To believe £780 month lone parent benefits income is adequate to live on.

[goldfacegreen]

There's some myth busting required at last I think.

As a lone parent of two under 6, I receive a total of £780 a month in benefits:

Income Support, Child Tax Credit, Child Benefit, CSA (£5 a week).

I receive full housing benefit for a two bedroom house (£75 shortfall which has to come out of my income support, currently being paid via Housing Discretion Award) which doesnt go into mybank account, it gets paid direct to landlord, and £16 a month council tax shortfall also has to be paid out of income.

I'm on meters and gas and electric are around £20 a week each, some of which pays off accrued debt. Water is deducted directly from my income support via an 'attachment of earnings' type court order.

I don't have loans or credit cards, no landline, no satellite tele, no car, no travel expenses, no socialising costs, don't smoke, my Internet is paid for by someone else although I should have organised a bill swap ages ago and I run an old phone on £10 month contract. My other costs are regular swimming, yoga, wax salon, and I buy school uniform and children's clothing as and when required.

Childcare such as nursery (pre-school), morning and after school clubs are free to those on income support, school holiday clubs are heavily subsidised, as are school meals, dentistry, doctor's prescriptions, council run leisure centre swimming and gym classes, and many other recreation facilities.

My budgeting skills are atrocious but having recently done some sums, I actually have around £250 a month 'spare' from all benefits income. Although for the past year or two I've been constantly overdrawn by around £500 so whenever income is credited, I'm always 'one step forwards, two steps back' amd because of this will never get back in the black again.

So, with better budgeting (I don't buy a regular weekly food shop for instance, instead spend a fortune every few days buying dinners and sundries at the overpriced local Tesco Metro) I just don't understand how so many lone parents claim they can't afford to live on these same benefits.
Even if you have debts, there are features in place to reduce your debt payments to just £1 a week or even write them off altogether as a last resort.

Also, the father of my children earns thousands but fraudulently claims benefits, so he is only required to pay the minimum £2.50 a week per child direct from his benefits. Many lone mothers receive full child support which isn't deducted from their other benefits income, so can be receiving up to £800 a month on top of their benefits depending on what the chikdren's father earns. I have noticed that rarely will lone parents on benefits state this fact or include it in their income along with their complaint.

Yes, it is a struggle trying to support myself and two young children on £780 a month (but mostly because I can't get over this overdraft debt shackle) but on paper, budgeting well, it is entirely doable, and if you are frugal, you could even save a little too.

Why does the Daily Mail stereotype exist that single mothers are rolling in handouts, given the above figures? Just under £195 a week is an adequate income for one adult and two young children, surely..

Another reason for using school breakfast clubs as a non working parent is so that we can attend job interviews.

Do you still not get it that in many places people have to pay for breakfast clubs?

Hi sock, my supplier for gas is nPower. Electricty is a pre payment meter which was here when I moved in and tbh I don't mind it, Gas is a credit meter though and the one I stress about. Don't want to fall behind and get a big bill.

www.npower.com/spreading_warmth/home/warm-home-discount/

The link above is for npowers warm home scheme, only applies if your electricity is through them but you will qualify. Its done on the electric because not everyone gets a gas supply (half the people in my parents village for starters)

Wallison Agreed, and indeed not all the primary schools in this town have breakfast clubs, but those that do, all offer free places to lone parents on benefits. This was also the case in at least one of the previous towns I lived in.

I guess the intention then,is to offer kids a breakfast for families who may struggle to provide one.(as the world sees it,personally I see no excuse for a family on benefits not being able to provide such a thing)

Perhaps the after school is to promote social interaction/opportunities as it's something else that is often assumed to be lacking/difficult to provide?

Interesting.I never knew free places existed as such

So what you're saying is....if you have a home you can afford to heat and you are really careful and you don't have debt or need to buy major items or live somewhere where you have to run a car just to get to the shops/ kids to school then living a reasonable life on lone parent benefits is do-able for a few years. Yup, I'd agree.
What seems to pole-axe lone mums is when we get into work and find we have lots of extra hidden costs but not much extra income and much less time than we had before.

Basically, we just have to accept that lone parent = knackered and skint for a decade or two and get on with it!

The breakfast club at DS1's school is not free. It's not expensive, but it's there because a number of students (it's a specialised school) have siblings at other schools and parents need to be able to get them to school on time as well. And the afterschool club costs money as well, which I'm happy to pay as DS1 enjoys it.

Not sure why you're banging on that breakfast clubs and afterschool clubs are "free" because many simply are not. And they are there for a number of reasons. Why so incredibly sneery about it?

Gold your posts are being deliberately misleading, yes some schools provide free breakfast clubs for children on fsm whether lone parents or not, never come across free places for after school care - clubs yes but no one pays for those. Furniture and white goods are supplied in some places by charities but they again are few and far between and lets be honest are goods that others have discarded as worthless. You insist on implying that this is available to lone parents on benefits across the board but it isn't.

DS1's middle school had a free breakfast club. One of his primary schools did too. Both had quite deprived catchments (very deprived in the case of the primary school, more mixed in the middle school but it was unpopular with local families due to having very recently been in special measures when his year would have been applying for places). The schools funded it themselves. We used it at the primary school (DS1 insisted on leaving early because he wanted to go); he wasn't interested in going to middle school early for a slice of toast and a bowl of cereal that he would get at home anyway. Other schools in the same cities didn't have free clubs. His high school doesn't as far I'm aware, and DS2's school doesn't have one (it has quite a mixed catchment). It's not something you can rely on every school providing, more of a lucky dip thing.

Alice because the op says breakfast and afterschool clubs (both as a form of childcare I believe) are free to parents on benefits.That's why

maybe they are for her, but I guarantee you they aren't for everyone. Ours aren't. But still no reason to be so sneery over it. I can see why a school that perhaps is in an area where there are a high percentage of children that are getting FSM might do so, as it is beneficial to any children that may attend.

The breakfast club at DS1's school is technically a form of child care, but it's open to anyone at the school, without regard to income and everyone pays the same (although I suppose if it was a problem, then the parent could contact the school and I imagine they'd make some type of arrangement).

Again, if it's available and affordable (or free), I don't see what the issue is. Just because someone is on benefits or not working doesn't mean that they don't occasionally need child care. I can think of tons of reasons that a parent may need child care. Or are they supposed to not ever go to a job interview, dentist appointment, doctor or hospital appointment where children are not advised to attend, legal appointment, court or mediation appointment (some single parents on benefits are going through marriage breakup), counselling, and so on. Or, as in my case, simply trying to get both children to school on time at two different schools (or get them picked up at the same time from two different schools).

Alice there is no need to be so defensive!I have no issues with the club's and am not being scenery.I was just wondering why they would be free to those on benefits.While there is no need for the parents,in those circumstances,I can see the benefits to some kids,although I think it would be wrong to assume only families on benefits would find them useful (being free as part of that) for those reasons.

Sneery,not scenery!

Alice the fact is that the whole op is a thinly disguised benefit bash by implying that lone parents are entitled to all sorts across the board which simply isn't true. Personally I think there is some useful information on the thread with regards to some things that are available, some to people on benefits some to people in need whether working or not.

OP it is getting a bit tedious now. Do you REALLY not see that your situation is not applicablle to everyone?

I understand that not everyone struggles. I don't. For me, benefits are adequate. We have a couple of nice things. We make sensible purchases that will hopefully see us through this part of our lives, And by the time they neeed replacing OH will be in full time work (He is hopefully starting a job next week).

But there are so many factors involved in that - where we live, the services available, The fact i have good budgetting skills (Not everyone does), how i personally live (As in, some things for me are just not a necessity where they may be for another person).

I would struggle a lot more where i'm originally from. Id still manage but it would literally, just about provide the basics.

It's only a benefits bashing thread when people like Jacks come along and highlight the fact it could be perceived that way. There's only one or two of you doing that - you know who you are ;)

There's nothing sinister going on here. I thought I'd make a full benefits financial disclosure and see what views it invited.

Only Mumsnet could come up with a bizarrely misplaced 'oh you sneery cow' when faced with an honest post about a lone parent's financial circumstances.

I don't find the responses tedious at all, it's very interesting and I welcome more.
For those continually asking if I 'get it now' that not all resources are available nationwide - that was entirely the point at OP when I stated this is my personal experience.

You just don't seem to be getting it though, thats the tedious part. You come back with 'but there is this service'.

Ok, I'm on benefits at the moment. I'll make a disclosure, as full as i can, i'm a bit preoccupied.

I will be back shortly.

What a silly thread. Not all lone parents get discretionary housing. Not all lone parents have more than one child (the extra £250ish a month child tax credit makes a massive difference when you consider basic living costs are the same as a lone parent with one child). Some lone parents have to travel on public transport for basic shopping or healthcare. Some lone parents have debts (that can't be written off without paying fees). Some lone parents have contracts they were tied into when they weren't lone parents and can't afford to buy out of. Some lone parents don't get a penny maintenance.

So it's not a myth busting thread. It's a thinly veiled "IF I CAN DO IT WHY CANT YOU?!) thread.

Op.

Something's just occurred to me and you ought to be on the ball with it just in case DHP/DHF payments are time limited and not guaranteed most only last 3 months getting it once is no indicator of it being awarded again as its a first come first served priority thing.

What steps are you taking to resolve it when your award ends (not asking to be nosey or even to know the answer,just for you to be aware and have a plan).

So, We get, for me, OH and 2 children (DD is resident with her dad so i dont claim anything for her obviously).

£112 JSA
£106 Tax credits
£33 CB.
Sooo.. £1000 a month.

Out of that we pay

£85 Rent top up
£200 aprx food
£60 - £80 electric (Don't use gas at the minute, its not cold enouugh, nearly everything is on electric).
£40 travelling to pick my daughter up
£20 travelling for other things, job interviews etc.
£20 broadband
£80 finance things i cant not pay (Taken out before this situation) because theyre in my mums name, i wouldnt do that to her.
£15 on dog food because i get it on offer.
Council tax (And this is an estimate because ive not had a letter since i moved) £100
£40 - £50 a month nappies
£5 - 10 wipes

That leaves £300 a month. Which is because i get tax credits for a newborn baby who costs next to nothing (I breastfeed). (£200 a month) and CB (£50 a month).

Now, It sounds a lot at the minute. If we stay in this situation it wont be though. It wasnt a lot with just one child because he eats food obviously. I had around £75 a month left over then.

The money left over now, I have been making longer term purchases with - A new buggy in the sales for example, because our old one was knackered. I plan to save and buy DS a new bed, so that if we're still in the same situation by the time DS2 goes into his own bed, They all have a bed each. I am trying to buy in things like bedding now, so i dont end up without any when i cant do this.

This seems a lot of money now, because i have two relatively cheap small children to provide for full time, one relatively cheap 4 year old on weekends. It wont be for long.

Someone with older children - That spare money and more could easily be swallowed in transport getting to school, travelling to appointments.

I could easily blow that money on salons, waxes, hair extensions (and id love to believe me). I could jolly off every day and ride my friends horses all day for the price of busfair every day.

But i dont. I have a couple of nice things. I make sensible long term purchases in the hope that if we are in this situation much longer it will serve us well.

Other people just dont have that option. Everything big - My PC, TV and Washer is covered for the next two years so i dont have to pay if they break. Others dont have that. Something like that breaks it has to be replaced. If we're still in this situation by the time that runs out i wouldnt be able to replace them striaght up - Given outgoings would have definitely gone up.

It's just not as black and white, the answer to your post was simple and could have been answered and done in one comment 'situations are different, some people have an awful stroke of bad luck which screws everything up, not everyone has the services you do'.

(Obviously i understand im not a single parent now, but my point is on benefits as a whole, given that everyone gets the same ammount per person).

Right there really is no need to start having a go at me now is there??? The op states she has 780 quid a month plus other benefits I have less than that and no benefits so yes I would be better off. That is all I said in response to op! Why the sarcasm? Totally unnecessary and if I didn't work I'd get to spend every evening at home unlike now!!

OP from the very first post this looked like a benefit bashing thread. particularly to those of us with knowledge of the benefits system.

It really is that obvious.