Care Leavers - Your finances

Find out how we will support you with budgeting, provide allowances to help with essential purchases or emergencies, and help keep your important documents safe.

We will support and advise you on how best to manage your finances by helping you budget and letting you know about opportunities to build on your budgeting skills. We will make sure that you know what you are entitled to. We may also be able to support you to access certain allowances for things like:

  • General living costs if you are not eligible to claim benefit;
  • Staying in touch with people who are important to you;
  • Buying essential items for your home;
  • Buying necessary equipment for education, training or work;
  • Helping you with the cost of going to university.

In some circumstances, we may also help you with the cost of childcare if this enables you to access employment, education or training if this support is unavailable elsewhere.

We may also agree to help you with things that we would consider exceptional circumstances. Before we can agree on this support, we will need to consider your circumstances and the support and assistance already available to you. If we agree that we are able to offer further financial assistance, we will clearly record this in your pathway plan.

Key to My Employment

Key to My Employment is our workbook that helps you on your journey into employment. You can do the whole workbook or just the sections that apply to you, for example, writing a CV, applying for jobs or starting work.

Key to My Employment will give you information about your wages, wage slip, paying taxes and pension contributions. It will also advise on how to claim Universal Credit should you become unemployed when over the age of 18.

Additional Support and Finances for those 18 and over

There will be times when you require additional support and help with finances. On these occasions, you can discuss this with your Personal Adviser, who will look at how we can best support you.

Clothing payments

Generally, it is expected that you will clothe yourself out of your salary or any benefits you receive.

In exceptional circumstance, the Leaving Care service will provide a clothing grant for care leavers in need of emergency clothing. This will be an assessed need and will be decided by one of the Team Managers.

Childcare equipment

If you are pregnant, you will be able to apply for a Sure Start maternity grant of up to £500. This is claimed from the Benefits Agency at 11 weeks prior to the due date of your baby (or within 3 months following your baby’s birth). Your PA will support you to claim this.

Read more about the Sure Start Grant

If you are unable to access this money, then consideration will be given to an allowance of up to £250 for childcare equipment. The decision as to whether you will be granted this will be made by one of the Team Managers following an assessment of need.

Emergency payment

Emergency payments are usually payments made to ease a particular crisis where you have no other access to finance via universal services, such as welfare benefits. If it is assessed that you are in a financial crisis, then the Team Manager can agree to support you financially. If an emergency payment is agreed it will usually be equivalent to £9 per day in either cash or food supplies until you are in receipt of other finance.

Ask Us a Question

Want to know more about our Care Leavers' Offer? Get in touch with us by emailing IFTLocalOfferQuestion@doncaster.gov.uk (Please note, emails to this inbox are monitored Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm).

Email us 

Our offer to you

Last updated: 31 August 2022 22:20:12

Did you find this page helpful?