Proposed benefit changes

[David Roth]

You may have heard that the government is planning to introduce new laws that will change people

[mama t]

hi when my boys came to live with us we had to have a social fund loan to buy the things the boys needed as ss would not help us with funding, if this was taken away i think there will be a lot of people struggleing more than they need to. i hope this helps in some small way.

love n light mama t

mama t
www.whyitsallaboutthem.com

[Muspark]

Hi David

I worry about the cuts myself. The child care issue is a big one for me and my husband. I suffer from a long term illness which means I am entitled to Long Term Incapasity Benefit. I have had all the medicals in the past and have met the threshold every time.

Because I have this illness I can use the WTC Childcare system to assist in paying some of the Nursery fees for J who we have an SGO for. My husband works and I am able to claim relief on some of the fees because I am unable to work. J has FAS and Cerebral Palsy and I don't get any other help from the LA apart from the basic SGO allowance. When I was assessed for his allowance no one was aware of his health issues being so serious as he was only 6/7 months old and to be honest I have not got the energy to start fighting them again at this time! It would be impossible for me to keep him in Nursery if I could not get some of the money in WTC. I would then get no respite at all. My own health would then suffer and the problems would escalate and the LA would then have to step in and do more I suppose or my husband would have to leave work to help look after J.

Is this the kind of thing you are thinking of? Luckily at Easter next year J will be entitled to the Government scheme for 3/4 year old and this should help (hoping they don't cut this too!).

[David Roth]

Thank you both for coming forward - I will pass your details on to Maryann who is helping to make the case for family and friends carers being protected from the benefits changes. There is no doubt that many carers could lose out in these benefits changes, unless we can persuade the government that they ought to be protected.

We would also like to hear from you if you were claiming benefits and raising your own children before taking in additional children as family and friends carers. You could find that you are affected by the proposed benefits cap, and we'd like to discuss that with you.

David R
FRG Policy Adviser

[David Roth]

Incidentally, Kate Green MP is putting forward an amendment to the Welfare Reform Bill today, which would exempt family and friends carers from the benefits cap. This uses the same wording as the exemption Family Rights Group has been suggesting, so I think it must come from us, though I haven't been able to confirm yet which of my colleagues has suggested this to Kate Green.

Her amendment reads:

Clause 93, page 62, line 24, at end insert

[Guest]

Hi
Unfortunately Kate Green's amendment wasn't agreed at Committee. However, Kate is proving a star and is putting down an amendment at report stage in early June proposing that family and friends carers who are raising children who can't live wtih their parents should be exempt from Job Seeker's Allowance conditionality requirements for a year after taking the children.

FRG has been working with Grandparents Plus on drawing up the amendments, supported by the Kinship Care Alliance.

We are wanting to gather examples that Kate and other sympathetic MPs can quote, or could get some media attention. If you are a family and friends carer raising a child/children aged 5 years or older and have been/are affected by changes requiring you to see work please do let us know - especially if you've also been told by the children's social worker that you need to stay at home/give up your job.
Many thanks

Cathy cashley@frg.org.uk

Many thanks





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