Do you agree with these benefits?

[Sophieleigh26]

Do you think the amount people get in benefits (before deductions like earnings) is the right amount, or it should be more / less?

MONTHLY AMOUNT
Single & under 25 £265.31
Single & over 25 £334.91
Couple both under 25 £416.45
Couple over 25 £525.72

£244.58 extra allowance for children (up to 2 children)

A single parent not working (24) with one child (1) would receive £509.89 a month, before deductions (loans, debt etc)

obviously these are just summaries and there are different rules if you have children born before 2017, for example, or disabilities, childcare costs.

YABU - It seems ok / right
YANBU - It should be more / less

It's not enough. With these and childcare allowance, we don't get enough to cover childcare and rising bills. This week we had to use a food bank.

3.1% is still more than many people got in a pay rise......

DS has just got a flat after a long period of homelessness and while UC meet his rent costs he must live off £265 per month/£66 pw

So each week he needs

gas & electric at £20 pw

TV licence £3.30pw

Water £6.50

Phone £5pw

Bus fare £4.50 pw

Food £25 pw

That leaves him with £1.70 pw to buy clothes or meet any suprise costs such as replacement washer/fridge/cooker.
DS is waiting on various assessments for disability benefits but these are taking a long time so until then he lives as best he can but with rising costs he's struggling to meet his basic needs.

Pip doesn’t take a year OP.

Birthdays, days out are luxuries many working single parents can’t afford.

Well the TV license it be the first thing to go in those circumstances.

Plus housing contributions off a few hundred a month. Plus free prescriptions. Plus free dental and opticians. Plus special discounts on things like mobile phones, broadband, utilities. Plus free council tax.

I have more empathy for those living on minimum wage or those just over the threshold for help.

There are a huge number of vacancies at the moment in the UK, both unskilled and skilled. Many sectors are undergoing a crisis in recruitment, both public and private sector. Apart from those unable to work, we have a huge pool of those unemployed and a huge pool of vacancies and for some reason ( which I can't figure out) the two aren't meeting.

And I don't mean 'shit jobs' I'm talking local government admin, and retail, hospitality with accommodation etc

Pip doesn’t take a year OP

Actually it can and frequently does if the claiment appeals the decision.
DS is 6 weeks in after sending off his PIP form and we are still waiting for his assessment appointment.

Well the TV license it be the first thing to go in those circumstances

Look at the rest of the post. No broadband or Netflix. So CrossStichQueen's DS is not allowed any sort of televisual entertainment, and should be grateful to sit and do a jigsaw puzzle instead?

Well the TV license it be the first thing to go in those circumstances

DS cannot afford the Internet and would have severe anxiety if the TV licence people came to his home. The affect on his MH would be too much.
Or do you mean he shouldn't watch TV?

I'm not on benefits so my biased opinion is why under 25 get less 🤷‍♀️
What's age got to do with anything if a 24 year old has the same criteria as a 26 year old 🤷‍♀️

Some councils are charging people anything up to 20% council tax if they're on benefits.

Not seen any discounts on utilities (only seen ones for people with certain disabilities) or mobile phones.

How many of those vacancies are full time? So many are part time with not much option to get a full time job. Someone has to do the low paid jobs.

@XenoBitch how dare he watch tv at taxpayers expense

This. There are ways to work as a lone parent, I've done it. Benefits look about right to me. They are meant to be a safety net, not a long term plan.

So have I. I'm a single mum with primary aged children. I work full time. Their dad lives the other side of the country and they're with me the majority of the time. I would go under without the support of my family- I am fortunate to have them.

Not everyone is fortunate to have the support I had. I was a SAHM mum before I managed to get away from my ex, who was abusive to me. Too outing to give all the circumstances but let's just say it was a horrible, upsetting, stressful separation. Had hell from women's aid. Had to sell my house etc.

I signed on for UC for the first time in my life, always either of was a SAHM with my ex working. I went to the job centre and when I explained my circumstances and what had just happened to me, I was told to get signed off by my work coach. I was signed off for several months due to severe stress so there was no expectation for me to work. I went back to my old job whilst still signed off and have since got a better job and increased my hours. I used the system as it was designed to be used- when I was in a dire position. I got myself into a better position and was fortunate to have the education and support behind me to do it. But why shouldn't people receive a proper amount to live on in UC whilst they need it? The safety net should be a proper safety net and not a meagre pittance. The tories would happily go back to having workhouses, I'm sure of it.

inflation was 9% in April. UC was raised by 3.1%
And my pay increased by 0%. Real terms I've had a pay reduction.

I think with housing costs on top of that it's not a lot, but liveable. For those unable to work because of disability there are extra benefits (although PIP is a farce).

Unfortunately there isn't enough to solve everyone's problems and as ever out government are more concerned with millionaires and bankers bonuses.

Landlord owns my fridge, we don't have kids yet, if I was on benefits my family wouldn't be asking me for Christmas presents. The NHS is free. Travel is a good point although I have a bike, I guess I'd have to cycle or walk everywhere and I'm in London so that's not too much of an ask. My main travel expense is the tube on my commute though, and presumably in that situ I wouldn't be commuting. I also would be incredibly badly dressed.

It's interesting about the 20% council tax payment though, that would make it extremely, extremely tight.

How many of those vacancies are full time? So many are part time with not much option to get a full time job. Someone has to do the low paid jobs

Honestly, this whole "there are more jobs than there are unemployed" trope is so done.
I have a relative who has a cleaning company and is advertising (so one of these jobs) for a cleaner to work once a fortnight for two hours. Yeah, that will get someone off of benefits.

@CrossStichQueen can he switch his phone on to a social tariff?
eg voxi do an all inclusive sim for £10/month.

They are ridiculously low. You can understand why some people do cash in hand jobs sell cannabis etc alongside these benefits. How else can they manage?

Yep. I have seen it all. Not allowed pets (why should the taxpayer pay for them and vet bills), should get paid benefits in vouchers to cover food and basic bills only.

I can live better with the low income than I can with the judgement from other people.

I remember a thread on here where the OP wasn't happy because she'd seen her neighbour and kids at the cinema and they were on benefits.

That's properly mad.

@CrossStichQueen can he switch his phone on to a social tariff?
eg voxi do an all inclusive sim for £10/month.

Hes got a pretty good bundle with Giff Gaff I think it is as he needs to use the phone to speak to his support worker, GP and he phones me around 10 to 20 times a day and until his assessments are sorted out he needs it to job search for his UC commitment as its still expected. He was using the local council hubs computer to do that so had a cheaper sim bundle but they are refurbing tthat part so have closed the job search section. .

It’s horrifyingly low and I don’t know how people are meant to survive. We are in the top tax bracket and I would be very happy to pay the extra 5% if it meant that I lived in a society with a proper social safety net for everyone who needed one. I believe in a universal basic income.

It's not enough when you are caring for a disabled child or relative, it's not just needed then as a short term solution, carers are expected to do 35 hours minimum per week to get carers allowance it works out at something ridiculous like £1.99 per hour, these carers are saving the country a small fortune yet they are insulated by the government with £1.99 per hour, £278.80 every 4 weeks and that is deducted out of their universal credit because it's means tested, surely this needs looked at.

The single over 25 benefit of £334.91 struck home with me, when I lived alone in a small terraced house my utilities alone came to almost £300 and that was nearly ten years ago, I could not have survived on that amount. Having said that my take home pay was approx. £1300 after tax, NI and pension, had I not owned my own home my rent would have been about £800 so I would only have been about £200 better off for working full time .. Oh no, actually I would have had travel expenses so that negates half of that, I would also have had to pay for prescriptions and dentistry ….. my point is poverty is not exclusively for the unemployed and until employers are made to pay a living wage there is really no incentive to go out to work at all.