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Children's Handbook Scotland | 2023/24

4. Best Start grant

• Pregnancy and baby payment
• Early learning payment
• School-age payment
• Responsible for the child

The Best Start grant is made up of three different payments:

•the pregnancy and baby payment of £707.25 or £353.65;
•the early learning payment of £294.70;
•the school-age payment of £294.70.

To get the Best Start grant, you must normally reside in Scotland and satisfy some other residence conditions. See CPAG’s Welfare Benefits and Tax Credits Handbook for more details.

The Best Start grant is administered by Social Security Scotland.

Pregnancy and baby payment

This is a grant of £707.25 (or £353.65 if you are responsible for another child aged under 16) to help with the costs of having a new baby. To qualify, unless you are under 18 (or in some situations under 20), you have to be getting a qualifying benefit.1Regs 11 and 12 and Sch 2 para 1(e) EYA(BSG)(S) Regs You or your partner must be getting one of the following:

•universal credit (UC) (including if your award ended within the last month);
•income support;
•income-based jobseeker’s allowance;
•income-related employment and support allowance;
•pension credit (PC);
•housing benefit;
•child tax credit (CTC);
•working tax credit.

You can claim from the 24th week of pregnancy up to six months after the baby is born. You may also qualify if you become responsible for a baby who is under the age of one – eg, as a kinship carer or where a child is placed with you for adoption. In these situations, you have to claim before the child’s first birthday and you have to be responsible for the child (see here).2Sch 2 EYA(BSG)(S) Regs

 

1     Regs 11 and 12 and Sch 2 para 1(e) EYA(BSG)(S) Regs »

2     Sch 2 EYA(BSG)(S) Regs »

Early learning payment

This is a grant of £294.70 to help with the costs of having a young child aged between two and three and a half. To qualify, unless you are under 18 (or in some situations under 20), you have to be getting one of the qualifying benefits listed on here and be responsible for the child (see here). You must claim between the child’s second birthday and the date six months after her/his third birthday.1Sch 3 EYA(BSG)(S) Regs

 

1     Sch 3 EYA(BSG)(S) Regs »

School-age payment

This is a grant of £294.70 to help with the costs of a child reaching school age. To qualify, unless you are under 18 (or in some situations under 20), you have to be getting a qualifying benefit listed on here and be responsible for the child (see here).

If your child’s date of birth falls between 1 March 2018 and 28 February 2019 (inclusive), you have to claim between 1 June 2023 and 29 February 2024.1Sch 4 EYA(BSG)(S) Regs

 

1     Sch 4 EYA(BSG)(S) Regs »

Responsible for the child

You count as responsible for a child for the Best Start grant if any of the following applies on the day you claim.1Regs 9 and 10 EYA(BSG)(S) Regs

•The child is your dependant. S/he counts as your dependant if:
◦you are getting child benefit for her/him; or
◦you are getting CTC and s/he is included in your award; or
◦you are getting UC and s/he is included in your award; or
◦you are getting a child amount for her/him in your PC.
•You are under 20, the parent of the child, you normally live with her/him and you are a dependant in someone else’s child benefit, CTC, UC or PC.
•You have adopted the child under Scottish law, or under the law of another jurisdiction recognised under Scottish law.
•The child has been placed with you for adoption by an approved adoption agency.
•You are the appointed guardian of the child.
•You are a kinship carer for the child and the child lives with you either under the terms of a kinship care order or under an agreement with a local authority where the child is a looked-after child.
•You have been granted a parental order following a surrogate pregnancy.

 

1     Regs 9 and 10 EYA(BSG)(S) Regs »