Local offer for care leavers

We’ll help you contact the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) to make sure you receive any benefits you’re entitled to.  

Your personal adviser is your link to the DWP, if you want or need one.  They can help you set up your benefits, and act on your behalf if you have problems with benefit claims.  

Your personal adviser can start to support you with this four weeks before your 18th birthday, to avoid any delays in you receiving your benefits.  

While you’re waiting to receive your benefits, we we’ll pay you an independent living allowance, which is equivalent to benefits.  

Your personal adviser can help you get hold of your National Insurance number if you don’t have one, or cannot remember it.  

Make sure you give consent for your personal adviser to act on your behalf with the DWP at your leaving care interview.

Check if you're entitled to any benefits

If you’re a care leaver aged 18 to 25 and you live in Rutland, you do not need to pay for council tax until you’re 25.  

Your personal adviser can help you complete the application form.

The discount will stop on your 25th birthday.  

If you live outside of Rutland, your personal adviser will support you to find out if you’re entitled to any discount from your local authority.

If you’re not entitled to a discount your personal adviser will talk to the team manager, and we will fund your council tax.

If you’re an eligible, relevant or former relevant young person, you’ll receive an allowance of £3000 to help you set up your own home.  

The allowance is to make sure you get the household items you need – for example a bed, sofa, carpets and furniture.

Your pathway plan will include the details of how you’ll receive this allowance.

If you’re a parent or expectant parent, you could get an allowance (in addition to the setting up home allowance) when you move in to your first independent home.

The allowance is to help with the extra household costs of a child, and may be paid if you cannot get help from another source.

To get this allowance, your child (or children) must live with you.

If you’re entitled to the allowance, it will be paid no earlier than 11 weeks before your baby’s due date.

Managing money when you first leave care is not easy, and that sometimes things go wrong.  

If this happens to you, please get in touch with your personal adviser as soon as you can, and we will help you to sort things out.  

This can include putting financial support in place, if you need it - for example, if your first benefit payment is delayed, or if you have a gap between your last benefit payment and your first payday.