To be cheesed off with Universal Credit entry fees?

[MaturingCheeseball]

I know it’s been done before, but…

I thought I’d like to visit Chatsworth House with (teenage) dd. The cost is £33 each PLUS parking at £7.50. So £73.50.

Then I saw the universal credit/pension credit/pip etc price. THREE POUNDS. And free parking! So £6.00 for two adults (age 17+).

I do not have 12 times as much money as someone on these benefits. I doubt many people do. I’m not begrudging the disadvantaged a day out, but come on! The price differential is ludicrous.

When I saw the £73 price I just decided we couldn’t go, and so be it. But upon seeing the potential for a £6 entry, it made me feel mugged off.

No they're not, they're given to bring in revenue they wouldn't otherwise have

Yes, a £25 entrance fee and a £10 discount for concessions and i wouldn’t have batted an eyelid. I can’t believe anyone would think a £30 difference in tickets is nothing and in fact wrong of me to flinch.

If you’d have flinched at the price anyway, the UC price is irrelevant.

I pointed out that increased tax on ISAs was still a tax on working people. What about that is unclear?

Well I'm getting universal credit but I don't live near any of the places that do this scheme so I can't go.

I can tell you now, paying £10 per ticket, £25 on petrol and bringing a packed lunch would have been my spending money for the month. I don’t think you can understand what it’s like on UC unless you have been on it. It was utterly miserable. I work full time, but every penny I earned came off of our UC. It was the toughest time financially of our lives.

If you dig into the statistics, it isn’t as clear cut as that.

Firstly, between “January 2022 to November 2025, at least 71% of WCA decisions are recorded as having mental and behavioural disorders, albeit this may not be their primary medical condition.” So, their primary condition might not be a mental and behavioural disorder.

Secondly, the mental and behavioural disorder category has a larger scope than the other categories used. Using Jan 2022 to November 2025 as an example again, if you add up the physical categories, you get a higher number. For example, if you add diseases of the musculoskeletal system category and connective tissue and diseases digestive tract category you have a higher number of claimants than for the mental and behavioural disorder category.

Thirdly, as even the government admits, UC’s statistics on conditions claimed for are incomplete. So much so they state they are “now less than the 70% threshold for publication.”.

Source to support my points.

Sigh. I looked at the price. Decided it was too much. THEN saw that some could pay only £3.

People struggling getting cheaper entry to a country park - I don't mind. Good for them. Yes the difference is excessive, but at least it's making a nice day out more accessible for those who need it. It's not hurting anyone else.

OTOH It's mind boggling ridiculousness that grates me, like £370 odd MILLION in taxpayers money being spent on Buckingham palace renovations, FFS. When pretty much every public service is underfunded and on its knees.

There are free places to go...... Like so many. I do agree the size of the concession...

Think kew gardens was about 50p last time I visited lol

So nothing to do with these tickets then.

Exactly!!!

Nope.

76% of people agree with you OP.

I don't understand the desire for anyone else to have less. If they didn't do the 'universal credit' tickets do you think all of a sudden everyone else would get cheap tickets? They wouldn't. I can't stress enough how utterly miserable it is on any benefits. I worked full time and got UC, then though changing jobs and promotion now a higher rate tax payer and I know which I prefer, higher prices or not. Plus why begrudge others nice things.

So your point is what?
I would argue that diagnostic and award criteria need to be far more accessible. Who, reading what you cut and pasted above, would have any idea if they were eligible or not?
And also? Why the hell are government statistics “incomplete”? “70% threshold”? The bloody government expects businesses to have far better control of their own finances than that!!!!

I think there's a huge issue in the UK of disadvantaged children not getting the opportunity to experience cultural sites. If pricing tickets that low means that they get to go, I'm all for it 🤷‍♀️.

How is Chatsworth House overcharging the fault of UC claimants? Your anger is being directed in the wrong direction here OP.

I imagine £77 entrance and £25 on petrol would be many working people’s spending money for the month after bills etc.
If £77 was pennies to working people, it wouldn’t be an issue.

Chester zoo was the example I had in mind too. For us it’s a once a year treat because it’s so expensive. We take a packed lunch and don’t even take the kids to the gift shop. We plan everything in advance to make the most out of the day.

A bit hard not to get frustrated at the disparity. Presumably with a £1 ticket, it’s easy to go whenever, and enjoy it at leisure as you can easily return.

Where has the OP directed her anger at people on UC instead of Chatsworth house?

I have downloaded my statement in advance so it is already in my gallery/files, nipped out my driving license and they quickly checked they match. Could have been my ID for super special VIP tickets or a competition winner.

But there are still disadvantaged children who can’t enjoy such a day out - those whose parents earn just above the threshold to qualify for UC, but still can’t afford such exorbitant tickets. A PP said how these were the children who missed out on the school trip at her DC’s school because their parents couldn’t afford it, while those on UC could send their children for free. It must be gutting to be in this position as a parent.

Aren't there numerous free cultural sites to go to?