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I have not worked for almost 3 years, I suffered bad depression & health problems so was signed off (i lived off savings)
A year ago I had my daughter & signed on- last week I recieved a letter from job centre saying I had to attend a "back to work" meeting next month. I wouldn't have a problem going back to work part time (would be nice to get put of house) however my daughter suffers bad asthma & eczema, been in & out hospital since birth & under a consultant, she suffers about 3 attacks per week, even with pumps so I'm so scarred to leave her in some1 else's care- she goes nursery 1 day a week for a few hours (had attacks at nursery before) would job centre take her health into account?
Also if I go back to work I believe government would pay 80% towards nursery fees but all my wages would go towards the rest off the fees so I wouldn't be taking home any money
I never even thought about DLA to be honest but I will defo look into it, thank you so much
I didn't either, and my son was 8 before it was suggest I applied.
Its so sad that it needs to be considered, I know...
I also just read that you can claim if your child has allergies, my daughter is allergic to egg, dairy & soya....I'm guessing they go by how bad the child suffers? Does being a career mean you say where child goes etc, more than the non-parental parent I mean? Does it change the "rights" so to speak?
im going to call first thing Monday & put in a claim, I have all medical / hospital records to back me up
Hi Tinkerbell2, had a "back to work" interview in a job centre not so long ago, i mentioned that my son may be autistic to them and they were very helpful and supportive in terms of what i could and could not do, in terms of being able to care for my son what i would be entitled to. The people you deal with tend to work along side us single parents in deciding what the next step should be. So dont really worry about it to much. You have until your LO is 5 by law before they start to get on your case in going back to work. And if you do get carer's status, then they give you more time depending on the need of the child of course.
They put me in touch with Homestart, which is a volunteer organisation that employ parents to go and visit other parents who have difficulties with bringing up their kids. So they do work with you and only when you are ready.
Also i think Carer just strengths your position in terms of your childs care and needs more so that the non parent.
Thank you Spanish Gothic (love the name) this has been very helpful, it's so much easier talking to people who have also attended these interviews So I have more of an understanding about what to expect
i was scared at first when i was told i needed to attend and no one knew why or could tell me anything about it.
I have had two lovely people who i have dealt with at the job centre and as long as you explain clearly whats going on, they will endevour to help
Hi Tinkerbell2, you have had some good input here.
Even if A is not entitled to DLA, as a single parent you can stay on Income Support until she is 5.
Let us know how it goes 
I used to have back to work interviews with the lone-parent advisor. I believe your daughter is too young for you to be in a position where you 'have' to work. They have the meetings to see if they can help you if you want to go back to work...
My lone parent advisor was really lovely and supportive.
Have you claimed DLA for your daughter? With the problems she has, she may qualify. Depending on the rate awarded you could then claim Carer's allowance to care for her. This would mean your role would be that of Carer and again mean that you would not be in a position of having to work. Perhaps you can have a chat with your GP or the consultant to see if they feel you could claim.