to see how the child’s illnesses or disabilities affect them, they may need to be examined by a doctor.
For more information about Disability Living Allowance, visit the Directgov website available on this page under external links.
The benefits and tax credits that you may be entitled to will depend upon your circumstances.
If you are not sure about anything you should always seek advice. You can call us on our public helpline number 020 8583 5016.