Welfare and Benefits Advice

We can provide benefit entitlement advice and support, assistance to apply for the correct benefits and support to challenge incorrect benefit decisions to all unpaid carers registered with Trafford Carers Centre.

In 2021, we assisted our carers in saving over £700,000!

Our Benefit Advisor, Lucy has a vast range of knowledge and experience, having previously been employed by the DWP. The benefit advice we assist with includes:

Carers Allowance and Carers Credit
Disabled Living Allowance (DLA)
Personal Independence Payment (PIP)
Attendance Allowance
Income Support
Employment Support Allowance (ESA)
Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA)
Universal Credit
State Pension
Pension Credit
Bereavement Support Payment

Please note that we cannot complete the forms on your behalf. If you need support with this we can refer you to an appropriate organisation.

To access support from our Welfare & Benefit Advisor you must first be registered with Trafford Carers Centre and have had a recent assessment or review of your support needs.

IMPORTANT UPDATE ON LEGACY BENEFITS

People getting legacy benefits are having the claims closed and are being invited to make a new claim for Universal Credit. This is called managed migration.

Legacy benefits are Child Tax Credit, Working Tax Credit, Housing Benefit for working-age people, income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA), income-based Jobseeker's Allowance (JSA) and Income Support.

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) have been sending Migration Notices to people getting the legacy benefits listed above.

By the end of 2024, all Tax Credit claimants will have received a Migration Notice. Tax Credits will finish on the 5 April 2025 and will not be paid after this date. People who get ESA only, or ESA with housing benefit have already started to receive their Migration Notices, and the DWP will continue to send them throughout 2025. All Migration Notices will be sent by the end of December 2025 and legacy benefits will end on 31 March 2026.

Look out for a letter called a ‘Universal Credit Migration Notice’ from the DWP. Tax Credit claimants will receive this letter from the DWP with a HMRC logo or from the Department for Communities if they live in Northern Ireland. This notice letter is important as it will tell you that your existing benefits are stopping, and you need to make a claim for Universal Credit. It will also tell you what you need to do and by when.

You might get a leaflet telling you to get ready for Universal Credit – if the letter you get doesn't have a deadline on it, it isn't your migration notice. Wait until you get a proper migration notice.

I have recieved a Migration Notice, what do I do?

When it is your turn to be moved across to Universal Credit, you'll receive a migration notice in the post.

This will give you a three-month deadline to claim Universal Credit - you will not be moved over automatically you will have to make a claim.

If you don't start a claim for Universal Credit within this time, your current benefits will automatically stop.

You don't have to wait until your migration letter to move onto Universal Credit - you can move over early if you wish.

Once you make a Universal Credit claim, your old benefits will be stopped and you'll have to wait five weeks for your first Universal Credit payment to arrive.

You’ll normally have to claim online, but you can also use the Universal Credit Migration Notice helpline on 0800 169 0328 if necessary - you can also ask your local Job Centre for help with your claim.

Some legacy benefits, including Housing Benefit, Income Support, income-related Employment and Support Allowance and income-based Jobseeker's Allowance, will "run on" for two weeks to help bridge that gap.

If you claim tax credits, your entitlement will end as soon as you claim Universal Credit according to the Government website.