This part of the guide describes some other types of help your customer may be able to get.
There is a wide range of other help available for pensioners, ranging from free TV licences for people aged over 75 to renovation grants for home improvements.
Help with health costs
If your customer gets Pension Credit which includes Guarantee Credit, they and their partner can also get help with health costs, this includes:
• free NHS dental treatment
• vouchers towards the cost of glasses or contact lenses
• travel expenses to appointments that an NHS doctor, dentist or optician has arranged
• free NHS wigs and fabric supports
Your customer may be able to get some help with these costs even if they do not get Guarantee Credit through the NHS Low Income Scheme.
People aged 60 and over are currently entitled to free sight tests and NHS prescriptions in England. The partner of a person getting Pension Credit which includes Guarantee Credit who is aged less than 60 will be entitled to free sight tests and NHS prescriptions in England.
Prescription charge arrangements are different in England from those in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
Leaflet HC11 is available from www.nhs.uk/healthcosts or advice is available by phoning 0300 330 1343.
For those in Scotland leaflet HCS1 is available online or by phoning 0300 330 1343.
Universal Credit was introduced in some areas of the country in April 2013 and it will be rolled out gradually across Great Britain. Until October 31 2015 anyone who is in receipt of Universal Credit is entitled to full help with health costs. This is a temporary arrangement and the Department of Health will issue further guidance about future arrangements in due course. Ruth rFor more information, go to www.nhs.uk/uc-healthcosts.
89 Help for people working
If your customer or their partner:
• are responsible for a child
• have a disability that puts them at a disadvantage in getting a job and are getting or have recently stopped getting a qualifying sickness or disability related DWP benefit
• are aged at least 50 and are returning to work after receiving a qualifying DWP benefit for at least 6 months
they may be able to get Working Tax Credit if they do paid work for 16 hours a week or more.
Otherwise they will need to be aged at least 25 and do paid work for 30 hours a week or more.
If they do get Working Tax Credit it will be taken into account when their Pension Credit is worked out, but they may find that they are better off overall.
For more information about Working Tax Credit call the Tax Credit helpline on 0345 300 3900.
You can also get information from the Gov.uk website.
Help for people who care for children Child Tax Credit
Pension Credit does not include money for children, but if your customer is responsible for a child or young person who is living with them, they may be able to get Child Tax Credit. This would not affect their Pension Credit.
For more information about Child Tax Credit call the Tax Credit helpline on 0345 300 3900.
You can also get information from the Gov.uk website.
Healthy Start vouchers and vitamins
Pregnant women and children under four in families getting one of a range of qualifying benefits or tax credits can apply for the Healthy Start scheme. Healthy Start provides weekly vouchers to put towards:
Fruit and veg – fresh or frozen
Any kind of plain fresh or frozen fruit and vegetables, whole or chopped, packaged or loose.
90 Vouchers can’t be spent on any fresh and frozen fruit and vegetable which has added salt, fat, sugar or any other ingredients like salt or oil.
Cow’s milk (not powdered or flavoured)
Whole, semi-skimmed or skimmed milk – pasteurised, sterilised, long-life or UHT. Vouchers can’t be used to buy other dairy products like cheese or yoghurt.
Infant formula milk (not follow-on or soya-based formulas)
Must say ‘suitable from birth’ on the pack and is made from cows milk. Vouchers can’t be used to buy follow-on milk.
Healthy Start also provides coupons that can be exchanged for women’s tablets and
children’s drops. Your customer can ask their midwife or Health Visitor where these vitamins are available locally. . Customers can also look up their nearest vitamins service by going to NHS Choices and using the service search service at
http://www.nhs.uk/Service-Search/Healthy-start-vitamins/LocationSearch/348
Whilst Pension Credit itself does not qualify a family for Healthy Start, if your customer’s family includes a pregnant woman or child under four then they may be eligible for the scheme if the family is also getting one of the following:
• Income Support
• income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance
• income-related Employment and Support Allowance
• Child Tax Credit without Working Tax Credit (unless Working Tax Credit run-on only is in payment) and an annual family income of £16,190 or less (2015/16)
If customers are claiming Universal Credit and are pregnant, or have a child under four years old, they can call the Healthy Start helpline on 0345 607 6823 or email on
[email protected] for information about any discretionary support that may be available.
They can also get help from the scheme for any member of the family who is pregnant and under 18 years old even if the family is not receiving any of the benefits or tax credits listed here.
Customers can get more information about the qualifying criteria and get an application form from www.healthystart.nhs.uk, or by calling the Healthy Start helpline on 0345 607 6823.
Child maintenance
If your customer provides the main day-to-day care for a child and is either separated from the child’s other parent or is a guardian (eg a grandparent with kinship care) then child maintenance can help towards the child’s everyday living costs.
Child maintenance is regular, reliable financial support. It can help pay for things like clothing, food and other essentials. But it doesn’t just have to be about exchanging money.
Arrangements can be much more flexible if the parents or the guardians choose – sharing
91 care or providing things such as food or clothes could work just as well, as long as everyone agrees to it.
Many separated families work together to make a ‘family-based arrangement’ that they agree between themselves. A grandparent or guardian can also make a family-based arrangement with the parent who is not living with their child or both parents if that is the case. Family-based arrangements are quick and easy to set up, flexible and they can help children benefit from having an ongoing relationship with their other parent (or parents).
If this kind of arrangement isn’t possible for your customer, the statutory Child Maintenance Service may be able to help. It can work out child maintenance and if necessary can set up a collection and payment arrangement. There are a range of fees and charges for using the Child Maintenance Service. In some cases customers can also use the courts to make child maintenance arrangements.
Customers can get more information from Child Maintenance Options on 0800 988 0988 or www.cmoptions.org This is a free and impartial information service which can help
customers to make informed choices about child maintenance arrangements.