A-Z of Benefits

The following are a brief description of most common benefits available during 2011/12. The list is NOT an authorative statement of law and is intended as a guide only. Note that the Social Security System is complex and liable to alteration / change on a regular basis. This is particularly so during the current period of welfare reform.

Over the next few years we expect to see “Universal Credit” replace most of Income Support, Child / Working Tax Credits, Housing Benefit, income-based (not contribution-based) Jobseekers / Employment & Support Allowances and some of the Social Fund.

Disability Living Allowance, for most people, will start to be replaced with “Personal Independence Payment” from 2013 onwards.

NB:
1. Rates below may differ for certain client groups, eg people from abroad, people resident in care homes and hospital, etc. Seek further advice if this applies to you.
2. Although the relevant Form is listed that has to be completed to make a benefit claim, the Department for Work & Pensions prefer people to make a claim over the telephone. There is nothing in law, however, to stop anyone making a paper claim at a Department for Work & Pensions office. Claims can often also be made online.

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

Please link on the appropriate letter as above and a list of all benefits beginning with that letter will appear. Please note - where a letter is not underlined this indicates that no benefits are listed for that letter at this time.

A

Attendance Allowance
What is it? Social Security Benefit paid to people aged 65+ who have care needs.
How much is it? £49.30 (lower)
£73.60 (higher)
Claiming Form AA1

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B

Benefits
See Department for Work & Pensions website www.dwp.gov.uk or contact Wrexham County Borough Council Welfare Rights Unit on 01978 298254.

 

Bereavement Benefits
What is it? Social Security Benefits paid to the bereaved replaced Widows Benefit from 2001 onwards.
How much is it? Bereavement Payment: £2,000
Widowed Parents Allowance: £100.70 (basic)
Bereavement Allowance: £100.70 (full rate)
Claiming Form BB1 / Tel : 0845 6088601

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C

Carers Allowance (formerly know as Invalid Care Allowance)
What is it? Benefit for carers who look after someone in receipt of Attendance Allowance or Disability Living Allowance Middle or Higher rate care component.
How much is it? £55.55
Claiming DS700
Note: Claiming this benefit can sometimes affect the payments of the person you care for. Take advice before claiming. Also, a claim for this benefit can entitle people to, or increase their payment of, Income Support, Pension Credit, Housing/Council Tax Benefits.

 

Child Benefit
What is it? Payment for people with care of child(ren).
How much is it? £20.30 first child
£13.40 other children
Claiming Form CH2

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Child Tax Credit
What is it? Payment for families with children. Administered by Her Majesty's Revenue & Customs (HMRC) and replaces previous payments for children made with Income Support, Jobseekers Allowance, Working Families and Disabled Persons Tax Credits.
How much is it?

Amounts vary. Payments are described annually:

£2,300 = child element
£2,715 = disabled child element
£1,130 = severely disabled child element
£545 = family element
£545 = family element (baby addition)

Claiming TC600

 

Cold Weather Payments
What is it? Payment made to certain people when a defined period of 'cold weather' occurs.
How much is it? £25.00 per week
Claiming Department for Work & Pensions should automatically pay it. See Department for Work & Pensions website or contact Wrexham County Borough Council Welfare Rights Unit on 01978 298254.

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Community Care Grant
See Social Fund

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Council Tax Benefit
What is it? See Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit. Benefit paid to people liable to pay Council Tax and have a low income.
How much is it? depends - there is a means-tested 'sliding scale' calculation. Those in receipt of Income Support and income-based Jobseekers Allowance or Employment & Support Allowance or guarantee element of Pension Credit will usually receive full Council Tax Benefit.
Claiming Contact Wrexham Council Finance Department on 01978 292032 or, if claiming Income Support etc complete HCTB1 form in the claim pack.

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Crisis Loan
See Social Fund

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D

Disabillity Living Allowance (DLA)
What is it? Non means-tested benefit for people with a disability, aged under 65 with mobility and/or care needs.
How much is it?

Mobility
Low rate: £19.55
High rate: £51.40

Care
Low rate: £19.55
Middle rate: £49.30
High rate: £73.60
Claiming DLA1
Note: If you think you may qualify for this benefit, submit a claim. A successful claim will NOT affect any other income adversely. If already in receipt of some part of DLA and you believe you may be entitled to a higher amount DO NOT submit a further claim without first taking advice from the Welfare Rights Unit on 01978 298254.

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Disabled Persons Tax Credit
See Tax Credits

 

Disability Working Allowance
See Tax Credits

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E

Employment and Support Allowance
What is it?

Replaced Incapacity Benefit and Income Support paid to those incapable of work from October 2008.  Similar to Jobseekers Allowance, ESA has two components: a contributory and an income-related element.  Similar to the benefit it replaces (Incapacity Benefit), claimants will be medically assessed to determine what work-related activity/tasks they may or may not be capable of. This will result in a points ‘score’ which the claimant needs to reach in order to receive payment.
How much is it?

Assessment Phase payment (age over 25) £65.45
Work-related activity component £25.95
Support component £31.40
Claiming ESA pack from DWP. Tel: 0800 0556688

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F

Family Credit
See Tax Credits

 

Funeral Payments
See Social Fund

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G

Guardians Allowance
What is it? Benefit paid to people looking after children who are effectively orphans.
How much is it? £14.75 per qualifying child
Claiming Form BG1

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H

Health Benefits

Health care is generally provided free by the NHS.  There are, however, fixed charges for some items and services (dental treatment, sight tests, glasses, etc).  Some exemptions apply to those in receipt of certain benefits and in certain situations, eg residents of care homes, asylum seekers, hospital in-patients.  Prescriptions are generally free in Wales but only in limited cases in  England.

 

Housing Benefit
What is it? See Housing Benefit. Benefit paid to people liable to pay rent (NOT a mortgage) and have a low income.
How much is it? depends - there is a means-tested 'sliding scale' calculation. Those in receipt of Income Support and income-based Jobseekers Allowance or guarantee element of Pension Credit will usually receive full Housing Benefit.
Claiming Contact Wrexham Council Housing Benefit Department on 01978 292032 or, if claiming Income Support, etc, complete HTCB1 form in the claim pack.
Note: from April 2008, if renting from a private landlord, benefit will be known as Local Housing Allowance.

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I

Incapacity Benefit (formerly known as Invalidity Benefit and Sickness Benefit)
What is it? Benefit paid to people who are incapable of work and satisfy national insurance contribution conditions or become incapable of work in youth.
How much is it? There are various rates depending on your age, length of time deemed incapable of work and whether a claim includes your spouse.
Claiming N/A
Note: This benefit was abolished for new claimants in October 2008 and replaced by “Employment and Support Allowance”. Those still receiving Incapacity Benefit are now being migrated on to the new benefit.

 

Income Support
What is it? A means-tested benefit for people on low income. Depending on a claimant's given situation, the government will 'top-up' a persons level of income to a pre-set amount.
How much is it? depends, please contact the Welfare Rights Unit for details on 01978 298254.
Claiming A1 (under 60).Tel: 0800 0556688. For those over 60, see Pension Credits.

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Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit
What is it? Benefit paid to people who have become disabled due to accident / disease caused by employment.
How much is it? depends on extent of assessed disability (minimum = £30.06 maximum = £150.30 for over 18s)
Claiming Form BI95

 

Invalid Care Allowance
See Carers Allowance

 

Invalidity Benefit
See Incapacity Benefit

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J

Jobseekers Allowance (JSA) (formerly known as Unemployment Benefit)
What is it? Benefit for those who are unemployed (or work less than 16 hours a week but are seeking full-time work). There are two types of JSA: one relies on a National Insurance contribution record, and the other works on a means-tested system similar to Income Support.
How much is it?

£67.50 (for over 25s and satisfy National Insurance conditions).  For income-based JSA the amounts vary, similar to Income Support and Employment & Support Allowance.
Claiming Jobseekers pack from Jobcentres only.

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L

Local Housing Allowance (LHA)
What is it? New name for Housing Benefit for those renting in the private sector.
How much is it?

see Local Housing Allowance Rates
Claiming Contact Wrexham Council Housing Benefit Department on 01978 292033 or if claiming Income Support etc complete HTCB1 form in the claim pack.

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M

Maternity (and Paternity) Benefits
What is it? Various benefits / payments including Statutory Maternity Pay, Statutory Paternity Pay, Statutory Adoption Pay, Maternity Allowance and Tax Credits. Each are time limited, some are paid by an employer, some by Department for Work and Pensions.
How much is it? Various amounts. Check with the Welfare Rights Unit on 01978 298254.
Claiming Through employer, Department for Work & Pensions or HMRC. Check with the Welfare Rights Unit on 01978 298254 to see which applies to you.

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Mobility Allowance
See Disability Living Allowance

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N

National Insurance Contributions
Some benefits can only be paid if National Insurance contribution record is sufficient. These are mainly paid through the course of employment (employed or self-employed) although voluntary contributions can also be made.

 

National Insurance Credits
You can sometimes be ‘credited’ with National Insurance contributions, by paying them yourself or via certain benefit payments you receive (e.g. Carers Allowance). The reasons for when you may need to consider adding more credits to the National Insurance fund are many and varied – contact us or the Department for Work & Pensions for more information on this.

 

National Insurance Number (NI No)
It is now a statutory requirement that any benefit claimant must have a NI No. Until a number is allocated, benefit is not paid. This is particularly important for people coming from abroad who may be entitled to benefits (refugees etc).

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P

Paternity Benefits
See Maternity Benefits

 

Pension Credit
What is it? A means-tested benefit for people over 60. For people over 65, a ‘savings’ credit can also apply. It is a government reward to those who have been able to, or chosen to, plan for retirement by saving or paying into a pension scheme. Operates in a similar way to Income Support.
How much is it? depends - check with the Welfare Rights Unit on 01978 298254.
Claiming

PC1 or Tel: 0800 7317989
Note: If already in receipt of Income Support you should not need to make a new claim for Pension Credit; you should automatically be passported to it.

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R

Retirement Pension
See State Retirement Pension

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S

Severe Disablement Allowance
(this benefit was abolished for NEW claimants in April 2001)
What is it? Benefit for people incapable of work who did not satisfy the National Insurance Contribution record for Incapacity Benefit. Those in receipt of Severe Disablement Allowance prior to April 2001 continue to receive it if still deemed incapable of work.
How much is it? £62.95 (basic amount)
Claiming N/A

 

Sickness Benefit
See Employment and Support Allowance.

 

Social Fund
What is it? The regulated social fund covers maternity grants, funeral payments, cold weather and winter fuel payments. The discretionary social fund covers community care grants, budgeting loans and crisis loans. Various conditions have to be satisfied depending on what type of payment is claimed.
How much is it? varies
Claiming

Discretionary Fund
Community Care Grant SF300 *1
Budgeting Loan SF500 *1
Crisis Loan SF401 *2

Regulated Fund
Maternity Grant SF100
Funeral Payment SF200
Winter Fuel & Cold Weather Payment automatically paid

*1 Tel: 0800 6060208
*2 Tel: 0800 3890271

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State Retirement Pension
What is it? Payment for those of retirement age who have paid National Insurance contributions during periods of their working life.
How much is it? £102.15 (basic amount for Category A pension for a single person)
Claiming Form BR19 (usually sent to you about 4 months before reaching pension age).
Note : Pension ages are going up! From April 2010, some people will not be deemed to be of retirement age until they are 61 or more (women) or 66 or more (men). Contact us for more details

 

Statutory Maternity / Paternity Pay
see Maternity / Paternity Benefits

 

Statutory Sick Pay
What is it? Benefit paid to employees if incapable of work for up to 28 weeks. Not paid to the unemployed or self-employed. It is paid and administered by your employer.
How much is it? £81.60 per week (more may be paid as contractual sick pay if agreed with employer in contract of employment).
Claiming Inform your employer.

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T

Tax Credits
What is it?

Means-tested top-up payments administered by Her Majesties Revenues & Customs (HMRC) and replace Working Families Tax Credit, Disabled Persons Tax Credit, certain elements of Income Support and income-based Jobseekers Allowance and Family Credits.

The two main elements are:

1. Child Tax Credit (CTC)
2. Working Tax Credit (WTC)

1. for low / middle-income families, working or not, who have responsibility for at least one child.

2. an income-based payment for working adults.
How much is it? variable, depending on income. Payments are annualised (as opposed to all other benefits which are calculated on a daily or weekly basis). You can receive both CTC and WTC at the same time
Claiming TC600

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U

Unemployment Benefit
See Jobseekers Allowance

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W

Widows Payments / Benefits
See Bereavement Benefits

 

Winter Fuel Payments
See Social Fund

 

Working Families Tax Credit
See Tax Credits

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Other Payments
When moving off benefits and into work, the Government may pay you certain extra amounts, depending on the benefit you have been claiming and for how long. These payments include Mortgage Interest run-on, extended payment of housing and council tax benefit, job grant, Adviser Discretion Fund, return-to work credit and in-work credit. Ask us for more details of these payments if you are considering going into work.

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