View Full Version : Childhood ends at 16
Osborne has decided that childhood ends at 16 and so also does child benefit.
if you have a teenager for whom child allowance ends at 16 would you encourage them to stay at school, or tell them to go and get a job- if they can find one?
annemarie482
18-Oct-10, 22:41
for a lot for teens, childhood leaves them long before 16 :eek:
I always thought that the Child Allowance did finish at the age of sixteen.
We have two children who are now both married but when each of them reached the age of 16 the Child Allowance stopped.
I suppose this could have changed since the last one reached sixteen as that was 15 years ago.
changilass
18-Oct-10, 22:42
Easy answer is to give those that continue their education a bursary, but make it dependant on grades so that its not the soft option.
Invisible
18-Oct-10, 22:43
they dont know how lucky they have it. Childhood ended at 12 for me.
wonder how many bankers- or their wives- are going to feel the pinch when they have to fork out for their children's pocket money themselves?
they dont know how lucky they have it. Childhood ended at 12 for me.
I dont think so, you have a bit to go before you become an adult [lol]
I really don't have a problem with this. I'm actually against the polpular viewpoint that child benefit should be universal. We don't have a shortage of people in the country so why subsidise them?
If people can't afford to support a child with their own money, they shouldn't be having children.
As for telling your child to go out and get a job at 16 because you're not getting your £20 a week from the state anymore, I doubt it would work.
Parents of children are still legally obliged to financially support them into higher education, even into their 20's.
Child benefit is still paid past the age of 16 if the child is in full-time education or training.
http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/MoneyTaxAndBenefits/TaxCreditsandChildBenefit/Childbenefits/KeepingyourChildBenefituptodate/ChildBenefitafter16/DG_073812
Education Maintenance Allowance of up to £30 (depending on the household income) is also paid to each child who stays on at school or goes to college.
Invisible
19-Oct-10, 11:42
I dont think so, you have a bit to go before you become an adult [lol]
I think your the one who needs to grow up
So, you become and adult at 16, yet you still cant drink, drive, vote, smoke, buy knives solvents or fireworks.
Surely voting should be lowered to 16 considering you can join the army then!
ah- but the army may no longer be an option- but VSO might just
No you cant smoke drink..etc, but you can get married!
And join the armed forces and go to college uni etc.
Work..gain an apprentiship..get a parttime job etc..
It's so not fair........I act like a big Kid most of the time but they dont give me Family Allowance.....
C3....:roll::lol:
but you can get married!
Seems a little backwards to me - you can marry but you are restricted in job choice (construction etc) which would prevent you providing for a family. You cant even have a drink at your wedding!
And the government complain about teenage pregnancy.....
Its all messed up....:(
You could have a wee drink at the wedding as long as it was with your meal and you had an adult with you...mum and dad maybe?:lol:
Young people are not usually entitled to benefits if they arenot working or on a training scheme. In the past parents have in most circumstances been able to claim Child Benefit where the young person is not entitled to benefits - looks like they will get nothing then.
What about children who are in further education - college school? How does this affect child and working families tax credits? Doesnt CSA maintenance stop at 16 too? So no maintenance and no child benefit for 16 to 18 year olds. They had better all get jobs then...oh hang on ... arent they cutting services and jobs too????????????????
But then i guess GO and DC never had to worry too much about paying the bills,feeding the family and clothing the teenager when your wagesareless than £20 000 a year:roll:
sometimes i just want to tell people to get over themselves *grrrr* when i was 18 working two full time jobs and going to university.. i had to do it on my own, as i couldnt get a grant. as it went back to my parents who my mum at that time was in full time employment and making more than the grant allowed.. even though i did not live at home and had my own place.
i had to pay all my own bills and pay for all school costs.. as i was not married or had any children.
did i throw a tantrum and spit out my dummy ? nope
just had to get on with it.. i worked 2nd at a fast food joint.. that pretty much fed me.. and 3rd in a nursing home.. doing my home work between the 2 hour shifts of checking the patients.
i had worked it out so my days off were never on the same days.. so four days a week i had half days!
and i slept between classes!
i remember i had an hour or so break.. and i would lay on a couch in the student lounge with a paper on my chest saying.. wake me up at 0'oclock!
funny thing is i remember those days very fondly!
i was so poor i couldnt buy groceries! but i loved every min of it!
If people can't afford to support a child with their own money, they shouldn't be having children.
The most sensible thing said on this thread
No it's not lol. Anyone who waits until they can 'afford' children would never have them lol. I would like to see child benefit remain universal. It was designed to be a benefit paid directly to the mother and at the tome was the only money many mums got. It was extended in the 70s to include payment for the eldest children when the tax allowances for children were removed. It ensured that everybody, whether working or not, received a payment. I accept that there needs to be cuts but the way they are being carried out is not fair. Where a family with one wage earner and 3 children can't get child benefit but a family with 1 child and double the income can get child benefit. It's just stupid.
I get what brandy is saying but child benefit has never been payable for children at university level courses. Many kids will have to and indeed do work very hard to maintain themselves at university. Unless they were David Cameron and George Osborne of course lol
No it's not lol. Anyone who waits until they can 'afford' children would never have them lol.
See and therein lies the problem, these days most people want what they can't afford.
Whatever happened to the good old days of saving up for something and then really enjoying and taking satisfaction in knowing that it's been well earned, whether it's a new tv or having children.
Sorry for the rant - slightly off topic but it's the same underlying problem...
It's not like buying a fridge or a ridiculously large 52 inch t. Screen. This is about having a family.... You manage... That's what you do... Another spud in the pan sort of way. You hope and expect that you will struggle when they are small but life will get better and so will your wages. You don't KNOW that but you plan and you hope. You don't expect that you will end up on your own relying on child benefit to make ends meet, or that your ex will not put his hand in his pocket for squat diddly, or that you'll be made redundant and have to take a job At half what you were earning, but life has a way of surprising you. Child benefit is not enough to act as an incentive to have more and more children. It's there to make things a bit easier and I think to help particularly with child care costs or the costs of staying home and bringing up babies. If there is no right to child benefit for a mum what does that say about how we value the role of a stay at home mum?
That's where the child benefit system fails, because everyone gets a little bit (whether they need it or not) there is not enough to help those who really need it the most. Welfare ought to be used for the very reasons you have outlined above, for those people who are down on their luck and have found themselves in unfortunate situations. There are too many people who rely on child benefit (and other benefits) when they are not in situations that really need it and they are effectively stealing from those who need it most.
Okay- GO has saved lots of money on this one- now how many parents might be tempted to pack a small hankie with bread and cheese; stick it on a piece of wood and send their 16 year old out into the big bad world to either seek their fortune or serve their community?
On your BMX perhaps?
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