To think plenty of people live on a lot less than £297 a week?

[Braveanddifferent]

It's still over £15k a year.

Wages for many of us have stagnated for years.

I'm on £20.70 a week right now! Thanks to Universal Credit! I'm registered disabled - severely and have a 2yr old too!!!!!

I'd LOVE to get half of that!!!!

You don't need me to tell you that.
That isn't right. Have you had a full and thorough benefits check.
How are possibly even existing. Let alone living.
Have you tried for DLA.

Me? Yeah I receive PIP but it goes straight to Motability for my car

Well we earned just over £300 a week, over 20 years ago. We struggled on that, as we had 2 young dc, mortgage etc. (In the south so high housing costs)
So I think it's a disgrace that people would be expected to live on that today.

@babyroob Yes but anyone living purely on that amount would have 70% of nursery fees paid for them

To a maximum amount though. Round here it's not the most expensive but it's still £185 a week per child. The most you can claim for 2 children is £210 (less if 70% of your bill is lower) so people still have significant weekly childcare costs.

One child is still £50 a week. Two is £105.45, assuming 10% sibling discount and then your 70%. That £297 isn't stretching far after childcare

I know someone who lives on £250 per week and isn't eligible for benefits (too young/no kids).
Doable certainly, but probably a bit miserable.
She's a relative of mine and I rent to her at a discounted rate. I fear without this she'd certainly struggle a lot more (she pays me 150pm, but going rate would be at least 250-300pm in the local area) many people don't have relatives with an old studio flat laying about to rent to them cheap.
What do those people do, when not eligible for any help?

£15k is a shit Wage ... my grad friends are all on £18-30k in their first year of proper work.

( although I'm unemployed so I do live off less than that)

It's still fuck all though.

I think you will find they exist on this not live on it

Standard 'Jobseeker's Allowance' is only £317 per month! (Never been on it, I just found that out online during my Universal Credit debacle)

Ifyougodowntothewoods You BOTH earned £300 per week 20 years ago and you ^struggled?!?!?!
^
Christ. I dread to think how much you're on now!

Oh and the standard payment (including housing allowance - what is replacing housing benefit) for single mothers of one child is £1,189 per month. TOTAL. That's £274.38 per week (if you times it by 12 then divide by 52)

Depends on what you class as "living"
On that we could survive. But no extra curricular activities for the kids, no gym or little treats or spontanious outings.
And if anything major broke, we'ld be in debt!
We would be living very present tense though, getting by week-by-week, but unable to plan/save for anything for the future

Survive - yes, "Live" - mmmm, not so much

Depends user. Ive been public sector all my working life. DH has always been private sector and his pension is far more generous than mine. In fact now he is retired he actually gets paid more for his pension than I do for working full time in the NHS 37.5 hours a week. By the time I retire my pension will be about third of his. I accept we are probably the exception though.