The government are making cuts to a several key grants and other welfare entitlements for new parents. Including Health in Pregnancy Grant Sure Start Maternity Grant Baby element of Child Tax Credits Toddler element of Child Tax Credit Child Trust Fund For some this can be a worth up to £1735 over a pregnancy and the child's first year. These loses aren't being offset by other benefits so there loss of money will be felt. ... VIEW POST
Benefit Changes that will affect New Parents
Tax Credit Changes from April 2011
The emergency budget on 22 June set out several substantial changes to the tax credit system. Some are straightforward; others less so. Below, are those changes coming in from April 2011 under the following headings, explaining what each means and who might be affected: Increases in rates and thresholds Withdrawal rates Family element withdrawal rate The baby element Older workers Disregards ... VIEW POST
Proposed Changes to CSA
[box type="info"] There has been an update to the proposed changes to the CSA, basically they are going ahead. To find out more try the interactive post on Gingerbread. [/box] Letters are being sent out to single parents in Britain telling them about the changes. Talking about the csa is never a fun conversation piece and especially now it's causing a storm with new change proposals. Over at 2starsandaswirl there is a post about her campaign to stop the proposed changes. Please ... VIEW POST
Parenting Styles – Do you Sugar Coat or Tell Them As It Is?
Being a single parent uses up every ounce of your juggling skills and if you missed the juggling classes you soon get a crash course in the art of doing 6 things at once as well as more worrying than humanly possible for one person. One of the things that I really worried over, and still do, is my parenting style. Not the designer gear sort of style complete with matching accessories but more the 'how you parent' sort of style. When my second child came along there was the how to get down the ... VIEW POST
Child and Tax Credits
The HM Revenue & Customs quote that 9 out of 10 families with children are entitled to tax credits. The basic requirement is looking after at least one child; you may qualify for Child Tax Credit. If you work more than 16 hours and earn low wages then you may qualify for Tax Credits as well. How much you get depends on things like: ... VIEW POST
Child Maintenance
What is child maintenance? Child maintenance is regular, reliable financial support which helps towards a child's everyday living costs. The parent who does not have main day-to-day care of the child provides child maintenance to the parent who does. ... VIEW POST