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Children's Handbook Scotland
2026/27
Last updated: 13 October 2026
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  • Author and acknowledgements
    • Further training, information and advice
  • How to use this Handbook
    • Up to date
    • Structure of the Handbook
  • Abbreviations
  • Means-tested benefit rates 2026/27
  • Non-means-tested benefit rates 2026/27
  • Chapter 1: Benefits
    • 1. Introduction
      • Benefit cap
    • 2. Adult disability payment
      • Who can get adult disability payment
        • Disability test: daily living and mobility components
      • Amount of benefit
    • 3. Best Start grant
      • Pregnancy and baby payment
      • Early learning payment
      • School-age payment
      • Responsible for the child
    • 4. Carer support payment
      • Who can get carer support payment
      • The disabled person’s benefit
      • Breaks from caring
      • Overlapping benefits
      • Carer element, carer premium and carer addition
      • Amount of benefit
    • 5. Child benefit
      • Who can get child benefit
        • Who counts as a child
        • Who counts as a qualifying young person
        • Relevant education
        • Approved training
        • Extension period
        • Terminal date
        • Responsible for a child
      • Priority between claimants
      • Amount of benefit
    • 6. Child disability payment
      • Who can get child disability payment
        • Disability test: care component
          • Day care conditions
          • Night care conditions
          • Attention with bodily functions
        • Disability test: mobility component
      • Amount of benefit
    • 7. New-style employment and support allowance
      • Who can get new-style employment and support allowance
        • National insurance contributions
      • Amount of benefit
    • 8. Funeral support payment
      • Who can get a funeral support payment
    • 9. Guardian’s allowance
      • Who can get guardian’s allowance
        • Who is an eligible child
        • Parents and adoptive parents
      • Amount of benefit
    • 10. Health benefits
      • Who is exempt from charges
        • Qualifying benefits
        • Exempt groups
      • Low income scheme
      • Best Start foods
    • 11. Housing benefit
      • Who can get housing benefit
      • Who cannot get housing benefit
      • Amount of benefit
        • Step 1: calculate the maximum housing benefit
        • Step 2: deduct amounts for non-dependants from maximum housing benefit
        • Step 3: if you get means-tested benefits
        • Step 4: if you do not get means-tested benefits
          • Personal allowances
          • Premiums
          • Components
        • Step 5: work out your weekly income
        • Step 6: calculate your housing benefit
      • Discretionary housing payments
    • 12. Pension age disability payment
      • Who can get pension age disability payment
        • Terminal illness
        • Disability test
      • Amount of benefit
    • 13. Pension credit
      • Who can get pension credit
        • Pension age
      • Amount of benefit
      • Guarantee credit
        • Step 1: calculate your appropriate minimum guarantee
        • Step 2: work out your weekly income
        • Step 3: deduct income from appropriate minimum guarantee
      • Savings credit
    • 14. Scottish child payment
      • Who can get Scottish child payment
        • Responsible for a child
        • Qualifying benefits
      • Priority between claimants
      • Amount of benefit
    • 15. The Scottish Welfare Fund
      • Crisis grants
      • Community care grants
    • 16. Statutory adoption pay
      • Who can get statutory adoption pay
      • Amount of benefit
    • 17. Universal credit
      • Who can get universal credit
      • Amount of benefit
        • Step 1: capital
        • Step 2: work out your maximum amount
          • Standard allowance
          • Additional elements
        • Step 3: work out your earnings and how much can be ignored
        • Step 4: work out your other income and how much can be ignored
        • Step 5: calculate your total income
        • Step 6: calculate your universal credit entitlement
      • Claimant commitment
      • Monthly assessment period
  • Chapter 2: Claims, decisions and challenges
    • 1. How to claim benefits
      • Information to support your claim
      • Backdating
    • 2. Decisions and delays
      • Interim payments and short-term advances
        • Payments on account of housing benefit
      • Crisis grants
    • 3. Challenging decisions and complaints
      • Appeals
        • How to appeal
      • Complaints
        • DWP complaints
          • Complaining about the DWP
          • Complaining to the Independent Case Examiner
        • HMRC
          • Complaining to HMRC
          • Complaining to the Adjudicator
        • Using your MP
        • Social Security Scotland complaints
        • Local authority complaints
        • Complaining to the Ombudsman
          • The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman
          • The Scottish Public Services Ombudsman
      • Compensation payments
      • Judicial review
  • Chapter 3: Children in hospital
    • 1. Child benefit and guardian’s allowance
    • 2. Means-tested benefits
      • Universal credit
      • Pension credit
      • Housing benefit
        • If your child is in hospital for more than 52 weeks
      • Scottish child payment
    • 3. Non-means-tested benefits
      • Disability benefits
      • Carer support payment
        • Time off from caring
        • Carer element, carer premium and carer addition
    • 4. Help visiting your child
    • 5. Young Patients Family Fund
  • Chapter 4: Disabled children in care homes
    • 1. Benefits for children in care homes
      • Child benefit and guardian’s allowance
      • Means-tested benefits
        • Universal credit
          • If your child counts as looked after
          • If your child does not count as looked after
        • Pension credit
        • Housing benefit
          • If your child counts as looked after
          • If your child does not count as looked after
        • Scottish child payment
      • Non-means-tested benefits
        • Disability benefits
          • Linking rules
        • Carer support payment
          • Time off from caring
          • Arranging care breaks
          • Carer element, carer premium and carer addition
      • Help visiting your child
    • 2. More than one stay in a care home
      • Linking rules
    • 3. When your child comes home
      • Child benefit
      • Means-tested benefits
        • Universal credit
        • Pension credit
        • Housing benefit
      • Non-means-tested benefits
        • Disability benefits
        • Carer support payment
          • Carer element, carer premium and carer addition
  • Chapter 5: Disabled children at residential school
    • 1. Child benefit and guardian’s allowance
    • 2. Means-tested benefits
      • Universal credit
        • If your child is not looked after by the local authority
        • If your child is looked after by the local authority
      • Pension credit
      • Housing benefit
        • If your child is not looked after by the local authority
          • If the absence is not temporary
        • If your child is looked after by the local authority
      • Scottish child payment
    • 3. Non-means-tested benefits
      • Disability benefits
        • If your child comes home temporarily
      • Carer support payment
        • Time off from caring
        • If your child comes home temporarily
        • Carer element, carer premium or carer addition
    • 4. Help visiting your child
  • Chapter 6: Children who are looked after and accommodated
    • 1. Benefits for children who are looked after and accommodated
      • Child benefit
      • Means-tested benefits
        • Universal credit
        • Pension credit
        • Housing benefit
        • Scottish child payment
      • Non-means-tested benefits
        • Disability benefits
          • Foster care
          • Residential accommodation
        • Carer support payment
      • Other benefits
        • Health benefits
    • 2. When your child comes home
      • Child benefit
      • Means-tested benefits
        • Universal credit
        • Pension credit
        • Housing benefit
        • Scottish child payment
      • Non-means-tested benefits
        • Disability benefits
        • Carer support payment
          • If someone else is claiming carer support payment
  • Chapter 7: Children living with kinship carers
    • 1. What is kinship care
    • 2. Financial help from the local authority
      • Section 22 payments
      • Section 50 payments
      • Regulation 33/Section 110 payments
        • Kinship care allowances guidance
      • Impact on benefits
    • 3. Benefits if a child is not looked after
      • Child benefit and guardian’s allowance
        • Child benefit
          • The effect of local authority payments
        • Guardian’s allowance
      • Means-tested benefits
        • Universal credit
        • Pension credit
          • The effect of local authority payments
        • Housing benefit
          • The effect of local authority payments
        • Scottish child payment
      • Non-means-tested benefits
        • Disability benefits
          • Child disability payment
          • Disability benefits for adults
          • The effect of local authority payments
        • Carer support payment
          • The effect of local authority payments
      • Other benefits
        • Scottish Welfare Fund payments
        • Best Start grant
          • Pregnancy and baby payment
          • Early learning payment
          • School-age payment
    • 4. Benefits if a child is looked after
      • Child benefit and guardian’s allowance
      • Means-tested benefits
        • Universal credit
        • Pension credit
        • Housing benefit
          • The effect of local authority payments
        • Scottish child payment
      • Non-means-tested benefits
        • Child disability payment and other disability benefits
        • Carer support payment
      • National insurance credits
      • Other benefits
  • Chapter 8: Children living with foster carers
    • 1. What is foster care
      • Public fostering
      • Private fostering
    • 2. Benefits for foster carers
      • Child benefit
      • Means-tested benefits
        • Universal credit
        • Pension credit
        • Housing benefit
        • Scottish child payment
      • Non-means-tested benefits
        • Disability benefits
        • Carer support payment
      • National insurance credits
  • Chapter 9: Adoption
    • 1. Adoption allowances
    • 2. Benefits when a child is placed with you for adoption
      • Child benefit
      • Statutory adoption pay, statutory paternity pay and statutory shared parental pay
        • Statutory adoption pay
        • Statutory paternity pay
        • Statutory shared parental pay
      • Means-tested benefits
        • Universal credit
        • Pension credit
        • Housing benefit
        • Scottish child payment
      • Non-means-tested benefits
        • Child disability payment
        • Carer support payment
      • Other benefits
        • Best Start grant
    • 3. Benefits once you have adopted a child
      • Child benefit
      • Statutory adoption pay, statutory paternity pay and statutory shared parental pay
      • Means-tested benefits
        • Universal credit
        • Pension credit
        • Housing benefit
        • Scottish child payment
      • Non-means-tested benefits
        • Child disability payment
        • Carer support payment
      • Other benefits
        • Best Start grant
        • Health benefits
  • Chapter 10: Young people leaving care
    • 1. Universal credit
      • Exceptions
    • 2. Other benefits
      • Housing benefit
      • Health benefits
      • Best Start grant and Best Start foods
      • Scottish Welfare Fund payments
      • Other benefits
    • 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
      • Care leaver payment
      • 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
  • Appendix: Abbreviations used in the notes
    • Acts of Parliament
      • Regulations
      • Other abbreviations

Breadcrumb

  1. Children's Handbook Scotland 2026/27
  2. Chapter 1: Benefits

15. The Scottish Welfare Fund

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