Studying

It's usually quite difficult to study full-time or part-time without any effect on your benefits.

It is important that you consider whether you'll be classed as a full-time or part-time student, as the entitlements for the two are very different. To be classified as a part-time student you have to be attending a course for less than 21 hours a week. Any more than that and you'll be classified as full-time and lose benefits accordingly.

Study and benefits

Benefits are affected in different ways when you study. These are the most common ones that are affected:

• Income Support and Employment and Support Allowance
• Incapacity Benefit
• Housing Benefit, Housing Allowance and Council Tax Benefits
• Job Seekers Allowance (JSA)
• Carer's Allowance
• Disability Living Allowance (DLA)

Income Support and Income related Employment & Support Allowance

Part-time study

If you start a part-time study course you will be able to carry on claiming income support.

Full-time study

If you already get income support when you start full-time study, then you will be able to carry on claiming this benefit if you satisfy one of the following conditions:

• You're a disabled student and you get a disability premium.
• You're a disabled student and you've been off work and getting incapacity-related benefit for 28 weeks.
• You're a lone parent whose youngest child is under the age of 16.

Incapacity Benefit and Contributory ESA

In most cases, you can get Incapacity Benefit or Contributory ESA in term-time and during your holidays. However, you can't make a claim for this benefit if you are under 19 years old and in full-time education.

You can't be treated as capable of work simply because you are studying.

Housing Benefit, Housing Allowance and Council Tax Benefits

You might be eligible for Housing benefit or Housing Allowance and Council Tax Benefits if you start to study part-time.

If you decide to study full-time then you'll only be able to carry on claiming this benefit if you satisfy one of the following conditions:

• You're a disabled student and you get the disability premium.
• You're a disabled student and you've been incapable of work for 28 weeks.
• You're a lone parent whose youngest child is under the age of 16.

If all the adult residents in your home are students you won't be liable to pay council tax.

Job Seekers Allowance (JSA)

You can study part-time and get JSA if the training takes place outside the hours you are required to be available for work. If the course overlaps with the hours when you should be available for work you can still get JSA if you are willing to re-arrange the hours of your course, or give it up.

Students attending a full-time course are normally excluded from JSA until the end of the course. However, there are two exceptions:

If you have a partner who is also a student and have a dependent child, then you can get JSA during the long holidays as long as you are available for work.

People who are 25 years old and over, and have been claiming JSA for at least two years, can still claim JSA if they go on a full-time employment-related course of a year or less.

Carer’s allowance

If you study part-time you can claim carer's allowance as long as you are available to care for at least 35 hours a week. But if you study full-time you will not be eligible for carer’s allowance.

Disability Living Allowance (DLA)

You can get DLA as a student. However, if your college provides care and assistance for you, the authorities may claim some or all of the DLA care component back from you. Also, if you live in a residential college, your care component stops when you are there if it counts as ‘special accommodation’.

THT can help

If you'd like to talk through your education options ring THT Direct and talk to one of our advisors.