To ask a universal credit question?

(70 Posts)
BarcelonaBabes Sun 03-Feb-13 15:57:21

To get benefits when it changes, if you are part of a couple, will you both have to be working? I'm confused

JennyPiccolo Mon 04-Feb-13 18:36:06

I think it will be piloted in north England in April, then rolled out to the rest of the country after that. Willing to be corrected though.

Council tax benefit cuts will not be passed on in Scotland.

HappyMummyOfOne Mon 04-Feb-13 18:27:52

The logic behind paying childcare in the early years is that hopefully the parent will gain pay rises, promotions etc so as not to need benefits in future. They will be paying tax plus the childcare worker paying tax. Whereas a SAHP claiming benefits wont be paying anything in, no childcare so no tax that way and no recent work experience so potentially will be on benefits far longer.

Viviennemary Mon 04-Feb-13 15:24:26

My point wasn't that. My point is that I am just a bit fed up of the scaremongering going on. People forced out to work in chain gangs sort of thing. It's just such a load of nonsense. Sorry but it is.

starmaker7 Mon 04-Feb-13 13:19:18

Makinganotherlist ,I've often wondered about that too

MakingAnotherList Sun 03-Feb-13 20:27:51

It's the child care costs that confuse me. For families with children they will be paying out much more on child care than they would for a SAHM/D. I don't understand the logic behind making a parent take a job and then paying 70% of the child care.

Sarahplane Sun 03-Feb-13 20:13:00

oops cross post optimist.

The whole thing utterly baffles me.

Mainly because I still fail to see where all these jobs are going to come from.

Do they help with childcare costs?

It seems like they are basically punishing anyone who cannot earn atleast 20k a year. I really cannot see whats the point. If we arent "allowed" to do part time work there will be even less jobs to go round.

Sarahplane Sun 03-Feb-13 20:10:26

the conditionality threshold is not that high an income not to need tax credits though if you have more than one child or childcare costs. If you have to pay nursery fees of say £800 a month per child then you'd be on nmw you wouldn't be able to afford to work without help with childcare.

OptimisticPessimist Sun 03-Feb-13 20:05:07

£433 gross a week is £22.5k. You can still get tax credits on that amount, especially if you have 2 or more children and/or pay for childcare. Whether UC will pay above that amount I don't know; from a link on the other page it seems that it will be reduced at 65p per £1 earned, and I'm pretty sure tax credits reduce at 41p per £1 so it may well be that those that are more than a little above the conditionality amount aren't actually entitled to all that much.

Viviennes point MrCrumpswife, is that they get benefits, therefore its not unpaid work. Yada yada.

<rolls eyes>

Mrcrumpswife Sun 03-Feb-13 19:52:24

I don't know anything about unpaid work that jobseekers are required to do. I don't think you should worry about that yet

Its well documented as part of the conditionality requirements on the info above in the links and all other DWP info.

calandarbear Sun 03-Feb-13 19:52:19

The threshold is set ridiculously high. If we earned that much we wouldn't claim.
I'm afraid that might be the point.

ItsAllGoingToBeFine Sun 03-Feb-13 19:49:44

Hang on, the conditionality threshold seems to he set quite high - IF you earn over the threshold does that mean you won't be disappointed entitled to anything anyway?

Sarahplane Sun 03-Feb-13 19:44:42

although this may all be a bit academic anyway because I'll probably be made redundant when universal credit has been phased in (I work in housing benefit).

Viviennemary Sun 03-Feb-13 19:41:09

Vision123. I don't know anything about unpaid work that jobseekers are required to do. I don't think you should worry about that yet.

HopAndSkip Sun 03-Feb-13 19:35:46

Oh that's good at least! I had visions of going back to colleges for 2 hour "lesson style" meetings each week or something!!

OptimisticPessimist Sun 03-Feb-13 19:33:55

They're currently every 6 months and last about 10-15 minutes. I take DD with me and just take something for her to play with while I'm talking to the advisor.

HopAndSkip Sun 03-Feb-13 19:32:08

Does anyone know how often/long the back to work meetings are? I want to wait until DD is 18 months before putting her in nursery to go back to work, but if it's meetings every week I'd have to put her in nursery anyway? hmm

Sarahplane Sun 03-Feb-13 19:27:06

I work 24 hours a week but earn just about the equivalent of nmw for 35 hours (although if nmw goes up im screwed because I'm at work the top of my grade at work and we're on a pay freeze). my dh is on a zero hours contract but hours vary from about 16 hours to 70 hours a week depending on what events are on. on a yearly basis he's earning more than nmw x 35 as well. He's the main earner now but because of the type of work he does the hours vary a lot but it balances out and he loves his job so no plans to change it and he would earn less annually in a job with a steady 35 hours at nmw. if they are now working on real time month to month earnings instead of yearly figures will he be subject to conditions during the odd quiet months? if so who are we safer putting down as the main carer? I can't increase my hours because we can't afford the extra nursery fees.

Sneezingwakesthebaby Sun 03-Feb-13 19:08:57

Thanks optimistic! I wonder how often they will be on UC. More often I can imagine.

vision123 Sun 03-Feb-13 18:57:46

There will haVE TO BE lot of work in job centres going to keep up with all the extra work!!!

OptimisticPessimist Sun 03-Feb-13 18:52:28

If it's anything like the current ones (I'm a LP on income support, and that's already a requirement) they're every six months, I go to the job centre and discuss my situation with my advisor and what I'm doing to prepare myself for work (so in my case I'm doing an OU degree and intend to learn to drive) and then she lets me know of any big employment opportunities (say a big store opening soon or similar) gives me a list of the back to work incentives and that's about it.

lougle Sun 03-Feb-13 18:52:06

x posted with a few of you!

lougle Sun 03-Feb-13 18:50:09

I don't think that's what barcelona was asking, was it? I think you're asking (but I might be wrong!) if a couple will have to be working to get benefits.

The answer to that question (but perhaps not the question you were asking confused) is 'no'.

Universal Credit will be payable to all working age claimants. However, the ceiling for UC 'conditionality' is possibly going to be 35 hours at NMW for both earners if you have no children. If you have children, the age of the children will affect the number of hours one of you has to work, or seek to work. If one of you is disabled, that too will have an effect.

However, the ceiling is an either or ceiling. If one of you can get work that pays enough to lift you above the equivalent value of the 'conditionality', then the other will no longer be subject to it.


2x£6.19x35=£433.30 per week.

But, if one of you earns £12.38 per hour, then you would only need one of you to work, because


If one of you were very lucky to be earning a wage of £30 per hour, then you would need only one of you to work 15 hours per week.

Sneezingwakesthebaby Sun 03-Feb-13 18:48:13

Does anyone have any ideas what the back to work meetings between ages 1-4 will entail?

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