Turn2us - to access benefits & grants.

What you need before you start the benefits check

Before you start to use the calculator, we suggest that you collect together the information that you need to answer the questions that you will be asked as you work your way through it.

This includes:

• Details of all your income, e.g. State Retirement Pension, occupational pensions, Disability Living Allowance, Attendance Allowance, other state benefits and any earnings.
• If you are married, in a civil partnership or living with someone as a couple, you will need details of your partner’s income, including any benefits they are getting? We need to know this as you will be assessed as a couple. If you have anyone else living with you who is not your partner, we need to know about them too – see below
• Details of how much money you have in savings, investments and other capital
• How much your annual council tax bill is and whether you get any help with it
• Details of your rent or mortgage payments?
• Information about anyone else, e.g. grown-up children, who is living with you? Are they in employment or on benefits? What is their income?
• Details of anyone who receives carers’ allowance for looking after you or anyone else in your household?

You will be asked to enter your income and benefits as weekly amounts. If you do not know how much you get per week in benefits, the original letter from your local benefits office will tell you. If you get benefits or income paid into your bank account every four weeks, you can divide that figure by four to get your weekly amount. If you get paid once every calendar month, you can multiply the figure by 12 and divide by 52.

If you do not have the exact information that you need, it is possible to complete the process using estimates, but please be aware that the calculation may not be correct for you. 

Date of publication: 5 November 2008