Hi I was hoping someone could help me clear this up. I have a client who is 19 years old. She is at college full time (A-Level equivelent course) and is estranged from her parents and receives no support from them. She is on one of our supported lodings schemes and is on Housing benefit. I was under the impression that 19 yr olds CAN claim Income support if at college full time (on a non-advanced course) and estranged from parents. However my client had been told at the Job Centre twice now that she is not eligible for this. She also saw a connexions advisor last week who told her she WAS eligible as she is estranged from her parents, which is in consensus with my LASA training manual. I am quite confused about this as she can not afford to live on her EMA alone.....Any advice/information would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Helen.

The most important thing to do at this stage is actually lodging an income support claim, so that your client at least obtains a decison refusing her benefit - otherwise, there is no legal basis for challenging the seemingly incorrect advice from the Jobcentre.

There are many threads on RN testifying to how difficult it can be actually getting hold of a claim form from Jobcentre Plus these days but if she continues to encounter problems, try to speak to the manager of the Office - they have no right to prevent your client completing a claim form and asking for a decision to be made.

i think it would be worth asking for a backdate of three months for your client, given that she was ill advised by DWP staff as to whether she could have applied or not

She would need to have had 19th birthday on or after 10/4/06 and started her course before she was 19 to get IS in relevant education after age 18.
Nothing's straight forward is it.

hi,

Thanks for all the advice. I have now been told that my client can apply due to her age, the fact that she is estranged form her parents and in full time education HOWEVER because her course is A-Level equivalent apparently is is not counted as 'relavent education.' I always thought relevant education was up to and including A-levels or equivalent?

Page 84 of this year's CPAG handbook defines AS and A levels (A2) as non advanced courses and, therefore, if the course is for 12 hours or more each week, it is relevant education.

Don't believe everything (anything?)the DWP tell you! Client will have to be estranged from her parents or anybody acting in place of the parents. DWP can sometimes claim that supported lodgings providers are acting in place of the parents, particularly if the youngster has converted from foster care with the same provider after many years. They are not and you may have to explain that supported lodgings is a commercial arrangement in which providers are paid for providing care that is not equivalent to the full range of support that a parent would provide. If the provider claims CB or CTC, which they possibly could, this would be evidence that they are in fact acting in place of the parents.