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If you leave care aged 16 or 17 you will not yet be entitled to claim benefits like income support or jobseekers’ allowance, but you will get at least the same amount of money from a leaving care maintenance allowance and your accommodation will be paid for.
Your local authority will have a financial policy which says clearly what else your local authority might be able to do to support you financially. You should be able to find out easily what money you could get, what conditions are attached to it and how payments will be made to you.
The policy should say what money you will receive for:
- Education, training and employment, for example travel costs, interview and work related expenses and other costs associated with improving your employability
- Education materials and equipment
- Support for further and higher education
- Counselling or therapeutic needs
- Social activities, hobbies and outings
- Costs associated with special needs, for example disabilities, pregnancy and parenthood
- Costs associated with cultural or religious needs
- Child care costs
- Costs associated with getting hold of important documents like passport, birth certificate or driving licence
- Housing deposits or rent in advance if you are 18
- Household insurance
- Costs to help you learn new lifeskills like driving
- Setting up home allowances to help you buy what you need to live independently.
The policy should also say what support will be given to particular groups of care leavers like lone parents or disabled young people, or those in hospital or custody.
Your pathway plan should say what money you will get, how it will be paid to you and any conditions attached to it, like attending college.
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