Is it worth it

A question about : Is it worth it

Hello Martin,
Due to circumstances beyond my control i find myself a single parent. I have a job which i find increasingly more difficult to do due to the demands made upon me by the needs of my children. I have checked with the tax credit agency and i have found that if i gave up my job and did a job with less hours the money i would recieve means that i am currently only Ј40. better off anyway per month.
The problem i am faced with is that the pension i have at work is a final salary scheme. I have worked out though that if i packed in my job now i would recieve only Ј70. per month from it. I am wondering if i should get another pension when i get another job but the amount i could put away would not be very much, my father gets a small pension which puts him only Ј6. over the threshhold for benefits and he really struggles to pay his way. I was told that it's not really worth bothering unless you can put quite a lot in the pot because i would proberbly end up struggling in my retirement just like my dad. They said put your money into property or something and let the state take care of you in retirement. If you advise me to get a pension where should i go for advise and how much will it cost because as you can imagine my budget is very tight. I am 40yrs old and i own my house how much of a difference will that make to my status. thanx.

Best answers:

• When you know what your wages would be from another job, it is best to double check this by going to your local Citizens Advice Bureau who can do a Tax Credit calculation for you and also advise on other benefits or anything else too while you are there. Inland Revenue have been known to get things wrong. Quite a lot in fact (!)
• Why not stay in your current job and keep your pension.
  As a single parent your company is obliged to consider more flexible working including shorter hours to fit in with your childcare responsibilities. (unless its a very small employer)