Money

It’s really important that you know how much money you have and to plan for the essential things you have to pay for.  Organisations like Citizen’s Advice can help you with this and your personal adviser can also help you with things like budget planning, prioritising payments and opening a bank account.

We will support you to make contact with the Department for Work & Pensions (DWP) to make sure you are receiving the benefits available you’re entitled to.  Personal advisers are your personal link to the DWP, if you want or need one.  They can help you to set up your benefits and act on your behalf if you’re having problems with benefit claims. Your personal adviser can support you to do this 4 weeks before your 18^th birthday to avoid delays in you receiving your benefits.  They can also help you to get hold of your National Insurance number if you don’t have one or don’t remember it.  Don’t forget to give your consent for your personal adviser to act on your behalf with the DWP at your Leaving Care Interview. 

You can also check out whether there is any financial support available to you using entitledto

We understand that managing money when you first leave care isn’t easy and that sometimes things go wrong.  If this happens to you, please get in touch with your personal adviser as soon as you can and we will help you to sort things out. This can include providing additional financial support if you need it.  For example, if your first benefit payment is delayed or if you have a gap between your last benefit payment and your first payday. 

If you choose to live independently, with your own tenancy, we will support you financially in a number of ways.  We will give you a Home Establishment Grant.  This can help to pay for things such as your first year’s contents insurance, furniture and a TV. 

We’ll also help to pay for your actual move, so things like a removal van, furniture storage and boxes.  Sometimes we can help to top up your electricity or gas meters when you first move in and perhaps pay for your first month’s rent and deposit (if private renting is right for you).  Your personal adviser will help you with all of this, as well as looking into any grants, discounts or other sources of funding that may be available to you in your particular circumstances.  For example, on household bills such as water - you could be entitled to up to 90% reduction on your water bill with Severn Trent.  This scheme will also help you clear any debts you have with Severn Trent.

Talk to your personal adviser about this, go to Severn Trent Water or call 0800 917 6901 to find out more. 

If you are aged 16 or 17 and living in a supported or semi-independent home, we will provide you with a regular allowance to meet your needs.

You will have a Child Trust Fund or Junior ISA bank account from when you were in care. It is made up of money paid in by the government and sometimes Nottinghamshire County Council and/or your carers over the course of your time in care. You can either access it when you turn 18, leave it where it is, or take it out or transfer it to another bank account.   Your social worker or personal adviser will be able to tell you more about your account, including where the savings have come from, and help you to fill in the form when it arrives (this may be before or after you leave care).   

We will support you financially whilst you are at university or in higher education.  We will contribute £3465 per year towards your fees (you’ll need to use the student loan and maintenance loan to cover the rest).  We will pay for your accommodation all year round and provide you with a grant of £2000.  We will also help you to apply to any care leaver grants or bursaries that may be available to you at your university.

We will help you receive the financial support you are entitled to if you are at school or college.  This may depend on your age, type of course and other circumstances.

We will provide you with the following financial support for your course as long as it is in your Pathway Plan

• Registration and Examination fees
• Textbooks and software specified as essential
• Activities essential to meet course requirements
• Public transport between home and place of learning
• Transport to open days and interviews
• Specific clothing, including clothes for interview and essential equipment relating to the course

If you are 20 or over, we can also help you to access other sources of funding to support you into education and training.

If you are 18/19 and in full-time education you may be entitled to the 16 to 19 bursary fund.  This can be up to £1200 per year. Care leavers are a priority group for this funding. 16 to 19 Bursary Fund

If you are under 20 at the start of your college course, you may be entitled to help with childcare costs while you study under the Care to Learn scheme. You can get up to £160 a week.  Care to Learn

If you have a child or children under 5 you may get help with the cost of childcare. 

To find out more about childcare and what funding is available, see the childcare section on the Notts Help Yourself website. 

If you would like further information and advice and would like to speak to one of our advisers please telephone our advice line on 0300 500 80 80

If you are on a low income, you shouldn’t have to pay for things like prescriptions, dental care or glasses.  If you do need help to pay for healthcare items, please talk to your personal adviser.

We will always look at other ways of supporting you financially in ways that fit your individual circumstances, such as providing you with a phone card to call relatives that live outside of the UK. We’ll also help you access other sources of funding.  Please speak to your personal adviser if you need help with something important to you that you are struggling to pay for.