to be fed up of feeling poor?

[manicmother02]

Hey, just having a moan really. I work part time and my partner works full time, we have two kids. We both work in care, and at the end of the month have no money left... We have enough to cover our bills but not enough to save anything.

We want to move somewhere cheaper to live but cant as we cant save! Its just bloody crap. I'm changing my job to try and up my hours so we can get more money but its hard with the children. They are in primary school so not old enough to be alone after school ect.... It just sucks. We would love to get married and go on holidays.

I'm waiting to see if we can get tax credits just so we can save some money.

I know its not really a huge problem...we have a roof over our heads and food on the table....but its hard when it seems like everyone else is well off!

Thanks for letting me have a moan.

Well there you go OP, the answer to your problems is to buy a house in your 20s. Basically, what glasgow is saying is that you should try not to be so poor, and then it would all be fine. Fuck me, MN is full of helpful tips this morning.

Have you tried using Credit Union if there is one in your area?

We are a low income family and I use it to save for holidays, Christmas etc, otherwise we would have no treats either.

I live in Northern Ireland and smaller shops will still let you join savings clubs with them - useful for heating oil, school uniforms etc even my local butcher will let you spread payments. It's a great help with spreading the costs.

Good luck - I know how having little money can get you down! Ignore the patronising nonsense from some posters :)

You have my sympathies OP, we've been there before. Before I changed jobs I was working fewer hours over more days and forking out nearly a quarter of my wage to get to work.

There were a few times we had to dip into DD's money jar just to pay the bills.

Circumstances have changed, we're not earning much more but no more travel costs and a very strict financial spending plan mean we've started building up a little cash for emergencies.

It does sometimes get me down though, all the people I work with and my friends seem to have lovely clothes, makeup, jewellery etc and I do sometimes feel jealous (although I shouldn't, I had my time of being young, child free with no financial responsibilities)

If there's something I want or need that I can't afford with my weekly pocket money I arrange to do an extra shift to cover the cost. It sucks that I can't just spend what I want when I want but when DD is older it will happen

And some of those people will have a lot of those goods on credit anyway. One reason i have been able to help the children at university is precisely because I don't have a lot of nice new clothes and wear underwear until there are holes etc. It is that denial of current spending which tends to ensure future security. Very hard though to cut back when you're already cut back to the bone on a carer's minimum wage of course. If you can move to slightly better paid work in due course that might be the best longer term plan.

at 40 hours being part time. I work that (+ overtime) just above the national average salary and if it was any longer I would not see my DD. There is no point working yourself into the ground and not spending anytime with your dc.

YANBU OP. I am in a similar position, I work ft with a teenager (thankfully no childcare)and earn enough to make ends mets but thats it. Eat out rarely, holidays are few and far between. Live abroad and receive fuck all benefits despite having worked my whole adult life since leaving Uni and being a widowed single parent I sell my mum's jewellery to make a bit of dosh on the side.

Am counting down to May 2016 when I have paid off DD's braces and physio fees, I might even get a pay rise.

Janet makes a good point which I also try to remember, loads of those nice things that people always seem to have are probably bought on credit cards that mean £££ in monthly repayments. I know some of the girls I work with who do have lots of nice "stuff" borrow hundreds of £s from their parents and blow their wages straight away. I know other people who have furnished their house with Brighthouse everything. I'd rather keep my crappy second hand furniture than be kept awake at night thinking about the 15849274% APR that company charges!

Have you checked the tax credit calculator? We have 3dc and get what I think is a crazy amount as imo dh and I are in fairly good jobs.

Crikey, I think op just wants is an opportunity to rant and some sympathy not to be told to work more hours! Work life balance is important and just because someone is fed up if being poor it doesn't mean they want to work a 60 hour week and not have a family life.
I have made the choice to work part time for the last 7 years and it is hard to see other people with their holidays and smart houses. It depresses the hell out of me some days too op. Just remember you won't be this hard up forever. Once the kids are older, working more hours will come, and with it a little more money and freedom!

I worked in care for 10 years Dh has worked in care this year as second job. His first job is manual labour. Many people do this lightbulb

motherofdragons - Some people do get insane amounts of tax creidts especially if you have a few kids. I guess whether it is enough depends on your outgoings and where you live. Also they are being severely cut from next April as clearly the Government think they are too generous too.

God, there is a massive lack of sympathy on MN today. You shouldn't have to work 60+ hours a week just so you don't feel poor. The UK has the longest working week in Europe and we're no better off than people working less hours in other countries.

60+ hour weeks do not a good work/life balance make. Long hours, kids in childcare all day and parents working opposite shifts result in two exhausted parents and barely any family-time. I would rather have less money than work 60 hours a week for the rest of my life.

OP, YANBU at all. It is shitty when you work full-time and still can't make ends meet. Minimum wage should be enough to support a family, but it's not and it's so shitty that there are families suffering whilst working hard in full-time jobs.

It might be worth getting a marriage certificate, then you could transfer some of your tax free allowance to your dp. Depends on your incomes but it could be worth £200 per year. You could just do the legal bit now and then have a celebration in years to come.
Well done for living within your means and sorry you're feeling fed up.

Unfortunately these public sector 'worthy' type jobs invariably pay less than private sector work - I used to work in social housing and earned considerably less than when I worked in law. Although the former was way more rewarding the financial reward was a killer.

It is very difficult isn't it.

I think you'll find that you are entitled to tax credits, hopefully that will make a bit difference. Don't give up until you are awarded them. Presume you already get child benefit? Hope it gets sorted soon.

Sorry to hear about your situation OP. Does your current role have any scope for progression? I have a family member in the care industry, and the agency they work for provided them with training etc. After a couple of years they became a care supervisor and specialised in working with SN children. They're not rich by any means, but they make a decent living. You could also look for jobs in your local hospital so you've got less need for the car.

Once the kids get older you could consider training as a nurse, or anything else that interests you. Things will get better.

From the little I know about care work private agencies may be more remunerative?

The neighbour mentioned only the other day somebody he knew at the health club was earning £27 an hour for a 48 hour nonstop shift weekly looking after an elderly man. This was private pay. Not sure if it was through an agency but it sounded an excellent income! May be rare to achieve however .....

Naturally this involved nights too but she could sleep throughout I assume.

This individual must have been exceptionally fortunate however.