Thinking of turning hobby into income

[Sparks_]

Has anyone any ideas/hints/ advice please, I am on ESA(support group) and DLA, been on these for 2 years now and am slowly going stir crazy as I was used to working full time.

Can anyone see any problems for me in setting up an online shop, using etsy, to sell my knitted baby cloths? I do the knitting to give myself something to do and maybe make some spending money.

How would this affect my benefits if I went ahead with it?

[Nystagmite]

Have you looked into permitted work? You can work up o 16 ours a week and earn a certain amount for a limited period.

[Sparks_]

Have you looked into permitted work? You can work up o 16 ours a week and earn a certain amount for a limited period.

 

No not heard of this, how long is the limited period? I am still looking at many months before I will be fit to even think about going back to work, have to have another very large/serious operation before i can start work again

[Sparks_]

Working and claiming ESA

Usually your ESA isn’t affected if you:

 

do volunteer work

work and earn up to £20 a week

work and earn up to £99.50 a week doing work supervised by someone from a local council or voluntary organisation

work less than 16 hours a week, earn up to £99.50 a week for up to 52 weeks

 

This?

[Nystagmite]

Yup, that!

[Conniff]

Besides any complications or not with your benefits, take a look around on ebay to get an idea of the prices the sort of clothes you are hoping to sell are making and check other websites.

 

You must time yourself from casting on the first stitch to casting off the last one when you are finished and multiply those hours by at least £6 so you know the labour costs of knitting each one, then add in the cost of the wool and finally add at least 20% markup to give you an idea of how much you must charge to make a profit.

 

You will need a decent website if you are hoping for it to be taken seriously, and, of course, someone to host that websitet. Deduct those fees from the markup to see if they will cover these costs and still give you a profit, if not then the markup will have to be increased.

 

Don't fool yourself into thinking that you can just knit a pair of mittens and sell them for the price of the wool plus a few quid will be enough, it won't. You must draw up a business plan.

[Sparks_]

Besides any complications or not with your benefits, take a look around on ebay to get an idea of the prices the sort of clothes you are hoping to sell are making and check other websites.

 

You must time yourself from casting on the first stitch to casting off the last one when you are finished and multiply those hours by at least £6 so you know the labour costs of knitting each one, then add in the cost of the wool and finally add at least 20% markup to give you an idea of how much you must charge to make a profit.

 

You will need a decent website if you are hoping for it to be taken seriously, and, of course, someone to host that websitet. Deduct those fees from the markup to see if they will cover these costs and still give you a profit, if not then the markup will have to be increased.

 

Don't fool yourself into thinking that you can just knit a pair of mittens and sell them for the price of the wool plus a few quid will be enough, it won't. You must draw up a business plan.

 

I am thinking of using the website etsy, it hosts peoples mini shops to sell craft work

[sadone]

Also be aware that ATOS may use you're ability to do this new work as signs you should nolonger be in the support group, or hell knowing them claiming any ESA whatsoever. So imo be careful.

[Conniff]

I don't know etsy but they won't be doing it free of charge.

 

As sadone says, be careful, the benefits office will get huge enjoyment from trapping you and stopping your benefits.

[Sparks_]

I don't know etsy but they won't be doing it free of charge.

 

As sadone says, be careful, the benefits office will get huge enjoyment from trapping you and stopping your benefits.

 

well they know i can sit for 20 mins at a time, enough time for my knitting Plus I buy wool online as getting to the shops isnt that easy, can send my daughter to the postoffice to send out parcels

[sadone]

Be prepared that you might have to explain that over and over again to the DWP/AtTOS after they've failed you at a medical. Remember most of the time they're just desperately seeking ways to cut claimants support and will go to any lengths to do so.

[Sparks_]

well they have to stick to rules or they should I get automatic support group due to 2 indicators and they havnt changed and wont for sometime!

[joeblogs]

well they have to stick to rules or they should I get automatic support group due to 2 indicators and they havnt changed and wont for sometime!

 

Well you have been warned, so if you want to go for it, best of luck to you.

[sadone]

well they have to stick to rules or they should

 

Well imo they often don't and so be prepared to be failed at some point and have to wait nearly a year on reduced money for any tribunal to come to pass.

 

So good luck. I hope you're one of the lucky ones.

[Guest]

yes good luck if you go with it .........and ditto what sadone said....I waited nearly 18 months on reduced benefit courtesy of atos blatantly ignoring evidence and the dwp also. I won in the end but it damn nearly finished me.

[Lilly_Monroe]

They won't just let you knit mittens without logging every minute every pound spent and coming in.

This might well be a hobby, but they will want to see proof of every little detail.

 

There are NO such things as hobbies when it comes to the DWP it has ALL got to be accounted for.

[estellyn]

Well if you're earning less than £20 a week, the only thing that needs to be logged is records showing that profits were less than £20 a week - there is no hours limit for this. But any more than £20 a week and the hours limit does apply.

[Lilly_Monroe]

Well if you're earning less than £20 a week, the only thing that needs to be logged is records showing that profits were less than £20 a week - there is no hours limit for this. But any more than £20 a week and the hours limit does apply.

 

Maybe I was told different then as I am in the WRAG group, but I was told it all had to be kept recorded.

And anyway, I would want to do this - for proof - just in case.

[estellyn]

Maybe I was told different then as I am in the WRAG group, but I was told it all had to be kept recorded.

And anyway, I would want to do this - for proof - just in case.

 

No same for WRAG - if you never earn more than £20 a week, there is no limit to the number of hours you can do it. This actually provides a loophole to claim both ESA and WTC, but is not widely known about.

[Lilly_Monroe]

No same for WRAG - if you never earn more than £20 a week, there is no limit to the number of hours you can do it. This actually provides a loophole to claim both ESA and WTC, but is not widely known about.

 

Estellyn is there a place I can read more about that please.

I am worried at the moment as I cannot afford to lose my ESA but I suffer from depression so do some work would help me.

Not just because of the extra money, I live alone and have no other money coming in.

If able to claim WTC would I lose the help I get with my council tax and mortgage as well as my ESA.

Sorry I am not very up on all of this - and I am really afraid to rock the boat, in case I get sanctioned.

[Nystagmite]

If able to claim WTC would I lose the help I get with my council tax and mortgage as well as my ESA.

 

It depends how much you earn. Although you'd have to an underlying entitlement to ESA to claim help with your mortgage. But council tax benefit is based on income and not being on certain benefits.

[antone]

Estellyn is there a place I can read more about that please.

I am worried at the moment as I cannot afford to lose my ESA but I suffer from depression so do some work would help me.

Not just because of the extra money, I live alone and have no other money coming in.

If able to claim WTC would I lose the help I get with my council tax and mortgage as well as my ESA.

Sorry I am not very up on all of this - and I am really afraid to rock the boat, in case I get sanctioned.

 

Here's some information on Permitted Work. As far as the medical issue goes, you'd only have a problem if the work involved doing something that you said you weren't capable of. So, for example, if you said you can't walk more than 50m, best not get work as a postie.

 

Remember that it is in everyone's best interests (claimant and DWP) for folks to work if they can, especially if they hope at some point to come off ESA. It helps keep people focused on maintaining their skills and "work readiness".

 

Edit - Sorry, just noticed you were asking specifically about the ESA/WTC issue. My bad. I'll leave this post in case it helps anyone else.

[estellyn]

Estellyn is there a place I can read more about that please.

I am worried at the moment as I cannot afford to lose my ESA but I suffer from depression so do some work would help me.

Not just because of the extra money, I live alone and have no other money coming in.

If able to claim WTC would I lose the help I get with my council tax and mortgage as well as my ESA.

Sorry I am not very up on all of this - and I am really afraid to rock the boat, in case I get sanctioned.

 

To claim WTC you have to be working 16 hours a week if you have a disability. At the moment there are no minimum income rules, though these are being brought in under UC which will close the loophole (and more). If you're on income based ESA then any earnings plus WTC would effect your entitlement to help with mortgage, and council tax benefit would need to be reassessed based on the new income. It's not something I would advise doing if you're on income based ESA or getting mortgage help - it could well mess things up for you and you won't end up better off by claiming WTC. It does work best in situations with a working partner with low income and a cont based ESA award. But in the circumstances of claiming WTC you would need to keep track of the hours you work as they may need to be proved for WTC purposes.

 

The rules that make it possible are the fact that there are no hours restriction on ESA when earning less than £20 a week, and there is a clause in WTC saying that permitted work counts towards the hours requirement for WTC - also the fact that there is no minimum income requirement.

 

Your best option, Lily is to just take advantage of the earning less than £20 a week permitted work rule. The earnings under permitted work don't get taken into account when calculating your ESA, mortgage help or CTB - even if you later move up to the higher earnings limit - the earnings don't count for a year as long as (at the higher earnings limit) you work less than 16 hours a week.

 

If you decide to do permitted work, you can get a form from the DWP to complete. You also need to ensure than any work you do is not contrary to the descriptors you scored points on in your WCA.

[jabba jones]

You also need to ensure than any work you do is not contrary to the descriptors you scored points on in your WCA.

 

Or contradict what you put on your DLA claim form / last review.

[estellyn]

Or contradict what you put on your DLA claim form / last review.

 

I was just thinking of ESA, but good point, that too.