Benefits

The following material has largely been taken from the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) and other government sites. This information is gathered here to help priests to understand benefits that may be due to them or to those close to them. It should be stressed that what is available here is a summary and should not be considered as comprehensive. It may however offer a useful insight into the kind of benefits and allowances that are available.

Attendance Allowance

You may get Attendance Allowance if you have a physical or mental disability, or both. You should register a claim if your disability is severe enough for you to need help caring for yourself. You should be aged 65 or over when you claim. If you are under age 65, you may be able to get Disability Living Allowance.

To get Attendance Allowance, your disability must be severe enough for you to need help with things such as washing (and getting in or out of the bath or shower), dressing, eating, getting to and using the toilet, or communicating your needs, or you require supervision to avoid putting yourself or others in substantial danger. An example of this may be that you need someone to keep an eye on your medical condition or diet, or require someone with you when you are on dialysis.

You can get Attendance Allowance even if no one is actually giving you the care you need - even if you live alone.

Further information can be found here

Disability Living Allowance (DLA)

Disability Living Allowance - sometimes referred to as DLA- is a tax-free benefit for children and adults who need help with personal care or have walking difficulties because they are physically or mentally disabled.

You may get Disability Living Allowance if you have a physical or mental disability or both or if your disability is severe enough for you to need help caring for yourself or you have walking difficulties, or both. You should be aged under 65 or over when you claim. If you are aged 65 or over, you may be able to get Attendance Allowance.

If you have care needs
To get the care component of Disability Living Allowance, your disability must be severe enough for you to need help with things such as washing, dressing, eating, getting to and using the toilet, or communicating your needs, or you need supervision to avoid you putting yourself or others in substantial danger, or you need someone with you when you are on dialysis, or you are unable to prepare a cooked main meal for yourself (if you had the ingredients). You can get Disability Living Allowance for your care needs even if no one is actually giving you the care you need, even if you live alone.

Further information can be found here

Incapacity Benefit

This benefit is dealt with by Jobcentre Plus.

It is paid if Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) has ended or you cannot get SSP. It is not paid if you were over state pension age when you became sick. You can get incapacity benefit if you have paid NI contributions and been incapable of work because of sickness or disability for at least 4 days in a row including weekends and public holidays?

You may be able to get Incapacity Benefit even if you have not paid enough National Insurance contributions.

Further information can be found here

Working Tax Credit

Working Tax Credit is a payment to top up the earnings of low paid working people (whether employed or self-employed), including those who do not have children.

Working Tax Credit helps to make work pay for low income workers. In most cases, your employer pays it alongside your wages or salary, although we pay the self-employed directly.

The amount of your Working Tax Credit award is based on your circumstances (for example, how many hours you work or whether you are disabled) and your income. The tables below provides a guide to how much you could receive for the tax year 2005-2006.

Element of Working Tax Credit Annual amount 2005 - 2006
Basic element £1,620
30 hour element £660
Disabled worker element £2,165
Severe disability element £920
50 plus element:-
Working at least 16 hours but under 30 hours per week £1,110
Working 30 hours or more per week £1,660

Further information can be found here

State Pension

State Pension is paid to entitled people who claim it having reached State Pension age. It is based on National Insurance (NI) contributions and it is made up of different elements. More information on NI contributions is available on HM Revenue & Customs' website.

The State Pension age for men is 65 and is between 60 and 65 for women. The State Pension age for women will increase gradually from 2010, so that by 2020 it will be 65.
Entitlement to the basic State Pension is dependent on the number of qualifying years you have earned over your working life. Qualifying years are based on the NI contributions you have paid, been treated as having paid or been credited with during your working life.
Further information can be found here

Over 80 Pension

The Over 80 Pension is a non-contributory pension for people aged 80 or over with little or no State Pension. You can get it if you are aged 80 or over. If you are not getting a State Pension or you are getting less than a full State Pension because you have not paid enough National Insurance (NI) contributions. You must be living in England, Scotland or Wales.

If you fulfill the above criteria and you have lived in Great Britain for a total of 10 years or more in any continuous period of 20 years before or after your 80th birthday, you could claim the Over 80 Pension.

Further information can be found here

Pension Credit

Pension Credit is an entitlement for people aged 60 or over living in Great Britain. This could mean extra money for you every week. Pension Credit guarantees everyone aged 60 and over an income of at least:
• £114.05 a week if they are single
• £174.05 a week if they have a partner
You can apply up to four months before the date from which you want to start getting Pension Credit. You can also apply up to 12 months after the date from which you wish to start getting it.

Further information can be found here

Healthcare

The following section is taken from a variety of information sources and it aims to make clear the entitlements that a priest might expect. Once again it is offered here only as a guide.

Health costs for which you can get help
You may be able to get help with prescription charges, NHS dental charges, vouchers towards the cost of glasses and contact lenses, travel costs to and from hospital for NHS treatment, travel costs if travelling abroad for treatment, wigs and fabric supports, for example, abdominal and spinal supports.

General Practitioners (GPs)

Everyone is entitled to be registered with a GP. For help in finding a GP, contact your local health authority. As well as providing health advice and treatment, GPs provide check-ups, give vaccinations against infectious diseases (immunisations) and sign certificates for people unable to work because of illness. Many GPs also provide health promotion clinics, minor surgery, counselling and medical examinations for insurance and other purposes (for which they may make a charge). For more information about GPs, see NHS patients’ rights.

Dentists

You can get a list of dentists who provide NHS treatment from local health councils in Scotland. You have to pay for NHS dental treatment, although some groups of people may get free treatment.

Help with dental treatment
You are entitled to free NHS dental checkups if you live in Scotland. You are entitled to free dental treatment if, at the start of the treatment, you are getting income support, income-based jobseeker’s allowance or the guarantee credit of Pension Credit. If you are getting Working Tax Credit you may be entitled to free dental treatment, depending on your income. If your circumstances change before treatment ends, you will still be able to get free treatment. For more information about free dental treatment in Scotland see Help with health costs.

Optical Services
 
Optometrists carry out eye tests to check the quality of your sight. They look for signs of eye disease which may need treatment from a doctor or eye surgeon and they prescribe and fit glasses and contact lenses. Opticians fit and sell glasses but they do not test eyes. They can give you advice on types of lens, such as single vision or bifocal and help you to choose frames. If you go to a high-street optician, you will have your eyes tested by an optometrist but you do not have to buy your glasses there. You could take an optometrist's prescription to an optician who will sell you the glasses you need.
Some people can get vouchers towards the cost of glasses or contact lenses. These include people aged 60 or over, people with certain eye conditions, people entitled to certain benefits and anyone else on a low income. For more information about who can get free optical treatment in Scotland see Help with health costs.

Help with the cost of glasses and contact lenses
If you live in Scotland you are entitled to a free eye test. You will be entitled to help towards the cost of prescription glasses or contact lenses if you are getting income support, or the guarantee credit of Pension Credit. If you are getting Working Tax Credit you may be entitled to help, depending on your income. You are also entitled to help if you need complex lenses.

Pharmacists

Pharmacists (also known as chemists) are responsible for dispensing medicines. They can also provide free information and advice about many common medical problems.

For information about whether you have to pay for prescriptions you get at the chemists in Scotland see Help with health costs.

Prescription Charges

You will be entitled to get prescriptions free of charge if you are on income support, income-based jobseeker’s allowance or the guarantee credit of Pension Credit. If you are getting Working Tax Credit you may be entitled to free prescriptions, depending on your income. You will also be entitled to free prescriptions if you are 60 or over, if you hold a valid medical exemption certificate, or if you suffer from a specific medical condition. Ask your GP if you think this might apply to you. Those in receipt of a war or service disablement pension, or those who need prescriptions for a disability and hold an exemption certificate may also be eligible for free prescriptions..

Prepayment Certificates for Prescriptions

If you need frequent prescriptions but do not qualify to get them free of charge, you can buy a prepayment certificate which will save you money and lasts for either four or twelve months. You will usually benefit from buying a prepayment certificate if you have to pay for more than five prescription items in a four month period, or more than 14 items in a twelve month period. You can buy a prepayment certificate at a pharmacy or from your doctor's surgery.

If you have difficulty in meeting your health costs and do not qualify for any other kind of help, you may be able to get help under the NHS low income scheme. The amount of help you get will depend on the amount of income you have. You might not be entitled to any help at all if you have too much capital. There are two types of certificate: a full help certificate (HC2), and a limited help certificate (HC3), which tells you how much you have to pay.

Further information on help with NHS charges can be found here

Alternative Medicine

Some forms of alternative medicine (also known as complementary medicine) are available through the NHS from certain GPs and hospitals. Therapies which may be available through the NHS are acupuncture, osteopathy, homeopathy and chiropractic.
Chiropodists (Podiatry)
Chiropody may be available on the NHS free of charge, although this depends on your local NHS Board in Scotland. Each case is assessed on an individual basis and whether you get free treatment depends on how serious your condition is and your risk factor. If your health or mobility is not affected, you are considered to be ‘low-risk’ and you may not get NHS chiropody. If you have diabetes, you are treated as a high priority case. You must normally be referred to a chiropodist by a GP or clinic. If you do not qualify for NHS treatment, you will need to arrange private treatment community care

If you are elderly, disabled, or mentally ill, you may need help to continue living at home. For example, you may need someone to come in and help with personal things like washing and dressing. Or you might need help with cooking or shopping. The NHS does not provide these services. In Scotland, they are provided by the social work department. However, if you need nursing care, this should be provided by the NHS. For example, your GP can arrange for a district nurse to visit you (see under heading District nurses). If you have been in hospital, you should not be discharged until you have had an assessment of your continuing health care needs and, where necessary, of your community care needs. A doctor may decide, for example, that you need a package of health and social care to be able to return home.If you are discharged from hospital needing a high level of continuing health care, this should be provided and funded by the NHS. This could be provided in a hospital, a care home, a hospice or in your own home.

Counselling services

Some GP practices provide free counselling services on the NHS. Contact your GP for more information.
District nurses
District nurses are nurses employed by the NHS to provide nursing care for patients who are living at home. For example, they can change dressings or give injections. They are based at GP surgeries and health centres and can also be contacted through local community nursing offices.

Health visitors

Health visitors provide support through the NHS for older patients. They are normally based at GP surgeries.

Hospitals

Most NHS hospital admissions and appointments take place through referrals by GPs. You can go to the Accident and Emergency department without a referral. You can also go to a special clinic for the treatment of sexually transmitted diseases without a referral. For more information about your rights in hospital, see NHS Patients’ rights. You can get a number of NHS services if you are an older person. For example, GPs should offer annual health checks to patients aged 75 and over. Help is available from health visitors and district nurses - see under heading Community care.

Physiotherapy

Physiotherapy is physical treatment that helps you regain use of your body after an injury or disease. It is also used to slow the progression of long-term conditions. It is available through the NHS to patients referred for treatment by GPs or hospitals.

Terminal care

Terminal care (sometimes called palliative care) is the treatment of symptoms where cure is no longer considered an option, in other words, when someone is dying. Terminal care concentrates on controlling pain and other symptoms improving the quality of life for the patient and their family and in meeting the patient's social, emotional and spiritual needs. NHS terminal care may be given in hospital or at home. There are also a number of NHS hospices providing care for patients as well as hospices run by voluntary organisations. For information about how to find a hospice, visit the website of Hospice Information


Travel to hospital for treatment

You may be able to get essential travel costs paid to and from hospital for NHS treatment, for example, if you are on a low income or getting benefits like Income Support.

Vaccinations

Vaccinations (also called immunisation) protect you against different infectious diseases. The NHS provides vaccinations for children and some adults. A charge may be made for vaccinations needed for overseas travel.
Further information can be found here