It’s no secret that April will be a tough month financially. Several household bills will be going up, from council tax to energy, water and mobile and broadband bills.
But amongst the fiscal gloom, there is some good news – with a boost worth up to £3,325 per household from April 6. April 6 is when the new tax year begins and with it come automatic increases to various benefits and income boosting top-ups. While not every benefit will necessarily apply to every one individual, there are many that will stack on top of one another to help boost the total amount you’ll be able to claim.
Universal Credit – up to £628.10 per month
Universal Credit is complicated, because it’s becoming a catch-all replacement for various other benefits. So someone who is claiming for help with childcare costs, for disabled children or as a carer can get more money on top of the standard rates.
All elements of Universal Credit will see their payments increased by 1.7% from April, thanks to automatic uprating of the benefit tied to Consumer Price Index inflation figures.
Looking just at the standard rates element, which is help for general living costs for those on low or no income, it means Universal Credit is going to rise from £311.68 per month for a single person aged under 25 to £316.90. For single people aged over 25, it will rise from £393.45 to £400.14. For a couple under 25, it’s going from £489.23 to £497.55 and for an over-25 couple, from £617.60 to £628.10.
State pension – up to £1,281 per month
Thanks to the – some would say, increasingly controversial – Triple Lock, state pensions will rise by far more than the CPI inflation rate by which Universal Credit is increased. The Triple Lock states that pensions must rise by one of three metrics: wage growth, inflation or a flat 2.5%, whichever is highest. Wage growth is highest this year, at 4.1%, so pensions will increase in line with that.
The full new state pension is going up from £221.20 per week to £230.25, or £1,281 per month in a four-week month.
The old basic state pension, for those who retired before 2016, will increase by the same percentage, but goes from £176.45 per week to £169.50.
Child benefit – £104.20
Child benefit is also increasing in line with other benefits. It will go up from £25.60 per week, roughly £102.40 per month, to £26.05 per week, or £104.20 per month.
The amount paid for each additional child will also go up from £16.95 to £17.25 per week. There is no limit to the number of additional children, aside from the overall benefits cap.
PIP – £812
Personal Independence Payments will also go up in April, again by 1.7% as other benefits will. The payments, sent to those who face difficulties with everyday living and mobility, are split into four categories: Standard daily living and enhanced daily living, standard mobility and enhanced mobility.
Standard daily living is going up to £73.90 per week, up from £72.65, while the enhanced daily living is up from £108.55 to £110.40 per week.
Standard mobility is going up from £28.70 per week to £29.20 per week, and enhanced mobility is up from £75.75 to £77.05.
In total, you could get £812 a month if you qualified for the enhanced element of both parts.
Household Support Fund – up to £500
Labour has announced the extension of the Household Support Fund scheme beyond its March 31 deadline.
This year’s scheme closes at the end of March. The scheme allows those who are on low incomes or struggling with bills or debts to be able to apply to their local council for a payment from the Household Support Fund.
The funding is provided by the DWP to local authorities, who then in turn decide how to spend it. A date for the new scheme’s applications reopening has not yet been confirmed, but at the end of February, the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero announced it has “extended the Household Support Fund to provide help through local councils to struggling households with essential costs, including energy bills”.
The fund can give up to £500 to those in need and is not limited only to those on benefits. Some councils choose to give the funding in the form of shopping vouchers too.
