Student's eligibility for Housing Benefit

[abc123def]

All being well my dd will be going to Uni this September. She has various disabilties and receives LRC and LRM DLA which as it's an indefinite award should take her to 2015 at the earliest before being assessed for PIP. She'd never manage in halls so is planning to rent a flat and share with a friend who knows her needs and will help her. dd will be studying a full time course.

 

Am I right in thinking that she can apply for ESA while at Uni? I expect that her student finance will mean she won't actually receive any though? And am I right in thinking that she can be 'awarded' the benefit but receive nothing (due to her income from student finance) but the fact that she has been awarded/approved for ESA might then mean she can claim housing benefit to help with her rent? Hope that makes sense.

 

If I am wrong, I can't see how she will manage through Uni, as her student finance adds up to under £7000 for Sept - June and if paying 50% rent & 50% utility bills, would never survive.

[Nystagmite]

Students on DLA are entitled to HB and ESA. If she receives any amount of income based ESA, she'll get full HB.

 

Many students manage perfectly well on £7000 a year.

[id6052]

As Nystagmite has stated, if she is entitled to income related ESA, she would get HB up to the LHA level for a bedroom in a shared house.

 

If she is not entitled to income related ESA, then any HB would be means tested based upon her student income.

[scotgal68]

Plus she'll also have over £2000 in DLA payments so 9,000 for 9months isn't so bad if she doesn't qualify for HB or ESA x

[abc123def]

Thanks. The reason being I think she won't receive any ESA is because her student finance is higher than ESA would be but then it occured to me some of it might be disregarded?

 

It's running the car which she needs that is going to be a big cost, young people's insurance and now females is going up due to the law change not allowing companies to charge more for males due to their increased risk meaning female's insurance will be more this year. Petrol to Uni, and parking in the city each day, all not cheap. She can't travel on public transport due to her disabilities.

 

So am I right in thinking that even if she does not receive any ESA, she is still able to claim HB or is this dependent on her getting ESA? And if she doesn't receive ESA because her student income is too much, does this mean she is not eligible for HB?

 

I think I have found out what shared room rate is in the town she thinks she will need to live in.

[Guest Another Spartacus]

Will she get a bursary from uni.

 

On top of student finance my son also receives £1650 bursary from York St Johns

 

She would be better off getting taxis to and from uni, so much cheaper than petrol and car parking fees.

[Nystagmite]

Some of it will be disregarded. But they won't take things into account such as the cost of running a car and insurance.

[abc123def]

Will she get a bursary from uni.

 

On top of student finance my son also receives £1650 bursary from York St Johns

 

She would be better off getting taxis to and from uni, so much cheaper than petrol and car parking fees.

 

Yes, she'll get a bursary but that is included in her income figures quoted. So under £7000 for everything. The town she aims to live in is 30 miles away from the Uni so taxis just aren't possible, the Uni does have a main placement centre in the town though so when on placements she won't travel far. Rents in the Uni town are double the town she plans to live in, she's choosing that town for that reason. Despite rents being half as much as Uni town, the LHA is the same.

[assisted blonde]

Although the rent is less it may work out more with fuel, my uni was really helpful in changing days times for seminars and lectures so that I only had to travel in 3 times a week which really cut down on fuel, and let me do a prt time job to pay the mortgage.

[abc123def]

Unfortunately the friend who my dd is planning to flat share with won't be able to afford the rent in the Uni town, she herself will be on minimum wage when she leaves college this summer and my dd can't live alone so one of the main reasons for choosing the other town for the half price rent was to make it affordable for the friend, and there are placements available for the Uni course so when in placement my dd would not need to travel far. At least dd's car is very economical to run fuel/tax wise, so the cost will be insurance and parking on Uni days. She will get free parking on placement days due to her disability apparently while she is in receipt of DLA.

[Nystagmite]

Has your daughter applied for disabled students allowance?

[Guest Another Spartacus]

Can she not live on campus.

 

Surely that would cut down on travel costs travel etc and there would be people close by to look after her etc

 

My son stayed on campus in his first year and meals were included in his fees, not far to walk to uni bar either

[abc123def]

Nystagmus, as yet she hasn't got a Uni offer. Still waiting though all interviews were completed in January. She knows of others who have applied for the same course at the same Uni and they have all been unsuccessful so we are hoping that not hearing is good news. Really annoying that the Uni is taking so long to notify the successful applicants because I really want to get her DSA applied for, I aim to go with her to her assessment because I think she needs a weekly mentor session included which they might not realise she will need as she hides many of her issues.

 

AS, nope, she'd never manage on campus. She's on the autistic spectrum (as well as other disabilities) and social anything is hard, her friend knows her triggers and is the only other person other than me that can calm her.