What are the main identifiers of those who describe themselves as lower middle classes?

[Rosehip10]

As distinct from middle/upper middle.

I did not see her boasting about her horses, holidays etc...

I think its who you know.
If you had a bit of a problem, who can you call to help?

You want to help your teen get a job. Do you ring

• your neighbour on the Tesco checkout to see if they are taking on extra staff for Christmas,

• your friend in a provincial accountants office to put a word in if they happen to be taking on trainees,

- your old schoolfriend on a national media outlet to see if an internship could be arranged.

You are the victim of a crime. You dont know what to to do since you've reported and youre frustrated. Do you chat to

• the local hard man,
• a local sergeant,
• the district judge.

You are seriously broke. Who can help?

• loan shark
• mum and dad
• financial broker

And this is one that I remember from a poster called Garlic a few years ago.
Paraphrased obviously.
You and your husband hardly see each other. Is it because

• he's always away on business
• you're on opposite shifts.

I always liked that one.

The surveys made me upper and elite. But emojii I wear Boden/White Stuff/M&S to work every day. I don't have to work and dress according to what is appropriate in my organisation.

According to the surveys I am upper middle and established middle.

Yet according to only my profession I am lower middle by emojis reckoning.

Working class -sportswear and labels for daywear. Hair styles with razor symbols in, or tightly pulled back
Lower middle: Next, Matalan, Dorothy Perkins + current trend, e.g Michael Kors bag. Fancy nails
Middle middle: Pure, Cos, Fatface, White Stuff. Jigsaw Boden. Natural fibres. Bob or layers
Upper Middle: Buys from designers, Caramel glossy highlights
Upper: Daddy’s old holey cashmere jumper, jeans from anywhere. Hair cut with a knife and fork.

I used to work in fashion (modelling, mags & buying) & like a mix of high street & accessible designers eg Isabel Marant, Maje etc. Rather wear Nike joggers than ever shop in Boden, Fat Face etc.

I think when you're on your death bed you realise it is not how much money you earned but how you treated people around you.
Did you show kindness or judgement, how did you use your life experience to help others.
All those with the oppurtunity should offer work experience placements or talks in schools to WC DC instead of the usual sweeping floors in the local salon, stacking shelves, give them to confidence to aim higher.

Well said Emerald! Thankfully I am not on my deathbed, but my health has become so poor this year that Christmas is a huge struggle, but I have decided to make it about those I love and not me. We need to do the same as a society, if we all looked after each other there would be far less unmet need, of any kind. Very merry Christmas to everyone!

I always thought LMC meant professional jobs that aren't particularly well paid or status-y. So you went to uni but you're not sending your DC to private school/hiring a nanny or whatever. So public sector jobs like teachers, librarians, social workers, that kind of thing. But from what people have described on this thread maybe not (Hyacinth Bucket?) I always thought I was LMC and I didn't see it as a bad thing.

I don’t understand the class thing at all 😳. I’m sure my family ( I was raised on benefits by a single mum in a council house on a sink estate ) would probably be viewed as working or lower class? I think I’m working class still. I’m a bus driver but I’m paid off the mortgage, own 2 vehicles outright and am financially stable but I think you can get change class? Or am I still getting it wrong? As I said, I don’t understand. I thought teachers or bank staff were middle class. I’m Scottish and wasn’t ever taught about the class thing 🤷‍♀️

So many mistakes in that 😂 I’m tired

If you have to work for a living you are working class.

I grew up on a council estate but if I never worked again all my bills would be paid so I think that makes me considerable richer than yuuuuu

I would be happy to say I am LMC, probably more WC if anything.

I'm a teacher, the first in my family to be university educated, Radio 4 listener, brunch and flat whites and all those other things. I do use the words lounge and dinners

But I can't afford the Joules/ Boden/ 4x4 lifestyle. I don't have the money for a deposit and I grew up in a council house my parents could buy thanks to Thatcher. I think income and money is where it counts - and being vulnerable to a change in circumstances.

I think the key marker is table manners. It doesn't matter where you live, what you wear, what you do for a living or how much you have in the bank. If you can't hold a knife and fork, don't know which one to use or grab too much greedily, anybody who was brought up as UMC or UC will know your antecedents are WC or LMC and no amount of money covers it up. Some people learn this but very few and imo it's an insidious silent marker and if there was any true commitnent to social equality it would be put right from the teacher training colleges and passed onto children.

No adult should emerge at 16/18/21 and feel self conscious in a restaurant orvas a guest.

If you have to work for a living you are working class

Total nonsense....you have taken the words far too literally.

I always thought the Royal family were Upper class.
Having money does not make you upper class, you have to be born into wealth and that is inherited wealth.
I would describe myself as working class, although I don't wear tracksuit or wear my hair scraped back.
I don't think having a degree make a you middle class at all.
Neither does having a house.
I think 7days post is very good.

Id also say if you have to use the NHS then you are not middle class. Likewise education, if you have to use, rather than choose to use state education, then you are not middle cass.

I think I must be lower middle class, as my parents sent me to private prep school, but chose to send me to state secondary. They chose to use NHS for us too, except when we lived abroad.

My dcs have health insurance, but we tend to use the NHS. We could never afford private school where we live. No way. It would cost about £70l per year I think for two dcs and that's our entire household income. So, I don't know... surely because I was born into relative wealth, I am middle class, but my children are not born into wealth so they are working class? I don't care either way tbh, but I do find the subject very interesting.

I think I have one upper class or upper middle class friend who is a lady or something. She has several tattoos, drinks and smokes etc. Definitely shops on the high street, but higher end. She doesn't seem to ever buy her own furniture though, or much artwork as that is all inherited / borrowed from family home etc. I wonder if all these rules mean less nowadays and we are more like America (my homeland) where money means more than class.

£70k

Also, realise I definitely can't be middle class as I just discussed money 🤭.

I would describe myself as working class, although I don't wear tracksuit or wear my hair scraped back

Most working class people don't either, the person who said that seems to be confusing working class people with the cast of Jeremy Kyle.

It's difficult sometimes.

Who's 'posher'? The ex-builder from a very wc background who now runs a successful construction company, drives a Range Rover Sport and lives in a huge detached house....or the guy from a very wealthy family who dropped out and now works as a barista?

Who really cares? I have my values, the way I bring DS up, the way I treat others and I don't worry about other people and their job or lifestyle. You can't judge a person by their cover. If someone judges me without getting to know me then it's their loss.

Who's 'posher'? The ex-builder from a very wc background who now runs a successful construction company, drives a Range Rover Sport and lives in a huge detached house....or the guy from a very wealthy family who dropped out and now works as a barista?

Exactly! My instinct says the barista might be posher, but his dcs probably won't be?

People often confuse WC with the underclass...

Underclass... chaotic life, maybe criminal activities, benefits as a lifestyle choice.

Working class, generally lower paid jobs, often concerned about appearances, not university educated.

Exactly! My instinct says the barista might be posher, but his dcs probably won't be?

I also think it can change over generations. We have a haulage contractor who comes in (owns a small company) who we call 'Rod Stewart'. He seems as working class as they come, but drives a Bentley and sends his kids to private school.

On the flipside, I used to live in a definitively posh town and knew quite a few people that became 'dropouts'. Never learnt to drive and just stayed in the town, doing dead end jobs and going to the same pubs every weekend.

When I was a self-employed truck driver I also knew plenty of arctic drivers on £45k, plus a few specialised drivers (e.g. car transporters/heavy haulage) who cleared closer to £75k. These type of guys were better off than a lot of professionals but still went to work in a beanie.

I guess it depends whether the barometer is lifestyle or education - e.g. I know a lot of very well educated teachers who are smartly presented but relatively poor compared to the above drivers.