Irritated that families on UC get heavily discounted entry

[happybug1234]

feel very aggrieved this afternoon to find out that people on UC get heavily discounted entry to popular attractions:

London Zoo
London transport museum
science museum wonderlab
Cutty Sark
kew Gardens
St Paul’s cathedral

As a mum with a professional career, with both husband and I working full time, paying a mortgage, paying a fortune in childcare for 2 under 4’s I seriously despair! From experience of people I see around me, families on UC seem to have more disposable income than us as their rent is paid, have no childcare costs and all their costs subsidised on social tariffs etc.

why is the government getting away with this and why are more middle class/income people not up in arms about it! At the moment I can’t see how us working hard and being self sufficient has benefited us as a family.

Whose fault is that? Certainly not people on very low incomes, who need help to be propped up. Stop looking in the wrong direction.

This 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

That’s how it has always been with a lot of benefits though.

I couldn’t claim CB because DH earned £55k, but a couple earning £49k each could.

They have to blanket rule, not all circumstances can be evaluated individually

Also for those in Edinburgh during the Scottish school holidays:

https://www.nms.ac.uk/events/summer-family-fun

Try appreciating what you do have instead of being jealous and bitter of people who maybe through no fault of their own have unstable home situations or health conditions.
You'll feel far more happier in yourself.

Yes, I'm skeptical that you survived on £20 a month. (400-380) So likely your total income was greater and you forgot to mention some of it.

Sorry what. I got 400 pounds in Uc and my rent paid. Can't you read?

I said in an earlier post, the system is completely flawed and I don’t begrudge people that genuinely need it.
But £1 a ticket? Yet families not on UC are expected to pay £100’s just for a day out.
It’s simply just unfair.

Youre getting reported if you continue to try and call me someone that was committing fraud. I said earlier that I lived on 400 pounds a month. That's true. I also got my rent paid. Don't you dare accuse me of having other income that I didn't tell the dwp about. Understood!

I think when I saw you use the phrase "lucky enough to be disabled" absolutely anything else you may have had or may have to say is worth about as much as what my cat just deposited in the litter tray. I spent 4.5 hours in court last week with a lady disabled by a traumatic brain injury to support in her tribunal to fight for what she's entitled to. How dare you.

or you work hard but then have companies moan they have to pay nmw for workers

As a single parents I feel the same ire towards discounts for families of 4! Why are families with two parents getting a cheaper deal on trains and cultural experiences than a family with only one parent given that single parents also already pay more on housing, council tax, utilities, childcare…? Makes absolutely no sense on any level.

But people saying " poor" kids should be able to do this stuff. That's fair enough but the family who are actually poorer as they earn £1 over UC qualification can't afford to pay full price so their kids can't go.

How strange, yesterday you said ‘We pretty much never spend money on attending ‘attractions’. Our household income is in excess for £250k a year. We just don’t see the value in them.’

So you can’t afford it, or you don’t see the value?

A pound over what?

After the debate on the child benfit cap the Mirror interviewed 4 benefits recipients. One was on £113k if you grossed it up for the tax they weren't paying. One was north of 100k amd the other two would have easily been higher rate tax payers if all the money was earned.

This was the Mirror and was totally in support of the end of the benefits cap so I doubt they cherry picked especially high recipients. I'm not saying that's typical but the fact that all of the people the mirror found were minted suggests there's a fair few and they were clearly totally unable to find anyone who was earning the sort of ordinary money I identify with.

Put it this way, I can't afford to live in London and I don't know many people who could. People on benefits can, while 'workers' have to live outside and commute in. ...and which set of people are getting free entry to attractions...

I think some posters like this one are thinking that when you say that you got 400 quid, and your rent was 380, they're thinking that's it and you lived on £20 for the rest of the month.
Whereas you're saying that you got your rent paid for you and then 400 to live on.
Think I've got that right? Don't think they're saying that you were claiming anything else at all. That's how I read it anyway.
Why anyone are getting wound up about people having 400 a month to live on is baffling, that's not much at all! Do they really want that for themselves?!

What ever they'd need to claim UC.

Say for example you need to earn 20k and qualiify for universal credit. You also then get various " extras" ( inc free school meals from Sept, free holiday playscchemes round here , and I'm sure other bits)!

Earn 20001 and zilch.

Who is actually worse off in that scenario?

The uc will reduce hugely when the children turn 18. You will always have your career and your house?

You obviously don't understand UC. Housing element then single person allowance means this poster had between £90 and £100 a week to live on. It's always better to be sure you know a little about the subject before you jump all over someone with a veiled accusation like that.

So what's your solution then?
Everybody should stay at home just because we can't always afford to do it?

I mentioned this upthread. Funnily enough not many people are interested in talking about this. I guess it is because as a single parent, my family is “not normal”, according to another poster. We are simply blamed for choosing the wrong men to have kids with. The men never get blamed!

When was life fair for everyone? Is it fair that some children get to have a childhood free from disability, or poverty tainting their lives? Or that they may be living in a Country free from war, when other children that share the same Planet are not able to say the same? Yes my examples may be a bit extreme, but I really hate to hear Adults going on about things not being fair, only when they perceive that they are losing out on something, it is shameful behaviour.

That’s just the case with a lot of things though.

A lot of people choose to salary sacrifice / keep their wages lower than what they “could” earn so they keep their child benefit or eligibility to childcare help.

No one criticises someone earning 95k declining a pay rise because they need the benefit of the childcare funding.

Thank you for sharing this link for many of us who are in receipt of UC with disabled children. Through no fault of our own.

OP there is no need to feel jealous. Be glad you have more agency over your own life?