Skint Britain: Friends without Benefits on C4

[amrscot]

Is anybody else watching this?

One of the couples take their dog out to hunt rabbits and squirrels that they can eat.

They've just shown him with a dead rabbit he has caught skinning it in the kitchen

Horrendous..

@JanMeyer
Sorry yes, Macmillan said they would help me apply for an advance but they said not to rely on it because there's no guarantee how much it will be for or when it will arrive.

MiGi - I don't know how old your father is, but if he's under 65 then it'll be PIP (personal independence payment) or attendance allowance for anyone over that age. As for UC, there is the carers element that's part of UC. But Carer's allowance is a separate benefit in its own right, and can be claimed alongside UC. Apparently if you claim UC with carers allowance you'd be slightly better off than just claiming UC. Plus the advantage is that carers allowance is not part of the UC payment, meaning your claim for that could be processed before you get any money from UC. Hopefully Macmillian will know all about that.

@WeeTinkerMonkey, very curious, why did you give up you £40k job?

Hi,he's 61. That sounds a bit better then. I know carers allowance is about £60 weekly but I didn't think I would get that because they said UC with the carers element-it's confusing!! If that's the case I could manage on that probably just about say £100 weekly, that is much more encouraging than £34. Maybe I'm panicking for nothing. Just have to see how it goes.

@WeeTinkerMonkey, very curious, why did you give up you £40k job?

I would guess for the same reasons that women end up having to give up their careers when they have sole care of a child/children following a relationship breakdown.

Lack of flexibility in their career or specific job role, no business ability to offer part time working, hours that are incompatible with childcare (e.g., night shifts or lots of travel), lack of childcare provision and no family/friends able to help, a child who cannot go to childcare, and so on.

Life happens.

If you do apply for carers allowance make sure to apply online, claims submitted online are processed much quicker than ones done on paper.

I can recommend the film; I, Daniel Blake

The system is horrendous

I would guess for the same reasons that women end up having to give up their careers when they have sole care of a child/children following a relationship breakdown

Except that many such women earning this sort of salary do manage to continue working FT with little flexibility and no help from family or friends. Worse, some such women end up in new relationships and then landlord of the property they managed to buy when they were single and working... one of those terrible landlords WTM seems to have so much animosity for.

swingofthings

Hard to work 6am till 6pm most days and have regular work trips around the country when you have a little one to get to school.
I asked my employer at the time for flexible hours, work from home and all that, they were okay with it, till they demanded I went to Dublin for 3 weeks. They repeatedly demands I commit to things they knew I couldn't actually do and made it obvious they were legally managing me out if the front door.

But I've no intention of getting into my personal details and personal life with you.

Decisions were made, I'm no different or no more special than millions of others in my position. I have no delusions of being better than anyone.. except private landlords, parasitic scum sucking pond dwellers.

It was very helpful of him to post his details (WeeT) as real cases help us all understand each other better as does my own real case - moving from the NE for work and working full time as a single parent. In his case it probably was because he could not find childcare although there are so many people looking for work up there I would have thought someone could be found on £13k a year which would make it worth while keeping a £40k (before tax) job surely?

@WeeTinkerMonkey
I agree re private landlords. Mine has told me if I'm late with my rent I'll be given notice (never been late before, good tenant etc) his point is that it's business and the house is to make him money and I'll be in breach of contract if I'm late so he will have to act. I can see his point. Although I will be late with my rent I already know that so that's me stuffed. My son who's renting a student house (three bed terrace,two rooms downstairs) with 4 others are paying £2500 monthly between them. People bang on about benefit fraud but think about the amount of housing benefit that blatantly goes towards lining the pockets of greedy landlords. But it's difficult because landlords should be able to charge however much they want if they own the property but they're blatantly ripping off the system as many people are having to claim Discretinary housing payments from the council to top up their housing benefit because they can't afford what the landlord wants. My mind just fries with it all and now I'm in the middle of it when I really didn't want to be.

@MiGi777

I've said it before but I can't get my head around the attitude that it's ok for private landlords to earn profit from private renting to people who are on any benefit (I'm on tc no Hb but my TC obviously contributes to housing costs) and that's fine because it's business, yet call people on those benefits, paying that rent, scroungers. Totally baffling.
And in your situation you literally cannot win. No money = no rent = eviction. You won't get another private rent because you're in arrears with your current one, you go to the council and they tell you to stay put until the bailiffs turn up and then you're on the street hoping they find you something, anything. More costs added, more debt, even less chance of a) enough money to pay upfront for a private rent and b) screwed credit rating for years so unable to private rent anyway.
How can that be beneficial for anyone? It's ridiculous.
Not to mention the stress and fear caused by the whole situation.
Private landlords are happy to take the money but when the system screws up and everyone else is taking a hit they throw out the it's not my problem. If someone is going to be a private landlord in this day and age you need to take the rough with the smooth, like anyone else. It's not the fault of the tenant or the landlord that it's this way, but the tenant pays a far higher price than anyone.

except private landlords, parasitic scum sucking pond dwellers
Well funny how I was in the sane situation than yours, except with two kids and no maintenance. I got another job ft. I just about managed to hold on to my house and paid the mortgage despite it being just under half my take home pay. I'm now a LL renting that property as I met someone with one of their own.

I wonder where I fall in your stereotypical categorising. The poor single parent who struggled with maintaining a household and raised my kids single handedly or the scum landlord?

Oh and don't bother with the 'well you were lucky'. There was no luck involved in my situation but like you, I won't go into more detail of my personal life.

Just respect that if you want people to respect those in your situation, start by doing the same yourself as you never know the background of those you accuse so merciless.

User I run a food bank and I think the government knew full well what uc would do what you have overlooked is that they don't care.

Agree with this. I mean, for fucks sake it was dreamt up by IDS, possibly one f the most sadistic MPs there has ever been. I will be honest and say that it sounded a good idea in theory. But I was suspicious of how easy it was apparently going to be, and that more people would have more...which did not sound right at all. In practise, the government have known for a long time now that its a huge flop. Ever since the first guinea pigs were moved on. Yet, none of the issues were fixed before moving ont another section of the public. They know, they don't care, one can only conclude that UC is doing exactly what they intended it to do all along..

So don't rely on the state if you can avoid it. try for that full time job and then the weekend job as well which seems to have worked so well for many of us (although obviously not those who are too ill to work). Those without children should also consider work elsewhere where accommodation if provided eg you can join the army at age 16. My daughter has worked in holiday resorts where your accommodation and food is included. I have had friends who became live in childcarers - with accommodation provided. Others work on cruise ships. In other words if rent is your main concern there are some jobs with accommodation provided.

try for that full time job and then the weekend job as well which seems to have worked so well for many of us

Doesn't always work like that though. When you work shifts you often only know your rota a week in advance, maybe a month if you're lucky. I work permanent nights, but different nights each week. I'm on the bank for a couple of other places, and guess what, every time they've rang me I'm already working. So they don't ring any more. I can't commit to specific days because my rota changes constantly. Working 5 a week gives me 2 full days/nights off, I'd be more than happy to work an extra day/night but the first technical day off I've been awake all the night before, I need to at least sleep a few hours to be safe to work anywhere else, I also can't work a full day the day I go back on nights, also not safe in my regular job, so that leaves one day - that is never the same and would be dictated by me. Not everyone works Monday to Friday 9-5 - especially round here (near Hartlepool) where much of the work is shift work.
In my twenties I used to do a night followed by a day shift, 6 hours off and back on nights, I was lucky I had the childcare between my mum and a nursery that I could. But how the hell I didn't kill someone I don't know, it was irresponsible and dangerous.

'well you were lucky'. There was no luck involved

I got another job ft.
I met someone with one of their own.

Nope no luck at all....

No no luck. Getting another ft job involved a lot of applications, learning from my errors and changing them, long and demanding preparation for the interviews and keeping positive when despite it all, I had to face rejections until I succeeded.

Meeting someone to share my life with involved keeping in shape and looking my best, getting to know a number of people, going on a number of dates leading to nowhere yet keeping positive.

But its so much easier to assume that those who've got themselves in a good place just had it all falling into their plate with no effort nor determination involved.

Again, you are very quick to judge, why? How about getting to know people for who they are rather than judge them on their success and assume it is undeserving?

You know that's all luck right?

Getting a job is a massive lucky break. Being one of the CVs they pick out of hundreds, being one of the applicants put through, getting the offer and having the funds and childcare and everything else all in place.

Or do you assume the unlucky applicants just weren't as determined as you?

Same as dating, you're lucky you had child care and funds to allow dating. You're lucky that you met the person you wanted to be with, luckier they felt the same. Lucky he had a house of his own and didn't mind you moving in. Or what? All those single folks just haven't been the gym enough?

Life is all luck, chance and rolling the dice. No amount of determination can get you a job, some one out there looked at your CV and someone else's and by chance picked yours.

@WeeTinkerMonkey, I guess you either believe in making your luck or not.

You are again making assumptions around childcare and funds. You couldn't be more wrong.

Even if it was all down to luck that got me where I am, are you saying that if luck were to come and knock on your door, you got yourself a high paid job, you met someone, fell madly in love and moved with them but decided to keep your property in case it didn't work so lent it until you were sure you were prepared to move in with them permanently, it would suddenly turn you into a scumbag?

There is always that divide and it is really helpful for those of us who have had a lot of luck (i.e. done things that got us into full time work with no benefits) and those who have not can discuss what caused where we each are. Luck will play a part of course but the sad thing is that those who think it is all about luck don't then try the things those of us who think luck is a smaller part do which means we do better. If you think it's all down to luck you don't bother to move from the NE to London as I did or you don't go on the dates because you know no one will ever want you who earns a lot of money. My husband (ex husband) specifically went out with women who would earn a lot rather htan fellow teachers and that paid off for him on the divorce - that was not luck, it was fishing in the right pool.

Also if anyone one wants to look more attractive on way is eat less eg try one meal a day and no snackes for a week or two as a start. Rabbit man on the show is slim not least because he actively hunts rabbits, runs and eats rabbit (which by the way is delicious and we often ate in the NE when I was a child) rather than junk food.

swingofthings

Thanks, you e just confirmed another scum tier attitude of landlords.

"I'll rent this out till I need it back then I'll kick the tenants out and move back in"

Makes tenants feel ever so safe.

I'm done responding to you. Enjoy your rental income, be sure to let your tenants know you'll boot them out if you have a row other your partner.

xenia The reason people are fat is far more complex than you seem to understand.

I don't think fat is our big issue here anyway (it was just soeone else raised it as she was slim so got a good reasonably well off spouse).

Finidng jobs with fixed hours sounds like it is quite difficult in the NE. My son drives a van and can get and has got fixed hours and is fulltime under PAYE. However you need a driving licence for that. They also always need drivers (but we are SE not NE so that will be the difference which is why I keep harping on about having to move for work being a good idea).

London does not have quite the same landlord issues as we have a lot of fairly well off people wanting to rent who are very mobile and often don't have children so constantly want a place for a year and then they move sometimes countries, sometimes just for a change and they can afford the rents and we have massive pressure on commercial rate lettings to those in full time work to keep wages down as there are a lot of properties (also most landlords are not allowed by their mortgage to let to anyone who vets a single penny of state benefits so the lettings market is not geared to those on benefist at all other than those in social or council housing I suppose).

Well reading those last few posts it's pretty clear that some people think that anyone on benefits, a bit overweight, doesn't want a partner or can't find a 9-5 job to ensure they can work weekends as well just isn't trying hard enough.
Totally escapes some people that maybe they have as tried hard, possibly harder, than those who it's worked for, and been unsuccessful.
Couldn't possibly be that things are different, opportunity not available, area and infrastructure different, people different.
Nope, it worked for them therefore it'll work for anyone trying hard enough. Ok then, thanks.
For the record 10 years ago I was on a psychiatric ward after a complete breakdown. I was never unemployed before that, haven't been since, wasn't then either, was on a sick note. I've had 2 lots of surgery since then and diagnosed with arthritis.
I moved 8 times in 15 years because landlords either wouldn't make pretty basic but essential repairs (holes in rooves and heating completely breaking down) or decided to sell.
In the 10 years since my breakdown I've pulled myself by the bootstraps, always worked, currently paying for further education so when the arthritis gets too bad to do this job I have something to go on to. But it would seem at every turn I've been kicked in the teeth, I have tried, probably harder than the posters that claim nothing is luck, it's all hard work or lack of, to get ahead, I've achieved a lot, when I look back on the last 10 years, but still, apparently, not hard enough because my efforts haven't achieved what someone else's have.

Some people really need to take their heads out of their arses or fuck off back to their little bubble because they don't have a clue. May nothing befall you that has some of the posters on here, because I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy. But if it should I hope you place the blame squarely on yourself and not suddenly change your time about luck.