If you were absolutely flat broke in this situation, how would you make money?

[stressedoutstudent]

Some context - single mum of 3 teenagers. Qualfied as a nurse a year ago, so on the lowest increment for band 5 pay. i work all night plus extra bank shifts to maximise my income with enhancements. Moving up pay scales/banding is impossible at the minute. The extra shifts means my UC entitlement is 0 most months. I get CB for 2/3 of the children. Eldest has autism and whilst he works, he doesnt earn enough to be contributing anything substantial to the household. Ex gave up working and claims benefits, i get the standard £29 a month deduction from his benefits via CMS, he hasnt seen the children in over a decade so doesnt contribute anything further. I dont drive and theres no public transport running at a time that i can get to work, so i have to pay for taxis which are expensive but i have no other options. Its a 2 hour walk before/after 13 hours shifts and i usually do 4 or 5 in a week, im so exhausted i cant do this walk on top of my very busy active shift. We live in a rented house, which is a reasonable rent for the area, but still expensive. 1 child in school who can walk, 1 child in college who cant walk as its too far so i have to ay transport costs for them. I have some "unnecessary" outgoings, gaming subscriptions and streaming services, however my children are home alone 4 or 5 nights a week so they need something to keep them occupied as i dislike them going out and about whilst im at work, as i work in a very busy A&E department, im not easily contactable and like to know they are safe. I have some small debts im paying off from when i was a student and really struggled to get by.

Every month i run i out of money, its just impossible. I cant work more, i cant see where i can reduce out goings. I cant get a third job (my substantial and bank are two different contracts). I cant afford christmas, which i know isnt the be all and end all. But, when i was a student i promised my children a better future when i was stressed writing assignments doing placements and missing important events. But its not gotten better. Infact im worse off each month now than i was when studying. The recent NHS payrise left me worse off, as it bumped me into the next pension bracket, so the little i got backdated last pay, i now owe in pension arrears from April when the pay rise was back dated to. This amount is more than i received in back pay last month.

Life is just impossible. I cant give my children any standard of living, despite working my arse off to improve my career and do as many shifts a week as i am physically able to do.

What would you do? Genuinely? My only potential plan at the minute is the WFH pip assessor roles, its the same money im on now, but no travel costs. Keep my bank job to pick up an extra weeked shift each week. But its a job role i struggle with morally, and i would lose the patient contact element of my job for the most part. And A&E was my dream job, i love it, and the experience is vital for my future career aspirations.

This but the start up costs aren't small. OP I would get a cheap moped for work runs at around £500 (credit card?). Could you drop to 36 hours (3x13hr shifts) gives you 4 days a week to do bank shifts.

I know you're a qualified nurse, but for that amount of money is it not worth moving to another job outside of nursing? Do you expect your income to go up significantly in the next few years? Sorry, I don't know much about the NHS pay structure!

Google your local wheels to work. Approx £45 a week for scooter hire, CBT, insurance, maintenance.

Not a huge saving but all adds up.

I really wouldn't opt out of your pension without checking the small print and thinking through different scenarios (or being less indirect - if you opt out of pension are you opting out of death in service benefits as well?).

Can you look at your debts and if you can reduce payments there? I'd also, if you think your parents could afford this, consider borrowing money off them to repay the MSc loan and then pay your parents back over a longer period of time.

Also consider going on moneysavingexpert and doing a full budget. You might be able to make savings in unexpected places. £15 a day on a commute is below the average UK commuting cost (and cheaper than the cost of commuting by car once parking etc are included) so don't assume a car would be cheaper if you don't otherwise need one.

And as a short term fix - see if you have anything you can sell on eBay as before Christmas is a good time to sell things.

Does your employer do a cycle to work scheme that covers e-bikes?

Cycling uphill on an e-bike is a doddle.

I'm in the same boat & won't ever be able to drive due to epilepsy & brain injury so have had to cycle. You get fit & adjust quite quickly cycling. I do 8 miles each way each day & I'm definitely not athletic. I don't go at Lycra man speed buts it a lot quicker than walking. I'm minimum wage so taxi is never an option.

The taxis must add up to quite a bit so prob easier to cut that down than take on extra work.

Also are you claiming everything you can for disabled DC? PIP etc?

I really hope the person having a moan about public sector pensions is reading this thread.

God you must be exhausted OP working that many full shifts a week. I think you're amazing.

I wouldn't worry about the PIP role morally, somebody will be doing it, and even if you're not making the decisions, if you treat people kindly and with humanity that is far from nothing.

But it's such a sad thing to think of you quitting the A & E role you love and giving up on your future ambitions. It's not like just anyone can be an A & E nurse and you have worked so hard.

Stick with the nursing and the pension as it will eventually all get better . The moped / hire low cost scheme sounds ideal and use the food bank , we see loads of nurses with families at ours and the only thing we judge is the NHS rubbish pay that puts you there !

Could you pick up a good second hand bike, helmet, lock, bright waterproofs, lights, good gloves, use a rucksack and cycle weather permitting? Often it is possible to cut across using roads/paths with less traffic... Might be a 20/30 minute cycle and it is lovely if you like cycling... Appreciate it is an investment though and your route may not be suitable. I have done this myself, for years at a time, mainly to build fitness into my day over a pretty safe & flat route.

@Serencwtch honestly I don't think it's even safe for a person to be cycling home after a 13 hour shift. Op is working almost a double week, and in patient facing, not extra hours at a desk. It doesn't seem like a great idea to me.

I do think you should have a chat with your manager at work OP. Explain the situation. She / he might have some suggestions or ideas to help you! You never know. If a vacancy becomes available, or a better paid shift, they are better positioned to think of you first if they know your situation in advance.

Another random suggestion - get a Ukranian refugee house guest. I think you can get rent money. Might mean your kids get to share a room but might bring in a few pennies?

This

At best it seems like something to try in Summer when it is light and road conditions and weather are good.

Ah, I hadn't spotted that. I also suggested cycling. I take your point. Although when does the poor op manage to get any fresh air or exercise? That is brutal

Hi OP,

Might it be worth applying to be on the Bupa nurse 24hr helpline staff? We use that and the nurses are always great. The fact that you have three kids and one with autism would be brilliant experience for really understanding what the patients need. It might mean you could have one day a week WFH, which might help.

The tranport costs seem a lot, but I can't think of anything. Sorry things are so tight. You sound amazing.

Could you work as a 111 nurse, while keeping an NHSP contract for your current Trust? I'm sorry, I don't know what's available to band 5s.

If not that, I would be battering my bosses phone asking for what I needed to do to move up to band 6.

Oh and the other things you can do are go on https://www.reddit.com/r/beermoneyuk/ and do all the offers each month. Might bring £100 a month extra?

Ref Netflix, Prime etc - I would go on a cycle - each month you stop one or two on a rota, on the proviso they will be reinstated next month or in a couple of months. That might save you a bit. There's no way kids can use that much media and they will appreciate it more if they don't have everything on tap all the time.

I completely feel your pain OP. I spent years studying too thinking I would be giving my DC a better life and I’m not much better off but I know I will be in a few years time and I can be in a better position to lend them a bit of money if they need it etc.

You sound amazing!

I don’t know much about nursing but how far away are you from going up a pay band? And would this help your situation?

The taxis are the biggest unnecessary expensive (I know you need them).
Is this just when you’re doing unsociable hours or for every shift?

If you’re quite far away from getting the next pay band then I would look into other jobs that you won’t need to get a taxi for.
Some schools hire nurses etc.

It sounds as though your parents are generous and I would ask to borrow some money for Xmas, just so that’s one less stress.

I think the moped is a great idea too!

You say it bumped you into the next pension bracket. Can you reduce your pension payments at least in the short term? Not ideal but your income will increase and you could make it up.

I do low risk casino and matched betting. Low risk casino you need a bank roll of maybe 200 to start. It’s not risk free short term but long term you will make money. I make around 400 on average per month around a busy job. Have a look at teamcasino.com

OP - you are great, you really are. And so are your kids, seems like they're doing their best too, so don't feel guilty (so hard not to) just let them know you're so proud of them. It's very hard being an LP and trying to do well by all too and it has always been thus, no matter how the 'packaging' changes.

As you love your job and can also fit in some bank work I don't think you should change that as you could end up unhappy in your 'work' for little financial gain.

And nor do I think you should cut the subs for the kids to 'play'; as I completely agree with you that you know where they are and know what they're doing - which is pretty good.

Things that you've mentioned - your pension contributions, if you read too much MN and the 'pension' threads then you think you'll be in eternal pecuniary if you don't pay, pay, pay now, now, now. If you can opt out for the now, I would. You need the money now, now, now. It won't affect your already £0 UC entitlement much and you can opt back in to paying when things are less tight.

The moped/scooter idea - you seem up to considering this idea which will massively decrease your costs, and it might be possible that your DPs could help with a loan. Now on a wintry early morning or a rainy day it can be horrendous but usually the idea of it is worse than the journey as long as you've got the right 'kit' - Helmet, full gloves, waterproofs and hardy boots that go to at least mid-shin - your uniform folded in a plastic bag in your rucksack.

Any local grants/bursaries that you could apply for towards the travel costs (or?) for your ASD dc? Or anything that locally applies. And, if you aren't already on your local social housing register, you never know unless your're on it.

Best of luck, stay strong, you will make it.

I do this.

I worked out that I was paying a ridiculous amount on subscriptions and so now I cycle it.
A couple of months of Netflix, then a couple months of Disney plus.

-Could you be eligible for a discretionary housing payment?

www.gov.uk/government/publications/claiming-discretionary-housing-payments/claiming-discretionary-housing-payments

-have you approached the DC's colleges and schools to see if they have funds available to help with transport costs etc? In my area the schools and colleges have bursary funds available at the head's discretion/hardship funds.

-is eldest working full time? 21 or over rate? Should be enough to contribute something to household expenses, and rates go up in April -

From April 2025, the NLW for workers aged 21 and over will rise to £12.21 per hour, a 6.7% increase. For younger workers, the NMW will see substantial raises, with the 18-20 age group rate increasing by 16.3% to £10.00 per hour, and the 16-17 age group and apprentice rates both going up by 18% to £7.55 per hour.

• there are some nursing specific hardship funds - could you apply to one or more of these?

www.rcn.org.uk/Get-Help/Member-support-services/Financial-wellbeing/Charitable-funding-and-other-help

It sounds like your ex is a lost cause for financial support, but what about the paternal grandparents and wider family?
RCN charitable arm.
Order Directory of Social Change guide to grants for individual from the library (it costs £110) and get writing, e.g. perhaps an organisation would pay off your loan for the MSc.
Ask DC’s college for a travel grant.

Would quitting and going agency make you more money? It does in other areas of the NHS.

Don't struggle morally with PIP assessor. You're just going to record the answers to questions. You don't have to make any judgement on their legitimacy or anything. It's just interviewing someone. In a hopefully very kind, patient and sympathetic way. You need the money.
If you don't work you'll be taking money off the DWP. If you are working as a PIP assessor you will also be getting money from them. But in exchange for work. So what's so bad about it? X