Contribution job seekers???

[lsharp]

Hi
Im posting for a friend of mine she recently lost her job and is currently lookimg but is claiming contribution job seekers i believe this is something to do with national insurance payments she has made...anyway her payments stop in 6 months which will be 4th feb nxt year...she is pregnant due 15th feb....does anyone know what happens next as her partner works full time so she isnt eligiable for income based job seekers as he earns. Surely they cant expect her to seek work at 30+ weeks lol any help is great thank u :))

[bednobs]

she will probably get maternity allowance (MA)

[bednobs]

http://www.direct.gov...pchildren/DG_10018869

[Shazza36]

As long as she has worked and paid National Insurance for 26 weeks out of the 66 weeks before the baby is due she will qualify for Maternity Allowance paid by DWP her adviser at the Jobcentre will discuss this nearer the time.

[THECORBYLOON]

Shazza, not quite right. You don’t need to have paid National Insurance (NI) to get Maternity Allowance (MA), the rate is based on average earnings. The rate payable at the moment is 90% of the average earnings (they must be at least £30 per week) or £128.73, whichever is lower.

The claimant chooses any thirteen weeks during the sixty-six week Test Period and the average gross figure in those thirteen weeks is used to work out the payable rate.

When a claimant is entitled to JSA and MA, the JSA stops when the MA becomes payable. The earliest it will stop is eleven weeks before the wee one’s due and the latest will be six weeks before the wee one’s due.