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<p>Bereavement benefits are paid to a surviving spouse or civil partner; they can
only be paid to those in legal unions. Therefore, they cannot be paid in respect of
cohabitees, either with or without children. We are currently considering how to proceed
following the recent Supreme Court judgement which ruled it incompatible with ECHR
principles to provide that cohabitees with children are not entitled to Widowed Parent’s
Allowance.</p><p> </p><p>Cohabitees do have access to income-related benefits. They
may also qualify for help with funeral costs from the Social Fund and may of course
choose to provide security for their families by way of private pension or life insurance
arrangements.</p><p />
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