To be really upset to read on MN

[shootingstarz]

That parents are going without food because they can?t afford to feed their kids.

And this was 1996 - it got worse since then

I am kind of surprised how surprised some people are by this, when my kids were younger( am lone parent) I woul often go without or regularly have weetabix for dinner. I shopped for 18 pounds a week for 2 years,when I returned to uni.
In fact the other day was laughing with my dd,now 10 about pasta soup,a 3 times a week tea( basically cheap pasta mixed with cheap veg soup) wasn't actually a meal you would find in any recipe book!
I did rthis because we had no money and did it happily as you all would.

Not just poverty, but that doesn't help either

Cheap pasta with cheap veg soup is not a balanced meal and it is not something kids should be getting for tea three times a week. Sorry.

I just can't see that whatever else goes unpaid there is not enough money for food in this country. Surely enought food for the whole family is number one financial priority? On the "credit crunch" threads on here there are people talking about how they can't manage and how much their internet and Sky subs are - I would have thought that this sort of thing would be the first to go when times are hard. There is only not enough food to go round if something else is being given false priority.

nick - wonga charge 3000% pa and are legal yet can drive people deeper into debt than they were in the first place.

I genuinely thought my mother had invented that combination. I feel like you've stolen my mother's idea, feelingdizzy!

I have only read the first few messages but yes it does happen and it isn't only those on benefits. I'm on maternity leave now but when I go back to work and pay childcare we will be left with £150 per month after rent and bills. I don't drive, we live in the cheapest flat that we could rent in the area and don't qualify for housing benefit. I will need to pay around £800 in childcare costs and am only entitled to £44 in CTC. We have no debt or mortgage, so please explain what "choices" I've made to be getting so little money.

Wonga et al are nothing but legalised Loan Sharks. How the fuck they are allowed to trade is beyond my comprehension.

How do we go about making sure that people no longer have to live in poverty?

I think most people agree it's a very important problem to tackle, but what's the best way to bring an end to it?

We have no money for food until I get paid next week.

I work but not many hours. DP was made redundant and is still looking for work. Because I work, we receive very little HB. But they were helping us with council tax for a few months. Then they announced we weren't actually entitled to that benefit and had all they had paid added to our last months direct debit. £440 in total we had to pay this month. That's well over half my wages but it had to be paid, I didn't want to accrue debt by carrying it over into the next year. So I now have no money, only a couple of pounds to feed DS. I haven't had lunch for 3 days to make sure there is enough for DS' lunch. Meh, it won't be like this forever.

1. For a start, bring in free school meals (breakfast and lunch), milk, and fruit and vegetables for all kids, regardless of age, to catch those slipping through the net. (It's what Finland does).
2. Reduce the cost of state schooling for people - get rid of uniforms, stationery requirements, guilt-tripped payments for trips and music lessons, everything you can think of.
3. Introduce free or heavily subsidised childcare, including extended schooling, for all children whose parents would benefit from it, so people have the choice to work their way out of poverty. (It's what Denmark does).
4. Incentivise local councils to revive local markets in places that have historic market charters, so people can walk to get cheap food. Introduce new markets where local populations might benefit. (It's what France does).
5. Have annual health and dental checks for children at school, and be more aggressive in referring those who are clearly having less than perfect nutrition (too fat, too thin, or too peaky). (It's what we did here until about 1980).
6. Make sure teenage girls and boys are educated in health for pregnancy and breastfeeding, such as diet and sunlight requirements.

That's a start, anyway.

Once again for your benefit higgle:

Being without the internet contributes to the Poverty Premium.

In fact the first item mentioned in this report is Lack of access to the best online prices.

Which threads are these higgle? Are you buying into the idea that the poor are starving so they can watch the latest champions league final?

The scary thing is that attitudes of those who don't believe it are exactly the attitudes of those who run this country.

They have no experience of it. They cannot conceive it. It scares me because it will take a generation to turn it around.

Food stamps are a really bad idea.
You can't buy electric or gas with them. You can't fuel the car and pay for parking at numerous hospital visits with them. You can't keep the phone line on so that you can call for help in a medical emergency with them.

Cash is better so that those kinds of living costs are met. Then with what's left I scour markets and discounted bits of supermarkets to stretch the remaining money as far as I possibly can. With vouchers we'd have less food and more debt.

NameInChalk the bloke that owns Wonga is a friend of the Prime Minister.

HTH

No, Higgle, my no. 1 priority is keeping a roof over our heads by ensuring the rent is paid on time so we don't get evicted!
My kids' health issues come next. Then gas, electricity and water bills...

Food is actually quite a way down the list! My kids get a healthy balanced meal at school, so I don't feel too bad only having a light meal (soup etc) at night. At weekends I do make sure their diet is balanced, but when I can't afford meat, eggs are a cheaper source of protein.

My kids are fit, healthy and active. My middle daughter recently got awarded a scholarship to a prestigious ballet school, so we're not the slobby couch potatoes you seem to be imagining.

I really don't think you should be judging us without having the slightest idea how we live!

I think i should take this opportunity to advertise Ebico.

Ebico: "about Ebico
Ebico Ltd is a not-for-profit gas and electricity supplier aiming to offer a better, fairer deal for domestic energy to British households. We are also an expanding enterprise committed to working both for social justice and the wise use of the earth?s resources, in a variety of ways."

All good ideas Boffin. I just don't know how they would be paid for.

For example, most nursery staff I know earn minimum wage. So the only way to make it cheaper would be for gvt to provide the wages. I'd blooming love it if they did, but I can't see it in my lifetime. Somebody has to pick up the bill.

Morris, where I live, nurseries are state-run and the cost is on a sliding scale, based on income! When my youngest was still in nursery, I was paying ?0.53/hour for a part-time place. Full-time would have been around ?100/month (8am-6pm, Mon-Fri).
It also meant there was a good social mix, as almost all women here work and the nurseries are not just for wealthy professional families!

Can I just post the Trussell Trust website again ? They really are an excellent organisation and have a large nationwide network of food banks, whether you need help or are in a position to offer help.

www.trusselltrust.org/foodbank-projects

vitamin - which country is that please?

Extortionate childcare costs takes (mainly) women out of the working economy. Some of those claim benefits.

Cheaper childcare = more people can work. Hell even provides jobs as more childcare is needed.

Why has childcare become so expensive? Probably because it's privately run (mostly), so profits make up some of the costs we pay. Dontcha love the private sector.