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Child maintenance payments are ignored completely for universal credit. Other types of maintenance (eg, money from your former spouse to maintain you) may count as income. For details, see CPAG’s Welfare Benefits Handbook.

There are limits on the amount of savings and other capital you can have and still claim universal credit (UC). Some kinds of capital are not counted in the assessment. For details, see CPAG’s Welfare Benefits Handbook.

One-off lump-sum payments of student income count as capital rather than income. This may include the summer accommodation grant and discretionary fund payments that are not paid regularly or by reference to a period.1

You cannot get UC if your savings or other capital are above £16,000.

If your capital is £6,000 or less, it does not affect your UC at all.

If your capital is between £6,000.01 and £16,000, you are treated as though you have income from this capital of £4.35 a month for every £250 or part of £250 between these limits. For example, if you have savings of £6,525, your assumed income is £13.05 a month.

This chapter explains how much weekly income is taken into account when working out your entitlement to the remaining working-age means-tested benefits - these are income-related employment and support allowance (ESA) and housing benefit (HB). For information on how income affects universal credit, see Chapter 12.

• Student loans for maintenance count as income and are normally divided over 42 or 43 weeks from the beginning of September to the end of June and taken into account as income for means-tested benefits during that period. If your income is too high, you do not get income-related ESA, and your HB is reduced (or may end).
• The amount of student loan for maintenance you could get is taken into account as income, whether or not you apply for it.
• If you or your partner are over pension age, your student grant and loan are ignored as income for HB.
• Student loans are normally not taken into account as income for means-tested benefits from around the end of June until the beginning of September. You may be able to get more benefit during these months even if your benefit was reduced during the academic year.
• Some grants are also taken into account as income, but others do not affect your benefit.

A grant is defined as an educational grant or award, bursary, scholarship or allowance and does not include education maintenance allowance or discretionary fund payments.1 In general, grants intended for living costs are taken into account and grants for other costs are disregarded. For the way that discretionary funds are treated, see here.

If you are not eligible for a student loan, deduct from your grant:

• £390 for books and equipment; and
• £303 for travel.

An assessed contribution from a partner or parent counts as income, whether or not you receive it. However, for income-related ESA, if you are a disabled student, only include contributions that are actually paid.2

Ignore any grants for:3

• tuition fees or exam fees;
• course-related disability costs;
• residential study away from your normal home;
• books and equipment, or travel;
• for income-related ESA only, maintenance of a child dependant;
• childcare costs.

The way that student income is taken into account for income-related employment and support allowance (ESA) and housing benefit (HB) is essentially the same (see Chapter 12 for universal credit). Chapters 4 and 6 outline the income-related ESA and HB assessments step by step. This chapter explains how much weekly income counts in these assessments.

If you want to work out your benefit entitlement during the long vacation, here explains when the long vacation starts and finishes for benefit purposes – ie, when your student loan or grant counts as nil income. You should then total on a weekly basis any other income you have over the vacation (note that the summer accommodation grant is paid as a lump sum and therefore counts as capital rather than income).

You cannot make a new claim for housing benefit (there are some exceptions - see here).

You can get carer support payment (CSP), new-style employment and support allowance (ESA) or new-style jobseeker’s allowance as well as universal credit (UC), but they are deducted as income.

• To qualify for Scottish child payment, a Best Start grant, Best Start foods and funeral support payment, you must usually receive a qualifying benefit.
• Budgeting loans from the social fund are for people who get a qualifying benefit.
• You may be eligible for help from the Scottish Welfare Fund if you get a qualifying benefit or are on a low income.
• You may get a care leaver payment from the local authority if you are a young person moving on from care.
• Students are eligible for these payments in the same way as anyone else.

Scottish child payment is a Social Security Scotland payment for people who have responsibility for a child who is aged under 16. It is an extra £28.20 a week for each child. It is paid four-weekly. You must make a claim, and payment cannot be backdated.

You are eligible if you:1

• are responsible for a child under 16 – eg, you get child benefit for them, or they are named on your universal credit (UC) or pension credit (PC) award, or you are a kinship carer for them; and
• you get UC or PC; and
• you are ordinarily resident in Scotland.

See cpag.org.uk/scottish-benefits for more details. You can apply online, by phone on 0800 182 2222 or by downloading a paper form. Go to mygov.scot/scottish-child-payment for more information or to start an application.

If you or your partner are pregnant or have a young child, you may be entitled to a Best Start grant from Social Security Scotland. There are three separate one-off payments available.1 These are:

• a pregnancy and baby payment of £796.65 if it is your first child or £398.35 for a second or subsequent child. You can apply from the 24th week of pregnancy until six months after the baby is born;
• an early learning payment of £331.95 if you have a child aged between two and three-and-a-half years old;
• a school-age payment of £331.95 in the year your child would normally start school.

You are eligible for these payments if you are under 18 or get a qualifying benefit. You are also eligible if you are aged 18 or 19 and someone else claims child benefit, universal credit (UC) or pension credit (PC) for you. There are no special rules for students. Qualifying benefits are:

• UC (including if you got UC in the last month and it has now stopped);
• PC;
• housing benefit.

See cpag.org.uk/scottish-benefits for more details. You can apply online, by phone on 0800 182 2222 or by downloading a paper form. Go to mygov.scot/best-start-grant-best-start-foods/how-to-apply for more information or to start an application.

The Best Start foods scheme is administered by Social Security Scotland. You can get a payment card to buy certain foods under the scheme if you or your partner get a qualifying benefit, or if you are under 18, and you are pregnant or have a child aged under three. You are also eligible if you are 18 or 19 and someone else claims child benefit, universal credit (UC) or pension credit (PC) for you and you are pregnant or have a child aged under three. If you have ‘no recourse to public funds’ and have a low income you may be able to get Best Start foods.1

Qualifying benefits are:2

• UC;
• PC;
• housing benefit.