Family, care & life events

Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP) is paid by your employer for up to 39 weeks: 90% of your average weekly earnings for the first 6 weeks, then the lower of £194.32 (2026/27 rate) or 90% of earnings for the next 33 weeks. Self-employed or recently changed jobs? You may qualify for Maternity Allowance instead, paid by the DWP.

Statutory Paternity Pay is two weeks at the same flat rate. Shared Parental Leave lets parents split up to 50 weeks of leave (37 paid) between them, in chunks if needed.

UK working parents now have access to several layers of childcare support. You usually have to apply through a government portal — it isn't automatic.

There is no single autism benefit. Most families claim Disability Living Allowance (England, Wales, NI) or Child Disability Payment (Scotland) — tax-free, not means-tested, based on extra care or getting-about needs compared with other children the same age. A diagnosis is not required. Official: www.gov.uk/disability-living-allowance-children. Full stack: UK benefits for a child with autism.

2026/27 DLA care rates are £30.30 / £76.70 / £114.60 a week; mobility £30.30 or £80. Middle or highest care can unlock Carer's Allowance (£86.45 a week) if you care 35+ hours and earn £204 a week or less after deductions. Universal Credit can add a disabled child amount of £164.79 or £514.71 a month.

Parent-written daily-life and EHCP guides: [Autism Parent Guide](autismparentguide.org*) — start with [financial support](autismparentguide.org/daily-life/financial-support*) and [EHCP for an autistic child](autismparentguide.org/school/ehcp-guide*). Independent information, not HM Government.

Child Benefit is £27.05/week for the first child and £17.90/week for each subsequent child (2026/27). Always claim it — even if you'll have to repay it — because it gives the non-earning parent National Insurance credits towards the State Pension.

If either parent earns over £60,000, you start repaying via the High Income Child Benefit Charge (HICBC). At £80,000 the charge equals the benefit. Above £60,000 you can either keep claiming and repay via Self Assessment, or opt out of payments and just register for the NI credits.

How to make a will UK: put your wishes in writing, then sign in wet ink with two independent adult witnesses in the same room. Writing a will is not reserved to solicitors. For a straightforward England and Wales estate you can make a will online from around £35, instruct a solicitor, or use seasonal free wills campaigns — then print and witness it. Official overview: www.gov.uk/make-will. Full explainer: how to make a will in the UK.

If you die without a will (intestate), statute decides who inherits — not you. Unmarried partners get nothing, however long you have lived together. Stepchildren inherit nothing unless adopted. A spouse with children takes personal possessions, a £322,000 statutory legacy and half the rest. That is why making a will UK households delay is usually the one that would have protected a partner or named a guardian.

How much does a will cost UK in 2026: DIY templates from £0; a simple [online will UK](swiftwill.co.uk*) from around £35 (SwiftWill is £35 single / £55 mirror wills, instant PDF, free lifetime updates — document-prep software, not a law firm); solicitor-reviewed platforms from around £90; high-street solicitors typically £150–£500; charity free wills (Free Wills Month, Will Aid) for a suggested donation. Live comparison: [will cost UK](swiftwill.co.uk/will-cost*).

A will writing service should give you executors, guardians, gifts, residue and a witnessing card — not a silent subscription or an executor upsell. [Make a will online](swiftwill.co.uk/how-to-make-a-will*) only if your estate is simple and in England or Wales. Skip it for trusts, foreign property, Inheritance Tax planning or blended-family protection. Scotland uses prior rights, legal rights and confirmation — Scotland wills and intestacy. Intestacy hub: wills and intestacy. Free-will pitfalls: free and charity will schemes.

Probate is the later process of administering an estate. Estates under the £325,000 nil-rate band are usually free of Inheritance Tax. The main residence nil-rate band can add up to £175,000 when leaving a home to direct descendants. A will does not replace a Lasting Power of Attorney — that covers decisions while you are alive.

To change name on passport you apply for a new British passport — you cannot amend the printed name on the old book. Send your original wet-ink [change of name deed](instantdeedpoll.co.uk/change-of-name-deed*) plus one name-in-use document. Adult online applications cost £102; child online £66.50. There is no extra HM Passport Office surcharge. Official: www.gov.uk/changing-passport-information. Full explainer: change name on passport.

A home-printed unenrolled [deed poll](instantdeedpoll.co.uk*) is accepted if you sign it in both names with witnesses. Enrolment is not required. Fastest name-in-use route: free [DVLA licence update](instantdeedpoll.co.uk/change-name-driving-licence*), then the passport. If you only took a spouse’s surname exactly as on the marriage certificate, send that certificate instead of a deed.

Instant Deed Poll is an independent document service — not HM Government and not a law firm. Adult PDFs are typically £14.99 once. Partner walkthrough: [change name on passport](instantdeedpoll.co.uk/change-name-passport*). After the name settles, [remake the will](swiftwill.co.uk*) so probate matches your ID. Deed poll hub: deed poll name change.

A GB driving-licence name change is free. Post form D1 (car or motorcycle) or D2 (lorry or bus) with your current licence and original wet-ink [change of name deed](instantdeedpoll.co.uk/change-of-name-deed*) — or a marriage certificate if you only took a spouse’s surname printed on it. You can still drive while you wait. You can be fined up to £1,000 if you do not tell DVLA about a name or address change. Official: www.gov.uk/change-name-driving-licence. Full explainer: change name on driving licence.

Do the licence before the passport — it is usually the fastest name-in-use document. Then work the rest of the list: who to notify after a name change. Instant Deed Poll is an independent document service, not HM Government. Partner walkthrough: [change name on driving licence](instantdeedpoll.co.uk/change-name-driving-licence*). Also update every V5C log book. Northern Ireland uses the DVA.

A Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) lets someone you trust handle your affairs if you can't — for example after a stroke or dementia diagnosis. There are two types: Property & Financial Affairs, and Health & Welfare. Set them up while you have mental capacity; afterwards it's far harder and more expensive — a deputyship through the Court of Protection (£432 to apply per type in 2026, plus yearly OPG supervision).

Application costs £82 per LPA through the Office of the Public Guardian. People on certain benefits or low incomes qualify for a fee remission or exemption. If you only need to manage benefits, a DWP appointee is enough — that is not a deputyship.

In England, if your assets are above £23,250 you pay for your own care (the 'self-funder' threshold). Below £14,250 the local authority pays in full; between the two, you contribute on a sliding scale. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland use different thresholds. Our care home funding guide walks through self-funding, council support, NHS Continuing Healthcare and deprivation-of-assets rules.

NHS Continuing Healthcare is fully funded by the NHS — not means-tested — if your primary need is medical rather than social. Many families wrongly assume they don't qualify and don't even apply. Beacon CHC offers a free helpline and assessment service.

On divorce, pensions are usually the largest financial asset and the most commonly overlooked. They can be split via a Pension Sharing Order, offset against other assets, or attached for future payments. Get specialist advice — splitting fairly often makes more difference than the family home.

Free mediation is available through the Family Mediation Voucher Scheme (up to £500 contribution per family) and via Citizens Advice. Court should usually be the last resort, not the first.

The Child Maintenance Service (CMS) calculates maintenance owed by a non-resident parent based on gross income, number of children, and overnight stays with the paying parent. Many separated parents reach a 'family-based arrangement' privately — cheaper and more flexible. CMS uses 'Direct Pay' (free) or 'Collect & Pay' (charged at 20% to the paying parent and 4% to the receiving parent).

Use the gov.uk CMS calculator to estimate liability. CMS arrears can be enforced via deductions from earnings, bank accounts or even passport revocation.

Marriage and civil partnership give automatic legal protections — unmarried partners get none of them. The main ones: spouse/civil partner exemption from Inheritance Tax (unlimited), no Capital Gains Tax on assets transferred between spouses, automatic inheritance under intestacy, and the right to claim Bereavement Support Payments.

Marriage Allowance lets the non-earning or basic-rate-paying spouse transfer £1,260 of personal allowance — saving up to £252/year. You can backdate the claim 4 tax years. Free to apply at gov.uk.

Bereavement Support Payment provides a tax-free lump sum and monthly payments for up to 18 months if your spouse, civil partner or (since February 2023) cohabiting partner with children dies. The Tell Us Once service at gov.uk notifies most government departments about a death from a single appointment with the registrar.

If you get a qualifying benefit and you are arranging the funeral, claim Funeral Expenses Payment within six months (Scotland: Funeral Support Payment). Typical prices sit on cost of a UK funeral.

Probate fees range from free (estates under £5,000) to £273 for online applications. Cruse Bereavement Care offers free emotional support; The Bereavement Advice Centre provides free practical and money guidance.