> had someone tell me that will hurt my tax if I'm paying myself more

It's how the funds are used that matters, not whether you move them through your personal account.

Short answer is no - you are not VAT registered, so you cannot claim anything.

If your turnover is likely to hit north of £80k any time soon then you need to learn about this pronto; otherwise, in the immortal words of Corpr'l Jones, don't panic.