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Important update from TheSchoolRun

For the past 13 years, TheSchoolRun has been run by a small team of mums working from home, dedicated to providing quality educational resources to primary school parents. Unfortunately, rising supplier costs and falling revenue have made it impossible for us to continue operating, and we’ve had to make the difficult decision to close. The good news: We’ve arranged for another educational provider to take over many of our resources. These will be hosted on a new portal, where the content will be updated and expanded to support your child’s learning.

What this means for subscribers:

  • Your subscription is still active, and for now, you can keep using the website as normal — just log in with your usual details to access all our articles and resources*.
  • In a few months, all resources will move to the new portal. You’ll continue to have access there until your subscription ends. We’ll send you full details nearer the time.
  • As a thank you for your support, we’ll also be sending you 16 primary school eBooks (worth £108.84) to download and keep.

A few changes to be aware of:

  • The Learning Journey weekly email has ended, but your child’s plan will still be updated on your dashboard each Monday. Just log in to see the recommended worksheets.
  • The 11+ weekly emails have now ended. We sent you all the remaining emails in the series at the end of March — please check your inbox (and spam folder) if you haven’t seen them. You can also follow the full programme here: 11+ Learning Journey.

If you have any questions, please contact us at [email protected]. Thank you for being part of our journey it’s been a privilege to support your family’s learning.

*If you need to reset your password, it will still work as usual. Please check your spam folder if the reset email doesn’t appear in your inbox.

Child Benefit explained for parents of primary school children

Child Benefit explained for parents
Child Benefit can help significantly with the cost of raising a child. Here's what you need to know about what it is, who is eligible, and how much it's worth.

Child Benefit is money paid to parents or other people responsible for bringing up a child. You are entitled to Child Benefit for every child you have (or are responsible for).

Are you eligible for Child Benefit?

You can claim Child Benefit if you’re responsible for bringing up:
 

  • A child under the age of 16.
  • A child under the age of 20 if they stay in approved education or training. 

Child Benefit can only be paid to one parent or guardian. So for example, if you and your partner are separated and your child splits their time between you, only one of you can claim (usually the person who the child spends the most time with).

How much Child Benefit could you get?

Currently, Child Benefit is paid at £21.15 per week for your oldest child, and £14 per week for each younger child. It’s usually paid every four weeks, but you may be able to get weekly payments if you’re a single parent or claim certain other benefits.
 
If you or your partner earn over £50,000, you will be subject to a tax charge against your Child Benefit, which effectively reduces the amount you receive. If you or your partner earn over £60,000 per year, the tax charge is the same as the full amount of Child Benefit, so you’re no better off for receiving the benefit.

This tax charge kicks in as soon as one parent earns over £50,000. So you and your partner could both earn £49,000 (a total of £98,000) and receive the full amount of Child Benefit – but if you earn £50,001 and your partner earns nothing (or vice versa), you will be affected by the tax charge.
 
The tax charge is paid each year through HMRC self-assessment (tax return). Alternatively, you can opt not to receive Child Benefit if you don’t want to pay the charge.
 
You can use the Child Benefit tax calculator to get an estimate of how much Child Benefit you’re eligible for, taking into account any tax charges.

How to apply for Child Benefit

You need to fill in the Child Benefit claim form CH2. If you have, or become responsible for, another child, you’ll need to fill in another form to add their Child Benefit.

How to use Child Benefit

You can use your Child Benefit for anything you like.

With thanks to Turn2Us, the charity that helps people in financial need gain access to welfare benefits.