Hi, I am a single parent and was wondering are you allowed to put money for child activities down on your out goings? I wanted to put £40.00 a moth down for taking my daughter out swimming, cinema etc or does this have to come out of your disposable income?
The OR will not allow "recreational activities" such as cinema etc. They will expect you to use disposable income for this so it will not be included in any IPA calculation.
However childrens activities that help with childcare ( afterschool clubs etc ) or special learning challenges are generally accepted
The OR accepted £30 for Kids Clubs in my case (Scouts, Music Lessons etc...) but asked for no proof of what these where. I would have thought that you could also argue that Swimming is a life skill and not for Recreation.
I also put down £100 for holidays (I have 4 kids) but I think the guideline is £60-£80 for the average family
as paul says the key point is if they are for extended childcare such as an after school club between the end of school and when the parents finish work.
Sometimes the OR wont challange some outgoings if would make no difference to the IPA (i.e if you are already in a deficit, or they know you could have claimed for something else). This does not mean that it is accepted just that it is not worth bothering about
Hi everybody, my name is Carl Ashton and I have been a professional martial instructor for 6 years. I noticed that a lot of parents have many concerns before bringing their kids to a martial art/karate class. I am trying very hard to put together a report to address any issues or questions that parents have about getting there kids involved in martial arts. If you would like to help me, please fill out this one question survey http://tinyurl.com/karate4kids . I would be very grateful for your help. Thank you!!
money for child activities down on out goings?
Posted - 04 August 2009 : 12:07:30
