Could you live on £100 a month?

[UndertheCedartree]

That's how much I have left after paying my mortgage (interest only) and bills. I am currently undergoing treatment for my mental ill health so am unable to work. I have always worked up until my nervous breakdown. I also recieve Child benefit which I use for the children's clubs, clothes, presents and treats. I also get a food bag from the food bank weekly. It is tough going. Any suggestions of how to cope/how to save money or get more money appreciated

[Bellasorellaa]

Impossible to save on that
You can live on it without having a social life which will make your mental health worse I’ve done it and it made me worse too

[SlangBack]

You are doing a good job at keeping track of things and being open to advice. There are savings to be made that should really help you,

Keep going and be proud of yourself

[UndertheCedartree]

Thank you so much. No my son is not getting DLA - he was diagnosed only recently after being refered to the Emotional wellbeing team when things deteriorated for him when I became unwell I will ask about this

There has been mention of this loan. It has been extremely hard work getting anywhere with UC so I've been having to deal with it step by step. Recently my advocate found out I should have been given a medical questionnaire when I first applied as I was in hospital but noone let me know about this til over a year later. Hopefully once the medical is completed I will get more money. Everything is a step by step as I only get access to the social worker and advocate an hour a week each so things take a long time to sort.

I will look at Turn to us and money advice service. Thank you for your kind words.

[TheFormidableMrsC]

OP, what an awful situation you're in. I scanned the thread and have the following suggetions.

You could easily save £100 if not more on phone and broadband.

If you have a child with ASD, are they receiving DLA? If not, you must apply for this, that is a significant extra amount per month. My ASD son is in receipt of this, it's approx £320 a month.

You can get help with the mortgage interest but this will be in the form of a loan (since they did away with support for mortgage interest) but in the short term, until you're back on your feet, you may be entitled to this.

Have you contacted Turn2Us? If you haven't then please do, they will be able to go through everything with you. The Money Advice Service can also do the same.

I am sure you can improve your situation with the right advice. Good luck, I hope you are on an upward curve now

[UndertheCedartree]

Ringdonna - ha - that made me laugh!
Thanks for the tip - Pivot - I'll apply soon as!
Snog - yes it will! I'll try and sort it soon.
Thank you, hettiebetty and aww, mummyshark...you've made me cry! Being away from my children like this and undertaking intense therapy is the hardest thing I've ever had to do in my life - not to mention the massive financial hit...but I'm getting there one step at a time. All you lovely people's kind words and tips have helped me enormously

[Snog]

If you can save £100 a month on phone and broadband this will make a HUGE difference surely?

[PivotPivotPivottt]

£130 a month on phone and broadband . My broadband was £27 a month (I have just cancelled it as have unlimited data with my phone contract and can use that as a hotspot), my mum's is £37 for broadband and landline. That's with Sky.

With the warm home discount, apply soon as you only have until March! You get £140 which can be split between your gas and electric or the full lot on one or the other.

I'm a single parent on benefits and it's hard, I'm making major cutbacks just now to try and see me through. I'm fortunate to have a supportive family who help me out but I try my hardest not to fall back on them. Sorry you're in this situation I hope things start to look up for you soon.

[DanielRicciardosSmile]

@Ringdonna you spend £200 a week on cigarettes? That's over 10 grand a year!

[HettieBettie]

No I couldn’t With my kids - hope you’re ok OP no advice but I’m sorry you’re in this situation x

[Ringdonna]

No we spend double that a week on fags!

[Mummyshark2019]

I think you're amazing. No tips to give but I am in awe of how you are managing this. You should be very proud of yourself.

[UndertheCedartree]

Dotty - it's a way to work out a budget. So if I say £10 a month for clothes it isn't spent every month but then when they've had a growth spurt and need lots of bits - the money is there. It's only £60 a year for clothes and shoes for each child so £30 for summer shoes and clothes and £30 for winter shoes and clothes - not a lot, really.

Toiletries includes shampoo, conditioner, shower gel, soap, flannels, toothpaste, floss, toothbrushes - it all adds up - not all needed every month but when needed the money is there.

Friends birthday - ok pound shop present, then wrapping paper, then card, then transport to party if not walkable. Often a couple of parties a month - it adds up!

[Dotty1970]

*surely they don't go through

[Dotty1970]

The reason I didn't include the CB is because that is already spent on essentials for the children. So £130 per month - £40 clubs. £10 clothes, £10 toiletries, £20 birthdays/Christmas, £10 friend's birthdays, £20 treats/activities, £20 savings

Not sure what is £10 for clothes for exactly, is this really needed each month?
£10 for toiletries, this is a lot, surely they sent through through this much, any issues with skin conditions you should get free via prescription.
Not sure what £20 birthday and Christmas is for, is this you saving for them which is a good idea.
Friends birthdays... Pound shop.
£20 savings you need to stop this whilst your struggling.

[UndertheCedartree]

I can ask. Their current SW isn't great but I could also ask the Emotional wellbeing team which he is under. Thanks for the idea

[SuperLoudPoppingAction]

Could your Social Worker look into whether your child with ASD would be entitled to disability benefits?
That could pay for activities and things like specialist toiletries for sensory issues (eg the toothpaste mine likes is Oranurse which possibly costs more than gold).
I have worked in an advocacy type role and I found social workers could often access funds but only tended to do so now and again when the fancy took them. Sorry if any SWs are offended - I have no idea of the ins and outs behind these decisions and I know it's a pressured job. My mum was a SW and worked v hard. But I couldn't see that there were any specific criteria beyond the SW deciding this particular family would benefit from this particular funding.
Hence my wondering whether your SW could access funding for the activity or at least help you apply for some.

[UndertheCedartree]

Awww...Superloud - that is so kind of you. Things are so tough at the moment but I'm really trying hard to make things better for my beautiful children

[SuperLoudPoppingAction]

Just remember you're doing amazingly well.
You're going through so much.
You seem to put so much thought into what your children need - that's really incredible when you're having such a hard time yourself.

[UndertheCedartree]

Thank you so much for all the really helpful advice.

Giving up smoking is definitely one of my goals. I spend £12 for a pouch of tobbacco - I make it last 2 weeks as my boyfriend tops it up for me at the weekend and I roll them small. I'm limited to smoking when on leave at hospital so it cuts down the amount I smoke. It is a terrible waste of money, though.

Thanks for the information on cheaper broadband - it sounds like I have a terrible deal. Will add that to my to-do list to go through with my social worker.

I have nothing against charity shop clothes but there are none near the hospital or my home so the transport to get to them I think would negate any saving compared to me getting things in Asda near hospital.

My eldest has very sensitive skin so need something decent. The approx £10 a month includes shampoo, conditioner, shower gel, soap, flannels, toothpaste, floss and toothbrushes

Superloud - thank you for what you said about birthday presents. I do feel the pressure as my daughter's school is in a very affluent area and the parties are all completely amazing. The last present I got was a £1 pencil case, with discounted felt tips (£1.50) and a note book (£1.50) - it looked quite a decent present but was only £4. I suspect I may be ASD as my son is my mini-me. I will speak to my psychologist about it.

Knobjockey - I don't have a water meter so will look into that. I have no other debts except student finance. I have cancelled all DDs except essentials

Thank you so much - you've given me lots of ideas to make my money go further

[famousfour]

Hopefully you can do something about your broadband bill. Looks massive to me. Look at groups for cheap kids clothes. So you don’t need to spend £20 a month on clothes and toiletries.

[SuperLoudPoppingAction]

Mortgage is already interest only

[SuperLoudPoppingAction]

I know you're not asking about this but have your caregivers looked into whether you might have ASD?
Just seeing as it's in the family.
I have it.
Without my ASD diagnosis treating the mental health symptoms wouldn't work very well.
Forgive the intrusion though - I don't expect you to answer. Just thought it might be something to consider for you

[KnobJockey]

Are you in an area where you have to pay that much for broadband? (I'm in/ near Hull, for example, so we HAVE to use the local provider, there are no options for BT, Sky, etc, but I thought that Hull was the only place that had that problem. And I don't pay that much for fibre broadband still!). If you could get that down to £50 a month, thats a great saving! But you probably have to give a months notice, so if you can change, then hand in that ASAP.

Mortgage provider- can you ask for interest only in the short term?

Water- are you on a meter? Normally massively cheaper than bills, almost definitely will be in your situation. You still pay by a monthly DD, they just only charge for what you use, and normally fit a meter for free.

Other outgoings- are you paying for any loans, CC, catalogues, etc? If you are, then contact the and tell them you're having problems paying. pretty sure now they have to give you options to pay, try to freeze interest.

Whens the last time you actually sat and looked at your bank statements? Most people have random DDs set up, most of which aren't necessary in times where money is very stretched. For example, I have probably 2-3 lots of life insurance at about £6 each set up, a magazine subscription that I ordered for 6 months for a present for my nan that I have ended up leaving running for the past 6 years (not a problem!). Just check for various bits that soon add up.

[FriarTuck]

I pay £130 per month for home phone and broadband.
I pay £45 for landline, anytime calls and unlimited broadband and I know I could get it cheaper. How on earth can you be paying £130?????

[SuperLoudPoppingAction]

If anybody hosting a party judges you for providing a pound land present they aren't worth bothering with.
I love children coming to the parties we host and don't expect them to bring a gift. A handmade card is lovely even made out of folded a4 paper.
My DC would love a huge bar of chocolate which is about £1.50 from home bargains.