Housing Benefit Abolished

[chainsawjob]

Self employed here too, I moved to UC from HB because Covid and I wouldn't have been able to sustain myself otherwise, I am now classed as "gainfully self employed" meaning I don't need to be "looking for work"but also I am subject to the "minimum income floor" and so am entitled to £99.94 a month if I earn nothing to £1277-ish.
Luckily for me things have picked up since this happened last December, but I did miss out on the best past of £900 over the first 3 months.
I am glad I don't have to deal with Lambeth HB though, the people there were always nice and (trying to be) helpful but the system as a whole was not designed for self employed people so seriously messy.

My OH works full time but UC are calling him in for an interview this Saturday He's had to rearrange it twice because they kept asking him to come in on a weekday when he's at work, and then they offered the Saturday of Glastonbury

 

[NoXion]

Back in the 90s - if you were in a non-working Council House ie Father didn't work, Mother didn't work son/daughter didn't work - everyone got a flat rate of £600pm

No they didn't, Housing Benefit always existed on a scale, where are you getting this ridiculous flat-rate idea from? People on Facebook telling you? Because nobody ever lies or is misinformed on Facebook, right?

 

[Cado]

People on Facebook telling you?

You sound horrified, even mesmerized. Yes, something called "Facebook".

 

[Pickman's model]

You sound horrified, even mesmerized. Yes, something called "Facebook".

Yeh it's called face after face off the a team, you know, the one who tells all the lies

 

[NoXion]

You sound horrified, even mesmerized. Yes, something called "Facebook".

My brother in Christ, Facebook is not a reliable source of information on anything.

 

[marty21]

ITs a case of seeing through the Governments smoke and mirrors. The easiest way of doing this is FAcebook and Twitter ie asking those who are in that situation.

Should stress I'm in Scotland and take it for granted there will be differences.

IT was created in the early 80s to replace the Regional Councils Social Security systems

Back in the 90s - if you were in a non-working Council House ie Father didn't work, Mother didn't work son/daughter didn't work - everyone got a flat rate of £600pm

In the 2000s they capped the number of HB claims per household to 2

Now they've just scrapped it to new claimants.

Haven't a scooby what you're on about.

 

[BigTom]

£600 by any chance?

You can work on it as long as your not "officially" paid - ie work in a charity shop or paid cash in hand. It was always intended on being THE non-working allowance.

This is not true.

Housing Benefit

Housing Benefit or Local Housing Allowance (LHA) - rates, eligibility, claim form, calculator, appeals, 'Discretionary Housing Payment'.

www.gov.uk

"Housing Benefit can help you pay your rent if you’re unemployed, on a low income or claiming benefits. It’s being replaced by Universal Credit."

So yes, you can work legitimately and still claim HB (or now the housing component of UC), you just need to be on a low income.

 

[Cado]

YEs, but read 1992/1996 Social Security Legislation - its was always available for those (legally) on low or no income.

I'll see if I can dig it out - though it may take a while.

 

[Pickman's model]

YEs, but read 1992/1996 Social Security Legislation - its was always available for those (legally) on low or no income.

I'll see if I can dig it out - though it may take a while.

Take your time

 

[BigTom]

YEs, but read 1992/1996 Social Security Legislation - its was always available for those (legally) on low or no income.

I'll see if I can dig it out - though it may take a while.

But you said it was a non-working allowance in the post I replied to, and said you wouldn't be able to claim if you weren't working legit, only cash in hand or volunteering.

 

[Cado]

Yes, I did say that. IT was a non-working allowance for those with no income, don't know how those with low income wee treated (ie part time paid work). I just know that many people who volunteer to work in charity shops do so on HB or (now) UC.

Its a Human Right to be allowed to work - it isn't a Human Right to be paid for work though because who would pay you?

 

[Cado]

Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act 1992

www.legislation.gov.uk

I read that as you're are/where entitled to Housing Benefit if you are on a low or no income. It came into existence around 1984 for that very purpose

 

[wemakeyousoundb]

Yes, I did say that. IT was a non-working allowance for those with no income, don't know how those with low income wee treated (ie part time paid work). I just know that many people who volunteer to work in charity shops do so on HB or (now) UC.

Its a Human Right to be allowed to work - it isn't a Human Right to be paid for work though because who would pay you?

Are you sure you are not confusing Housing Benefit with Income Support (or its descendents)?

 

[Cado]

130Housing benefit​

(1)A person is entitled to housing benefit if—

(a)he is liable to make payments in respect of a dwelling in Great Britain which he occupies as his home;

(b)there is an appropriate maximum housing benefit in his case; and

(c)either—

(i)he has no income or his income does not exceed the applicable amount; or

(ii)his income exceeds that amount, but only by so much that there is an amount remaining if the deduction for which subsection (3)(b) below provides is made.

(2)In subsection (1) above “payments in respect of a dwelling” means such payments as may be prescribed, but the power to prescribe payments does not include power to prescribe mortgage payments or, in relation to Scotland, payments under heritable securities.

(3)Where a person is entitled to housing benefit, then—

(a)if he has no income or his income does not exceed the applicable amount, the amount of the housing benefit shall be the amount which is the appropriate maximum housing benefit in his case; and


Income support is simialr in that it was also available to those on low or no income however it came from the Job Centre (NAtional Gov) rather than the HB office (Local Gov)

 

[josef1878 2.0]

Let me update that for you. If you want to apply for help with housing costs you will have to claim UC if it's a new claim.

 

[Puddy_Tat]

I did it at Camden , the HB teams were divided into streets , most of the time I was dealing with streets D-F

I suppose, 30 years after the event, it probably won't hurt to say that's where i was for the second part of my time doing housing benefits work. I did streets L-M, although it was some time after i'd left that i got round to going and seeing the (now listed building) levita house which seemed to take up a lot of my time (think it was short life housing or some such at the time, so people were coming and going fairly rapidly.)

when were you there? (PM if you like) - i was there 1991 - 92, left (at least in part) due to the financial shitstorm and never quite being sure whether this would be the month where they couldn't pay us, or when the compulsory redundancies would start, and was aware that such things tended to be 'last in first out'...

and was a bit surprised to see that the office is a 4 star hotel now

 

[chainsawjob]

I used to work in HB overpayment collections. Not a fun job.

 

[BCBlues]

Another ex HB worker here for a council in the midlands, 1990 -2008. We split teams into areas of the borough then into road names. When I started we had small local area offices, you got to know the local people and it worked really well. Then we centralised and computerised and management were keen to mirror the DWP who we had began sharing info/systems with. I was glad to get out.

Despite this 18 years of experience, i have no idea what Cado is going on about.

 

[marty21]

I suppose, 30 years after the event, it probably won't hurt to say that's where i was for the second part of my time doing housing benefits work. I did streets L-M, although it was some time after i'd left that i got round to going and seeing the (now listed building) levita house which seemed to take up a lot of my time (think it was short life housing or some such at the time, so people were coming and going fairly rapidly.)

when were you there? (PM if you like) - i was there 1991 - 92, left (at least in part) due to the financial shitstorm and never quite being sure whether this would be the month where they couldn't pay us, or when the compulsory redundancies would start, and was aware that such things tended to be 'last in first out'...

and was a bit surprised to see that the office is a 4 star hotel now

90-94 , then a brief comeback in the summer of 95. I was heavily involved with the union for much of that period. (Have pm'd)

 

[Anju]

My OH works full time but UC are calling him in for an interview this Saturday He's had to rearrange it twice because they kept asking him to come in on a weekday when he's at work, and then they offered the Saturday of Glastonbury

We're going through this as well. My wife hasn't worked for about 3 months but only made a UC claim last week. Couldn't be bothered to go through the whole process again for a while as we seemed to end up paying back more than we got the last time we claimed a few years ago.

I'm self employed and working, just not earning enough to pay all our bills and rent yet they want me to come in for a meeting.

UC people told Mrs. A to apply for housing benefit, which now doesn't apply to us. They had no idea about the changes. More world beating than track and trace.