Taking the receipt persistence perspective implies that every member of a family should be represented in the data set. The distinction between recipient and claimant is complicated by the fact that a person may become a claimant or stop being a claimant separately from whether or not the person’s family is in receipt. For example, consider a lone mother who is a benefit claimant (and in receipt) in year t. At t+l, she re-partners with a man and it is he who is now the benefit claimant (and family head).