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Children's Handbook Scotland | 2024/25

Chapter 10: Young people leaving care

• 1. Universal credit
• Exceptions
• 2. Other benefits
• Income support, income-based jobseeker's allowance and housing benefit
• Health benefits
• Best Start grant and Best Start foods
• Scottish Welfare Fund payments
• Other benefits and tax credits
• 3. Financial support from the local authority for 16/17-year-old care leavers
• Who can get financial support
• The amount of help
• How you are paid
• Treatment of local authority payments for benefits
• 4. Other help from the local authority
• Help with accommodation
• Support once you are 18
• Using local authority payments to pay your carer
• 5. Other help
• 6. Challenging local authority decisions
• Decisions you can challenge
• How to appeal
• The appeal process
• The decision
• Withdrawing your appeal
• Further appeals

Many 16/17 year olds who have been ‘looked after and accommodated’ by the local authority (sometimes called ‘looked after away from home’) cannot get universal credit (UC) or housing benefit (HB). Instead, the local authority is responsible for providing support under section 29 of the Children (Scotland) Act 1995. Local authorities often refer to this help as ‘after care’, ‘after-care services’ or ‘leaving care services’. Young people in this situation are often referred to as ‘care-experienced’ or ‘care leavers’. There are no special rules about benefits for care leavers when they turn 18, although they may still be eligible for support from the local authority that looked after them.

Some 16 and 17 year olds are still ‘looked after and accommodated’ by the local authority. See here for when they may be able to get UC.

Note: benefits other than UC, income support, income-based jobseekers’ allowance and HB are not affected.

Continuing care

Some young people who are looked after by the local authority can ask to remain in their placement after they stop being officially ‘looked after’.1s26A C(S)A 1995 This is called ‘continuing care’. Continuing care means the same accommodation and other assistance as was being provided for the young person before they stopped being looked after by the local authority; it can last up to the young person’s 21st birthday.2s26A(4) C(S)A 1995; Art 3 Continuing Care (Scotland) Order 2015 No.158

 

1     s26A C(S)A 1995 »

2     s26A(4) C(S)A 1995; Art 3 Continuing Care (Scotland) Order 2015 No.158 »