Quardians allowance
Guardian's allowance is paid to a person taking an orphan child into the family.
The conditions
To qualify, the claimant must be entitled to child benefit for the child (see page 6) and normally both parents of the child must be dead. But the allowance can sometimes be paid where:
one parent is dead but the parents were divorced; or
the child is illegitimate and the mother is dead; or
one parent was missing when the other died and cannot be traced; or
the surviving parent is serving a long term of imprisonment.
One of the child's parents must have been born in England, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland-where this condition is not satisfied there is a special residence test.
Amount payable
The weekly rates are:
first or only eligible child £7-40; and \£6-10 for each child from April 1978 each other such child
when child benefit is increased.
£6.90
Guardian's allowance is taxable.
How to claim
Claim forms are available from local social security offices. The allowance should be claimed not later than three months after the child joins the family, otherwise some benefit may be lost.
Further information: Leaflet NI14.
Handicapped people
Handicapped people can take advantage of numerous services provided for them by national and local authorities in addition to the benefits described throughout this booklet.
Further information: Leaflet HB1 (from local social security offices or social services departments of local authorities) or in Scotland "Help for Handicapped People in Scotland" (from Regional Authority Social Work Departments).
Home helps
Domestic and other help, where this is needed to relieve the domestic situation in the home when someone in the household is sick, handicapped, aged etc, may be provided by a local authority. Most local authorities make a charge for service and this is often based on the means of the household and the number of hours the home help is in attendance.
Further information: Local social services departments.
Hospital fares
Patients
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Patients who are getting supplementary benefit or family income supplement
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