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| Widowed parents allowance – a vital lifeline in danger of being cut | Widowed parents allowance – a vital lifeline in danger of being cut |
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| Georgia Elms suffered a powerful range of emotions when her husband Jon died suddenly from meningitis aged just 38 – the next day she discovered she was pregnant with their second child. | Georgia Elms suffered a powerful range of emotions when her husband Jon died suddenly from meningitis aged just 38 – the next day she discovered she was pregnant with their second child. |
| "He went to bed feeling unwell in July 2006, and woke in the middle of the night a lot worse, so I rang for an ambulance – but by morning he'd died in hospital," says Georgia, 43, from Market Harborough, Leicestershire. "It was awful. It was two weeks after our daughter Daisy's first birthday, and the day after his death I found out I was pregnant with Scarlett." | "He went to bed feeling unwell in July 2006, and woke in the middle of the night a lot worse, so I rang for an ambulance – but by morning he'd died in hospital," says Georgia, 43, from Market Harborough, Leicestershire. "It was awful. It was two weeks after our daughter Daisy's first birthday, and the day after his death I found out I was pregnant with Scarlett." |
| She was left facing the practical and financial difficulties of raising a young family alone. They had life insurance for Jon, and the pay-out covered their mortgage, but the loss of his salary as a marketing consultant placed enormous pressure on the family finances. | She was left facing the practical and financial difficulties of raising a young family alone. They had life insurance for Jon, and the pay-out covered their mortgage, but the loss of his salary as a marketing consultant placed enormous pressure on the family finances. |
| "We didn't get death-in-service as he was self-employed, and the impact on ongoing living costs and childcare were huge," says Georgia, chair of charity Widowed and Young. | "We didn't get death-in-service as he was self-employed, and the impact on ongoing living costs and childcare were huge," says Georgia, chair of charity Widowed and Young. |
| Fortunately, a payment from the government called the widowed parent's allowance helped provide financial support. Georgia is eligible for £469 a month until her youngest daughter leaves full-time education. "This has been put towards childcare and basic living costs, while I work part-time in a café – my old job wouldn't have fitted around the children, so I haven't gone back to that," she says. However, this lifeline might not be available for widowed parents in future, as the government is proposing a radical cut back from 2016. | Fortunately, a payment from the government called the widowed parent's allowance helped provide financial support. Georgia is eligible for £469 a month until her youngest daughter leaves full-time education. "This has been put towards childcare and basic living costs, while I work part-time in a café – my old job wouldn't have fitted around the children, so I haven't gone back to that," she says. However, this lifeline might not be available for widowed parents in future, as the government is proposing a radical cut back from 2016. |
| At present, if you're a parent whose husband, wife or civil partner has died and you have at least one child for whom you receive child benefit, you may be able to get this allowance, based on the national insurance contributions (NICs) of the deceased person. | At present, if you're a parent whose husband, wife or civil partner has died and you have at least one child for whom you receive child benefit, you may be able to get this allowance, based on the national insurance contributions (NICs) of the deceased person. |
| Widows and widowers with children can claim up to £108.30 a week, and on top of this they get a one-off tax-free lump sum of £2,000, called a bereavement payment. The weekly payouts, which are taxable, continue until the youngest child finishes full-time education at either 16 or 19, or until a parent remarries, reaches state pension age, or they stop receiving child benefit. | Widows and widowers with children can claim up to £108.30 a week, and on top of this they get a one-off tax-free lump sum of £2,000, called a bereavement payment. The weekly payouts, which are taxable, continue until the youngest child finishes full-time education at either 16 or 19, or until a parent remarries, reaches state pension age, or they stop receiving child benefit. |
| The proposed changes, outlined in the pensions bill currently going through parliament, will limit this benefit to a maximum of £400 a month paid out for just 12 months, with a lump sum of £5,000 following bereavement. The 43,500 families already in receipt of the allowance will be unaffected by the reforms, but charities say in future 75% of widowed parents will be worse off. | The proposed changes, outlined in the pensions bill currently going through parliament, will limit this benefit to a maximum of £400 a month paid out for just 12 months, with a lump sum of £5,000 following bereavement. The 43,500 families already in receipt of the allowance will be unaffected by the reforms, but charities say in future 75% of widowed parents will be worse off. |
| Under the new system both working and unemployed single parents will be better off in the first year after the death of a partner, but opponents of the change warn that the larger lump sum will be swallowed up by increased funeral costs and other immediate demands. They also point out that parents will miss out on up to 18 years' of monthly payments. | Under the new system both working and unemployed single parents will be better off in the first year after the death of a partner, but opponents of the change warn that the larger lump sum will be swallowed up by increased funeral costs and other immediate demands. They also point out that parents will miss out on up to 18 years' of monthly payments. |
| Di Stubbs, spokesman for the Childhood Bereavement Network, says the changes could have a serious impact on children's mental health and wellbeing. ''Young children who have suffered the devastating loss of their mum or dad are the wrong target for government cuts," she says. "The majority of the surviving parents work and have paid into the system for many years before losing their partners. Often children will only start to be affected by a death two, or even three, years after the event." | Di Stubbs, spokesman for the Childhood Bereavement Network, says the changes could have a serious impact on children's mental health and wellbeing. ''Young children who have suffered the devastating loss of their mum or dad are the wrong target for government cuts," she says. "The majority of the surviving parents work and have paid into the system for many years before losing their partners. Often children will only start to be affected by a death two, or even three, years after the event." |
| Debbie Kerslake, chief executive of Cruse Bereavement Care, adds: "Bereaved children need support, consistency and care. The financial pressures caused by these changes will mean some parents having to work longer hours and move home, uprooting a child at the worst possible time." | Debbie Kerslake, chief executive of Cruse Bereavement Care, adds: "Bereaved children need support, consistency and care. The financial pressures caused by these changes will mean some parents having to work longer hours and move home, uprooting a child at the worst possible time." |
| Yet the government says the system needs to be "simplified" and that the benefit should be short term to support those without employment in making the return to work. | Yet the government says the system needs to be "simplified" and that the benefit should be short term to support those without employment in making the return to work. |
| A DWP spokesperson says: "Bereavement benefits are an important part of our welfare protection providing support for families through this very difficult time. But the current system is overly complex and unchanged since the 1940s. | A DWP spokesperson says: "Bereavement benefits are an important part of our welfare protection providing support for families through this very difficult time. But the current system is overly complex and unchanged since the 1940s. |
| "The new benefit, developed following wide research and work with charities and stakeholders, will see more people eligible, and ensure money is received when families need it most through acute short-term financial pressures. The payments will have no effect on entitlement to other benefits, as they currently do, with ongoing support provided through the wider welfare state." | "The new benefit, developed following wide research and work with charities and stakeholders, will see more people eligible, and ensure money is received when families need it most through acute short-term financial pressures. The payments will have no effect on entitlement to other benefits, as they currently do, with ongoing support provided through the wider welfare state." |
| A study by the DWP reveals that in 2016 the government expects to pay £590m a year to bereaved couples and families. However, because of the changes, payouts would drop to £530m four years later. | A study by the DWP reveals that in 2016 the government expects to pay £590m a year to bereaved couples and families. However, because of the changes, payouts would drop to £530m four years later. |
| Robin Williamson, technical director of the Low Incomes Tax Reform Group, says the changes "need to allow for more time following death for the bereaved with young children". He adds that the system also doesn't reflect today's society, with unmarried parents not entitled to any bereavement benefit. | Robin Williamson, technical director of the Low Incomes Tax Reform Group, says the changes "need to allow for more time following death for the bereaved with young children". He adds that the system also doesn't reflect today's society, with unmarried parents not entitled to any bereavement benefit. |
| The changes will have greatest impact on those with young children, who are currently able to claim the benefit for up to 19 years. A family able to claim for 10 years, for example, would be up to £31,000 worse off, with the average loss for working parents at £23,500, or £14,900 for unemployed parents, according to calculations from the Childhood Bereavement Network. | The changes will have greatest impact on those with young children, who are currently able to claim the benefit for up to 19 years. A family able to claim for 10 years, for example, would be up to £31,000 worse off, with the average loss for working parents at £23,500, or £14,900 for unemployed parents, according to calculations from the Childhood Bereavement Network. |
| It's vital for families to put in place financial safeguards, whatever their circumstances, to avoid relying on the government, stresses Philippa Gee, from Philippa Gee Wealth Management: "Like writing a will, you might prefer to put off making arrangements for the more serious occasions that life might throw at you, but if you have people who are financially dependent on you and no cover in place, you need to rethink your strategy. If there is no life cover, then those you leave behind could end up with very serious financial problems indeed and no one wants that to be their legacy." | It's vital for families to put in place financial safeguards, whatever their circumstances, to avoid relying on the government, stresses Philippa Gee, from Philippa Gee Wealth Management: "Like writing a will, you might prefer to put off making arrangements for the more serious occasions that life might throw at you, but if you have people who are financially dependent on you and no cover in place, you need to rethink your strategy. If there is no life cover, then those you leave behind could end up with very serious financial problems indeed and no one wants that to be their legacy." |
| HOW TO CLAIM | HOW TO CLAIM |
| You can get a bereavement benefits claim form (BB1) from your nearest Jobcentre Plus office, or download it from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) website, or you can make a claim over the phone by contacting the Bereavement Service on 0845 608 8601. | You can get a bereavement benefits claim form (BB1) from your nearest Jobcentre Plus office, or download it from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) website, or you can make a claim over the phone by contacting the Bereavement Service on 0845 608 8601. |
| You can't get any of the bereavement benefits if you were divorced from your husband or wife when they died, or you and your civil partner had dissolved your civil partnership. You are also unable to claim bereavement benefits if you remarry, or register another civil partnership. If you are getting a bereavement benefit when you remarry or register another civil partnership, it will stop. Even if you do not remarry or register another civil partnership, you cannot get bereavement benefits if you live with another partner. | You can't get any of the bereavement benefits if you were divorced from your husband or wife when they died, or you and your civil partner had dissolved your civil partnership. You are also unable to claim bereavement benefits if you remarry, or register another civil partnership. If you are getting a bereavement benefit when you remarry or register another civil partnership, it will stop. Even if you do not remarry or register another civil partnership, you cannot get bereavement benefits if you live with another partner. |
| You should claim widowed parent's allowance within three months of the date of death. If you claim later than this, your benefit can only be backdated for this period. | You should claim widowed parent's allowance within three months of the date of death. If you claim later than this, your benefit can only be backdated for this period. |
| If you are not sure whether you can claim any bereavement benefits, you should consult an experienced adviser, for example, at a Citizens Advice Bureau. | If you are not sure whether you can claim any bereavement benefits, you should consult an experienced adviser, for example, at a Citizens Advice Bureau. |