Lone parents
Increasing the employment rate of parents is a key element in combating child poverty and will be integral to the development of both the Work Programme and a new dynamic approach to benefits.
In the current benefit system, lone parents who are capable of work can currently claim Income Support solely as a lone parent until their youngest child reaches age seven. They will then ordinarily need to claim Jobseeker’s Allowance and seek work.
We believe it is reasonable to expect lone parents to take up work once their children are in full-time education. That is why, in our Budget statement on 22 June 2010, we announced that the Income Support entitlement conditions will change to require that lone parents with a youngest child over five will be required to claim Jobseeker’s Allowance if they are capable of work rather than Income Support. We expect to implement this change in early 2012. The Welfare Reform Bill which was introduced to Parliament on 16 February 2011 legislates for this change.
Lone parents who have other reasons for claiming Income Support will continue to be eligible to claim Income Support or another appropriate benefit such as Employment and Support Allowance.
Lone parents with children 12 and under can restrict their availability to work to fit with their child’s regular school hours.
Childcare
Free childcare is available for all children in England aged 3 and 4 for 15 hours a week. Different arrangements apply in Scotland and Wales.
Where childcare needs to be paid for, the childcare element in Working Tax Credit currently gives low to middle income parents help covering up to 80 per cent of the cost of formal childcare up to a maximum of £175 a week for one child and £300 a week for two or more children.
From April 2011, the childcare element of the Working Tax Credit will be available for up to 70 per cent of costs to the same weekly maximum amounts.
Work is ongoing to establish how the Government can contribute best to supporting childcare costs once Universal Credit is introduced. We would like to simplify this support, and extend it to those working fewer than 16 hours a week. We are working with key stakeholders, drawing on their expertise, to establish which options will best support parents to meet the cost of childcare.
