To think bringing kids up on no money would be misersble

[Strawberryblues]

I earn 35000 or thereabouts. Its not terrible. It means I only get cb.

After bills not much left.

How do people do it?

My partner earns 19-20k. We double his wage in benefits. Household income is around 3000 a month. We're not rich but we never let them go without.

I'm curious what benefits you get.

My DH earns 19, up recently from 17.5 and I'm stressing over receiving my new TC adjustment because of how much we'll lose. We def do not get 20k in benefits a year.

I live a very happy life with DD on little money (i save £500 pm out of my meagre incomings so scrimp by choice). DD has a big garden full of TP stuff (which i saved up for) a giant trampoline (present) etc etc and i have my gardening and shed! I buy fancy clothes on Ebay/from charity shops and also buy some toys and lots of books there. We have a small cheap to run but decent quality car. The only difference between us and 'wealthier' friends is they save less and are happy to blow money on food in cafes twice a week average which i am loathe to do! Our quality of life is great, time rich, lovely neighbours and friends and live somewhere beautiful surrounded by parks and lots of walks/local events on. Not bothered about holidays but this will change once DD is older i expect. We are rich in the things which matter.

mcqueencar
20k wage after tax is about 1250 per month
20k in benefits isn't taxed so about 1667 per month

They presumably have at least one of very high rent with correspondingly high housing benefit, several children or disability payments. It is a lot but it would be a lot more than most because of particular circumstances.

It is miserable a lot of the time. I look back and think "how did I manage?" I didn't even get maintenance.

I worked cash in hand promoting a night club sometimes.

And I was skinnier back then!

I live a very happy life with DD on little money (i save £500 pm out of my meagre incomings so scrimp by choice). DD has a big garden full of TP stuff (which i saved up for) a giant trampoline (present) etc etc and i have my gardening and shed!

This is totally laughable.

You are not living a meagre life by the sounds of it. You have no idea. Many of us couldn't save £500 a month...there is nothing I could cut back on that would see me able to save that amount a month.

So, an extra £500 a month and a big garden...hardly on the breadline!

Those of you with one earner in the household have you given up your tax allowance to your husband? You can back date and get several hundred pounds. It only take about two weeks for the cheque to come through too.

But how do you get 20k in benefits SleepingStandingUp? I don’t really know anything about them hence my wrong calculation.

I live a very happy life with DD on little money (i save £500 pm out of my meagre incomings so scrimp by choice).
How much is meagre though? Just your savings and a rent of 360 a month would need an income of over 13k before tax. Then there's car costs, food, second hand clothes and books even if you literally spend on nothing else. Plus whatever your entitled to in benefits

mcqueencar no idea, just going on pps comment.

Housing benefit
Council tax allowance
Ctc
wtc
Cb
Carers for a child
High rate Dla for a child plus mobility allowance
Pip for an adult
??

But not sure how they'd get full hb and Cta on 20k (we get nothing on dh's 17.5 salary)

We get about £20,000 in benefits. DP earns £28,600.

We don't get housing benefit (we own the house)

Kensington and Chelsea was the most expensive local authority I could think of. Their maximum LHA allowance for a 3 bed would apparently be £365 a week, which is 19k a year. I would imagine most of the Central London areas would be over 15k p/a housing benefit maximum. Can see how that might stack up, and the benefit cap doesn't apply if one of the parents is working 24 hours a week or more.

If you get no HB on a 17.5k salary sleeping you must be in an extremely cheap area. It varies according to the local rents, so somebody getting HB in Kensington and Chelsea can be on a considerably higher income than someone getting it in the Welsh Valleys.

I assume that that's made up of non means tested benefits like DLA, Carers, PIP etc as you can't be eligible for means tested stuff on that wage surely

You can certainly be eligible for child tax credits on 28.6k if you have enough children. You'd need at least 2.

We live in the Midlands in a small 3 bed Werth 1 child so the little we're entitled to is swallowed by the extra bedroom tax

SleepingStandingUp

Thanks for trying to explain.

BirthdayKake

If it’s not housing benefit can I ask the breakdown.

When I earned 25k & rented I was unaware I was entitled to anything.

We get about £20,000 in benefits. DP earns £28,600

.

Fair weigh, I stand corrected.

Yes HB in London like areas would be huge addition to benefits total and I thought the threshold for tc was lower as I reckon we'll all but lose it in the reassessment.

I have to say I don't consider 17.5k a meagre wage, just a low one, but we wouldn't really manage without benefit top ups

The threshold for TC is much lower when you only have one child. It gets higher the more kids you have, and it's higher if you pay for childcare than if you don't obv.

I’ve just used the calculator & put it in just for myself if I had 2 kids & earned 25k (only 1 parent working) with £300 childcare a month.

It says I would be entitled to just over 1k a month so 12k a year. So I guess a lot depends if you declare your partners wage if both parents are working?

I might not want to see what I'd get if I was a single mom, I'm quite fond of DH 😀

I get the £86pm child maintenance and £70pw from my partner for our sons food and bits, that’s all my income.
But I am extremely lucky in the respect that i grew up in a very large family home with my mum and Dad and my grandparents. My grandparents are all deceased now and my mum died 3 years ago of cancer leaving me and my brother and my dad -who kept the family home for my brother and I and charges zero rent for me and my son to live there so we are all together.
However my partner lives in London and between us we cannot afford to find our own place together and he can’t move into the family home with me because he runs a business he can’t leave in London. He doesn’t want to commute every day as it isn’t feasible to do so. So we spend half the week in London and half the week in the family home. This costs me in fuel more than anything, and I buy all mine and my sons food with the £70 he gives me each week so after food and fuel I have nothing left really, I use the £86 pm for clothing or anything my son needs. I only pay for my phone and car insurance and have no other bills or outgoings.
It’s not easy, but every Christmas I design cards and make crafts to sell which brings me in a little amount of money for myself and presents for my son and family. I do a small amount of office work for my partner too which earns me about an extra £50pw, not loads but it’s something. I knit so I make toys and hats and winter things for my son which is a little way of saving some money too.
It bothers me a little that my partner can’t live permanently with us and be around our son all the time, but we are happy so that’s more important I guess. The money thing doesn’t bother me too much either, I’ve just gotten used to it.

Yes no worries.

Carers Allowance - £258 every 4 weeks
DLA - £319 every 4 weeks
Child Benefit - £62.80 a week
Child Tax Credit - £206 a week (this includes some towards childcare. Although I don't work, we're entitled to this because of the Carer's Allowance)