To ask , did you grow up rich or poor?

[SteveAs]

I would for me , in between , we weren't over the top wealthy but I still lived quite a good childhood , there was never any problems financially

well in the middle I suppose, certainly never went cold or hungry. IN fact I did not even know what hunger was until much later.
Dad was a university lecturer and mum was a teacher. We went on holiday to Italy, once.
tbh in the 70s even reasonably well off people like us, didn't have much in the way of material possessions. We had a crappy TV and one summer I had a choice of two t shirts....
I did go to private school for a while though.

Rich, relatively. Not uber wealthy but nice house, private schools all the way through, frequent holidays, and was massively helped out buying a house in my 20’s. I am v v v grateful for it all

I guess I'd have to say rich. Brought up in detached house in the country. Money for holidays abroad, new clothes, shoes, and extra curricular activities. Plenty of food and didn't have to worry about putting the heating on. My Dad was/is extremely hard working and I know everything we had was down to him. He made us all get part time jobs as soon as we were old enough. I got a part time work in a pub at 14 and haven't been without a job since.

Now I'm older I realise I was very lucky and had an idyllic childhood.

I was also in the single parent, council estate very very poor tops sets university didn’t fit in etc like an earlier poster

My overwhelming thoughts whilst reading these are surely our upbringings have a massive effect on how we bring up our own families.

It has for me I wish I could be prioritise myself more ie career, financial independence etc etc but fact is my kids having a decent upbringing a million miles from my own is my only priority

I don't know though, as I said we were reasonably well off, private school for me, holidays, a car, and so on, but on the other hand I was battered on a regular basis by my brother...then later my dad left to start a new family...
so being reasonably middle class is no guarantee of a successful future is it?
I am a fuck up.

Poor, but never destitute. And lucky in other ways. Parents and extended family were always very supportive. I had a great education (grammar school) and the cost of living were I grew up was low. I was luckier than I realised.

I think maybe I need to reassess my view and say rich. I'd have said 'rich' was living in a manor house/boarding school etc.

As it was we lived in a beautiful, large old house in a nice area, private education in later years, foreign holidays. My Dad drove a Jaguar and my Mum never had to work/loved to shop/was a magistrate....

Hmmm. Maybe it depends on by whose standards we are judging.

Poor until my teens but everyone on my estate was poor so I never really noticed, we all knew that we couldnt go on trips or things that the people from the rich side of town did so we never asked. I had great friends and we used to spend school holidays and weekends on the fields playing all day. Only now I appreciate how tough it must have been for my DM working full time and getting no financial help with a small child.

We were comfortably off. In that we always had plenty of good, ran a car, owned our home, there was money for me yo have hobbies and all they entailed etc. We went in holiday each year, but as a kid they were caravan holidays on the coast (about an hour away). Dad worked full time, mum worked part time. We lived in South Wales where the visit of living was low, house prices very low, and everyone I k ew was largely in the same boat, but I was very aware of families who had way, way less than we did, including close friends and extended families. I knew of their struggles, and we would aleays pass on clothes, furniture and furnishings to them and my parents would help them out.

I never thought of us as anything but really comfortable.

I went to university and then worked in London in a professional environment. I started mixing with people whose backgrounds were very different indeed - private school, never had holiday or part time jobs, had their own car as a teenager, travelled widely etc. Now, their lives were the really comfortable ones. But I am still struck by how little awareness they have, even now now that we are in our 40s with DC of our own, of how different other people's lives can be.

Neither. I grew up in a council house but my dad had a well paid, professional job. He was the first in his family to go into higher education so he and my mum did struggle. I never felt poor, we had a good standard of living for the 70s. Not luxurious but certainly comfortable.

Middle of the road. Never wanted for anything. Dad worked full time mum also. Mum had a bit of a blip with her MH and left her job round about the time my dad went self employed (Not through choice) so we had a tough few years where I dropped out of uni to work full time rather than part time so I could help with mortgage.

Mum all better now both back in full employment and DP and I live on our own just moving into a farm house cottage this week and expecting DC1 in September hoping we can give this baby as good a bringing up as I did. My partner did not have a good upbringing but that's a whole new thread

Financially poor. Dad had been made bankrupt. Lived in a council house. Neither parent worked (DM couldn't due to seizures) DDad was effectively her carer and made sure DSis and I were ok. No central heating until the council put it in. No car (no drivers anyway). Free school meals etc etc
My Grandma bought us food. Parents sold my toys to pay for things
Didn't realise until met DH how poor we were. Hardly any toys (him and sis had SO MANY), never went anywhere (they went to cinema, theatre and so in)
Started to change the year my Mum died and DDad got a job. Then DDad remarried. Then they moved got a mortgage and headed into the extremely high interest period of the early 90s.
I've only really had any disposable income since becoming an adult and getting a job.
Wouldn't change a thing. It's made me who I am and I'm quite pleased and proud of that.

Neither, really. I know that according to the statistics we were classed as 'being in poverty' throughout my childhood and still are. I never felt that way though, we never were poor or in poverty despite what the stats say.

My parents own their own house, dad worked (and when he retired mam went back to work), we never struggled for food or anything like that, I never missed out in terms of clothes, toys or gadgets etc, we went on holiday every year. We did ok.

That said, if I compare myself to my best friend the difference is huge, even though she isn't rich she's definitely middle class, we're working class. Her parents are both professionals (solicitor and CPS lawyer), they live in a bigger house on a nicer estate, have various holidays abroad every year etc and expectations are different. I don't feel like I missed out on anything, but nor did I expect £60 a month allowance growing up, a car after graduation, expensive make up brands etc. She idn't spoilt, and my parents give me what they can just as hers do, but what they can afford is different.

That leads to me and her having different expectations. At the moment I work in retail, hoping to join the police in the next few years, my friend is becoming a teacher. My top priority is to save up enough to move out. I appreciate this will mean I won't be able to have a perfect flat, or neccesarily afford the luxuries, certainly no multiple holidays per year. My friend wants to stay home as long as possible so she can afford the latest gadgets, go on foreign travel multiple times a year etc. She doesn't want children until she can offer them a house, the latest gadgets, skiing trips etc. I wouldn't want children until I was financially secure but I wouldn't feel the need to give my kids all that as I never had it, and I didn't miss it.

Regardless of how rich or 'poor' we were growing up though, we both have the same thing - parents that love and do all they can for us and that's all that matters. And it annoys me no end that my family are classed as being in poverty, or 'poor'. It's all relative, I never missed out or went without food etc and that's what I class being poor as, not missing out on 3 holidays a year

Both.
Age 5-14 lived in a detached house in the country with a swimming pool. Privately educated and foreign holidays. Was still pretty miserable as hardly saw parents and was very isolated due to no friends living nearby. My df was an emotionally abusive alcoholic.
When I was 14 the business went bankrupt. My DM left and my df moved abroad to live full-time in our holiday house. We lost the house and I moved to the local state school. My DM went slightly wild. We moved house a lot. Sometimes I had a floor to sleep on, sometimes a bedroom of my own. I worked full-time from 16 onwards and moved in with now dh at 17. I went to uni and worked the whole time but still ended up with lots of debt until I managed to sort myself out when I was about 25.

Pretty well off. My DDad is a tradesman, so we’re not talking millions, but he worked hard and my DM is very sensible with money and never borrowed (except on the mortgage).

We lived in a big house (a semi mind), had the big holidays, technology and days out etc. My DPs also paid for all my university expenses (one year before the £9,000 fees) so I had no student debt. That really set me up and DH and I hope to do the same for our DDs. We’re saving now and they are 2 and 9 months!

Good friends of mine were multi millionaires and flew to Florida by private jet regularly to visit family. Their sister is married to someone very rich and famous now. With them as comparators, I didn’t feel wealthy at all!

Poor which means that even though I am pretty well off now, I am always saving my pennies. I don't think I knew I was poor as a kid as everyone was in the same boat but I realised it more once I got into secondary school and people went on 'holidays', we did the odd day trip but we never had a holiday as such.

I 'd say rich although I didn't really realise at the time. I grew up in a big detached house in Surrey surrounded by other big detached houses.

We had a swimming pool, I had horses (2 at once for a while) as did my sisters, skiing over new year every year, Florida holidays. Parents had a boat. I was bought a brand new car when I learnt to drive.

As I type it I realise how spoilt I sound, however my parents didn't spoil us and made us do chores around the house.

My mum never worked and my dad grafted his butt off to provide everything.

Poor, but not destitute. Gas and electric were on metres, council flat pre central heating and double glazing. Father was never unemployed so they never had benefits other than CB. Like others I was bullied in secondary school. I had my sisters old uniform and 1 pair of shoes until they fell apart. Everyone else had new uniforms and a new pair of shoes each term

I’m now a food hoarder and stress about money constantly, and would rather stay home than go on a camping holiday. Years of camping, but not at campsites with any kind of entertainment for children, or shop, or anything really.

Poor. Parents had scrapped enough to get a mortgage but there was
No extras. House often freezing especially at weekends holidays. Neighbours were much well off which always made you feel you were never as good.

Always bullied for not having right things or being able to do things.

I genuinely started secondary school and found out we would be learning French. It was like you what? To me it felt like learning Marshian. Going abroad on Holiday was just so out of my league it was like what’s the point.

Average, I think, my DM didn’t work and my DF always spent loads of money on his interests and hobbies, so we never had nice things like foreign holidays, meals out or trips to theme parks. We were always aware that what we wanted didn’t matter because Dad went to work he got to decide how the money was spent. We did have lots of days out to places that were free, but they usually weren’t very interesting for kids and always involved really long drives in really uncomfortable cars, because DPs always bought the cheapest possible car, so were never really suited to a family.

I was always embarrassed to bring friends home because the house was freezing cold with it’s ancient heating system, single glazing and was all orange carpets and 1960s bathroom and kitchen (this was in the 90s) because DPs never had any money to modernise the house.

We don’t earn as much as my DPs but I’m determined not to be so selfish as a parent.

Average I think, for most of my childhood anyway.

Only one parent due to early death of the other one - financial effect of that as offset by the mortgage being paid off. Don't remember ever going cold or hungry through lack on money. Definitely wasn't an abundance of money but it was the same as pretty much all of my friends - apart from funding more things through my own part-time jobs that others didn't need to. Sixth form years were much tighter (poor financial decision by dad and step-mum) but I was earning more then so didn't really effect me that much.

No foreign holidays but it was the norm for my area. Most people I knew had one or two weeks at a seaside resort and saved all year for it. We didn't go on holiday every year but I didn't really register it at the time. I had Piano lessons though up until age 15. Didn't feel poor at all but I was, looking back, neglected - I paid for cheap school shoes out of my paper round money because asking for anything was an absolute no no and nobody would've noticed that they were too small/had holes in them.

University years my home background was much poorer than previously (they had moved to a rented 1 bed by this point and couldn't find work) - there was no where for me to stay in the holidays so I paid full rent/found jobs with accommodation. Didn't think that much of it at the time but looking back there was a real lack of emotional support as well as financial. I gave them money in my final years - I was working far too much to stay afloat and it definitely affected my degree class.

I didn't know anyone 'rich' when I was at school - or even anyone who went to private school. University was a real eye opener - although I never felt out of place and found I was comfortable mixing with people from very different backgrounds. Only snobiness I can ever remember coming across was from a friend's mum - they lived in a four bed detached in the same street as my three bed semi (current approx values £225K vs £295K). Hilarious looking back at it now and very hyacinth bucket.

DH had a similar financial background (without the bad bits). We both left home at 18 effectively (him into a rented flat with his gf and me to uni with no holiday returns) with no financial help after that.

We're now pretty well off but it is fairly hidden. I struggle with how to bring up the DC from a financial standpoint and fear that we're not consistent with our messages.

Middle.class comfortable. Public school, nice house, yacht etc.

No foreign holidays, but never wanted for anything. Parents tell me now things were tight at various points, especially when interest rates were high but we never knew. Certainly never spoiled materially.

We were well off, but as a child you are not aware of this, it is only looking back you realise the opportunities and comforts you had (my parents are now dead and I am an old fart ). We lived in a large house in Surrey. My father worked in the city. I had ponies. Myself and my siblings were all public school educated. We had regular foreign holidays from the early sixties onwards. I can't say my childhood was all happy though. I hated being away from home at school. I found boarding school terrible (they were very strict in the sixties) and it has had emotional repercussions throughout my life.

I never thought of us as being poor, and I used to think my dad cleaned windows for everyone for fun! It was, of course, because he’d been made redundant and was doing odd jobs to make ends meet. When my DM went back to work as a teacher when I was about 9 we were far better off and used to go on holiday once a year, and even had two cars at one point! We were comfortable but not well off compared to many. We never went without anything we needed.

Poor Irish Catholic...