Ceredigion Cost of Living E- Bulletin
‘Support for younger people- financial education’
4. Supporting yourself financially - a guide for young adults aged 16 to 24
5. Education Maintenance Allowance
7. Find the perfect student bank account
10. Student and graduate money
11. Financial support for further and higher education
13. My Travel Pass
14. Period Dignity in Ceredigion Communities
15. Free support with numeracy skills
If your child already gets Free School Meals, there could be more financial help available through the School Essentials Grant.
This support can help with essentials like school uniform and equipment to make sure your child is ready for the school day.
You could be entitled to financial help of up to £200 for:
- school uniform, including coats and footwear
- school activities: this could include learning a musical instrument, sports kit and other equipment for after school activities
- classroom essentials: this could include pens, pencils and school bags
Free School Meals
If your circumstances have changed recently, or if you receive certain benefits, your child may be eligible for Free School Meals.
Free School Meals promote healthy eating, increase the variety of food your child might eat, and can improve their behaviour and social skills.
If your child is eligible for Free School Meals, your school could receive additional funding.
Free Breakfast Club
The aim of the Free Breakfast in Primary Schools scheme is to provide children with a healthy breakfast before the start of the school day.
For further information visit the Free breakfast in primary schools: information for parents and carers page on the Welsh Government's website.
When you first start to support yourself financially, there are a lot of things to think about.
Although it can seem complicated, in this guide we’ve listed the most important things to consider, and point you to our best guides to help you get on the right track with your money.
Education Maintenance Allowance
Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA) is a weekly payment of £40 to help 16 to 18 year olds with the costs of further education.
Payments are made every 2 weeks as long as you meet your school or college’s attendance requirements.
Child Trust Fund
If your child was born between 1 September 2002 and 2 January 2011, they may have a surprise windfall waiting for them!
Child Trust Funds (CTF) are long-term, tax-free saving accounts – worth an average of £2,000. If you didn’t open the account, HMRC may have opened one on behalf of your child.
If your teen is 16 or 17, they can take over responsibility for their CTF account. Once your child is 18, they can access and withdraw the money from their account.
If you don’t have details of their CTF account to share with them, they can ask HMRC who their CTF provider is by completing an online form. They’ll need your National Insurance number for this, which they can easily find in the HMRC app.
Find the perfect student bank account
The Money and Pensions Service (MaPS) has refreshed its bank account comparison tool on its consumer-facing site, MoneyHelper, to help make choosing the right bank account even simpler.
One specific group who will benefit from the tool is students, as the tool includes a filter designed specifically to compare student bank accounts.
Understanding your payslip
Whether it’s your first payslip or if you’ve been working for years, it’s still important to know how your pay is worked out.
Your payslip contains important information, including your payroll number, your gross and net pay, and usually your tax code.
It’s important to understand your payslip and how to make sure you’re being paid the right amount.
Almost all workers in the UK are entitled to be paid at least the National Minimum Wage, or the National Living Wage if you’re 21 or over.
It’s important to make sure you’re being paid the right rate and know what to do if you don’t think you are.
Student and graduate money
Student money is more than just your student loan.
We’ve looked at credit cards, bank accounts for when you’re studying and when you graduate, and the best ways to deal with any debts you might have built up.
Financial support for further and higher education
If you’re going on to further and higher education and need financial support, there are options.
Here are the grants, loans and bursaries available in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, and where to go for more information.
YGam
YGam charity offers support and education to young people with gambling and gambling problems.
On their website there is a Hub for students (mainly university) where they can receive more information about the support available to them should they need support and education about gambling.
My Travel Pass
My Travel Card offers young people aged 16 – 21 a discount of around 30% on bus journeys in Wales.
All participating bus companies in the scheme can be found at: https://mytravelpass.gov.wales/en/more-about-your-pass/
Period Dignity in Ceredigion Communities
Here is a directory of community groups, organisations and other settings that stock free period products for those who need them. A range of products are available at each location including eco-friendly, plastic free or reusable options. Take what you need, no questions asked.
If you are a community group or organisation, who wish to offer free period products to people within your local community, please contact perioddignity@ceredigion.gov.uk.
Free support with numeracy skills
If you, or someone you support, struggle with working out your finances, Dysgu Bro Ceredigion offers free numeracy courses to give you confidence with calculating your household budget and working out bills.
Courses are available across Ceredigion online and in person for anyone aged 19 and over. Contact Dysgu Bro on 01970 633040 or email admin@dysgubro.org.uk for more details.
Childcare Support
Looking for Childcare?
Please visit our website for information on help with choosing and finding childcare:
Childcare and Play - Ceredigion County Council or visit the Family Information Services Child Care Information Wales.
Childcare support for 2 year olds
Flying Start is a Welsh Government initiative which provides support and opportunities for families with children under the age of 4.
Check if you are eligible for childcare support for your 2 year old with our postcode checker: Flying Start - Ceredigion County Council
Childcare support for 3-4 year olds
The Childcare Offer provides 30 hours a week of funded Foundation Learning Provision (early education) and childcare for eligible working parents of three- and four-year-olds for up to 48 weeks of the year.
Visit our website for more information Childcare Offer for Wales - Ceredigion County Council
Help with Childcare Costs
Most families are entitled to some financial help towards the cost of childcare. To compare the different choices and find out if you are eligible for support with Childcare costs visit Childcare Choices. Remember to choose Wales as support is different to the England childcare support.
Head to the County Council’s website for information on Cost-of-living support :
The next bulletin will come out on 27th of September 2024.
The theme will be ‘Food’.
If you have information that you would like us to include please send it to Clic at clic@ceredigion.gov.uk or call 01545 570881
