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DSS/JSA/Benefits Thread


Jaaakkkeee

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I need some help.

 

As some of you know I'm currently jobless. Been applying but had no luck as of yet. I need to get my bills paid. 

 

So I'll need to suck it up and sign on. I know to go to the Job Centre for JSA. But is it the council I see about getting my rent and council tax paid?

 

Do I need to prove I'm signed on first before going to the council?

 

 

Cheers.

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I need some help.

As some of you know I'm currently jobless. Been applying but had no luck as of yet. I need to get my bills paid.

So I'll need to suck it up and sign on. I know to go to the Job Centre for JSA. But is it the council I see about getting my rent and council tax paid?

Do I need to prove I'm signed on first before going to the council?

Cheers.

don't know anything about any of this but seriously if your ever in desperate need of money I'll loan you some dude
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Apply for benefits here: https://www.gov.uk/jobseekers-allowance/how-to-claim

Once you've applied online you'll get an appointment with the JSA and they'll process your claim. This will cover JSA and Housing Benefit - I think Council Tax is included too but not 100% on that.

Do this now though - you can't claim retrospectively so your claim will start today unless you have extenuating circumstances.

I know a little bit about this so feel free to give me a shout if you need a hand or you feel the Benefits people are fucking you about.

Edited by colb
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We were totally clueless about all this stuff to begin with and ended up going to the council first to ask about housing benefit. They said that they won't even consider it unless you're claiming jobseeker's, but I think as long as you start the process of claiming JSA, the council can start the process of getting housing benefit/council tax exemption sorted. I'm not sure what Aberdeen Council is like in terms of this, but we were warned with Edinburgh that it would take four weeks for them to chase things up with the Job Centre and get all the paperwork sorted. I can't quite remember how this worked, but I think we got backdated housing benefit for those four weeks.

 

Some people might try and make it difficult for you to claim, or not make you aware of things you're entitled to, so be careful. For example, there's a lot of focus on getting claimants to sign up to the crappy Universal Jobmatch website. I think you might have to be registered with it, but what isn't mandatory is to turn on the option that allows the DWP to have access to all of your accounts. The government are putting pressure on Job Centre Advisors to make you feel like if you don't turn on that option, you'll lose your benefits. That's not the case, it's not compulsory.

 

Don't let it get you down. Fight for what you're entitled to. Fuck the Tories, etc.

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The backlog is about the same here - as long as you tell your landlord they're usually pretty reasonable.

The best way to go about this is to tell everyone ASAP, it makes things a lot harder for anyone to try to chase you for cash and add interest to arrears payments etc. if you're upfront about your situation.

Don't agree to anything with the Job Centre you're unsure about either - it's perfectly ok to take advice and say no to some things.

Edited by colb
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I can't even fully put into words why it's such a terrible response, it just is. Your intentions are obviously good (so here, have some pos rep back) but it just seems really naive to offer someone a lend like that. Here's a few reasons why it's a bad response.

 

- you're young, you should be learning about managing your own money right now. This (as well as spending all your curry money on musical instruments you can't afford) is irresponsible.

- Jake's obviously looking for long-term practical solutions, not a quick loan.

- Whilst not an ideal situation, being jobless doesn't make you a charity case. Jake needs advice, not pity.

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