to think its a disgrace that marks n spencers do not accept healthy start vouchers?

[superv1xen]

i think its disgusting.

as if they are saying, we are marks and spencers and are posh, therefore don't want you single parents shopping here with your "poor people's vouchers", piss off to asda, you are lowering the tone.

the look on the cashier's face when i tried to use my vouchers in there, snobby bitch.

aibu?

maybe M&S are excluded from participating as the HS website says they want retailers who sell fruit, veg, cow's milk (wot no goat milk?!) AND infant formula to participate

'Most of my freegan friends barely have money for new shoes let alone for a court case. Nor would they want one... '

They don't need money for a court case. InjuryLawyers4U don't need money to do it.

And the world is full of chancers, trust me. I live around loads of them.

Working poor don't qualify for the vouchers. Neither do they qualify for free school meals or, actually, andything else that would ease the jolt to reality when you come off benefits.

No win no fee places make money by out of court settlements. Then they take a cut of that sum.

expat - the freegans I know would rather set fire to their own hair than step inside a court.

You must know the types, living out of a van etc.

"I think what I personally mean by M&S being too expensive is that with fruit and veg in tescos and such places you can usually find a '2 for £xxx' offer or they have value apples. I've not seen anything like that in M&S"

Yes they do - my local M&S currently running a half price strawberries offer, and often have 2 for 1 grapes.

'expat - the freegans I know would rather set fire to their own hair than step inside a court.'

You must know the types, living out of a van etc.

yes, I know. i lived in Boulder for years and have been to freegan dinner parties.

but sadly, plenty more would chance it on if it meant a lump sum payment possibility.

that's why i think it should be donated to a food bank and the company given a tax write off.

i happens a lot in the US, BUT they don't have a very generous welfare system and many rely on food banks who are in full time work.

you may note that the first reason that TDWP gives for retraining is

"I am now a single mother and finding less and less work as a freelancer."

funny that some people only want to pick up on the fact that she finds her work dull (when she does manage to get some)

I am no longer claiming the HS vouchers, did for a while. But while I do think the OP is being unreasonble expecting M&S to accept them...........I will spend my benefit money where I want to spend it.

Priorities in this house, bills, food., anything else. So I'll maybe spend more on food than others do, but don't buy wine, I do smoke, but buy cheap tobacco, rarely buy chocolate, don't go out etc.

I don't disgree with you there actually - just wanted to point out that her first reason was a lack of work in her area now,

FWIW - I will NEVER work in a care home again, yes I would stay on benefits if the only job I was offered was working as a care assistant in a care home.

Shoot me now (some of you) - but I did it for 2 1/2yrs it fuelled my depression and the instituational bad practice I encountered in a "very good" care home absolutely horrified me. 3yrs after leaving that job (went on maternity leave and never returned) it STILL dwells on my mind some of the stuff that went on that was considered acceptable by management.

Tocatta

I imagine I will give much more to society as a Paramedic than I do right now as a low level journalist/ text book editor.

Toccata - honestly I think you're doing the right thing/

I'm currently doing my degree.......actually I'm not right now as I've dropped out this year and will restart the course next year once I'm more able to cope with it.

But I've grasped this opportunity to get a degree and train for something that will be worthwhile, will give me and my DS's a better future, and (hopefully) I'll be a lot less reliant on the state of extra support once I'm working than I would be if I just went back to work in any old job on minimum wage.

duh - my last post of course should be addressed to TDWP not myself

Tocc that was part of it...needing security for my family.

I know I will have a guaranteed job and one that will make me happy.

well I think I'm doing the right thing as well

I expect the whole excepting vouchers ( of any kind) system has to be set up, agreed between retail place and the voucher origin and I suppose if the retail shop isn't likely to see many of these vouchers it's not worth the admin, hence it's readily accepted at supermarkets and some corner shops but not all, unlike cash or other money transfer methods, don't retailers have to send off the vouchers to be redeemed in bulk, I'm guessing.

In my view cupcake has made some good points actually - unfortunately a combination of her tone and MN lefty slant has led to this most unsightly pile in

moving away from the op's question. Do you lot really think it's ok for someone on benefits to have greater purchasing power than someone who is working and paying tax? We live in a civilised society where the people who need it should get government support. Gordon says a future fair for all, but is it really fair for working families to be worse off despite the minimum wage?

I think that's the general gist of what cupcake is saying. She's used some colourful language, which to be fair is probs because she's a lone voice who has been "ganged" up on.

Adding to colditz...why aren't working poor entitled to benefits? Surely that discourages people from going to work? They should be.

'why aren't working poor entitled to benefits? Surely that discourages people from going to work? They should be.'

because when you earn over £16,040/pa - gross, per family, remember (before tax and NI), then you are no longer eligible for jack shit but CTC, child benefit and perhaps some housing benefit if you live in an expensive area.

gross.

per family.

no free prescriptions or dental care, vouchers, clothes for work interviews and reimbursments for interview travel, LearnDirect grants, etc.

which can be, not always but not uncommonly, a detterent to a) being married or co-habitating with a domestic partner b) remaining in full time work.

that is not the fault of benefit claimants, it is a major fault of the system.

That's what I'm trying to say expat. My post v poorly worded. Should have stated.

"Why aren't working poor entitled to benefits - they should be. Surely having all benefits cut off when they start work leaves them worse off/the same than not working, and discourages people from going to work. Major issues with the benefits system."

Coming back to this thread with a calmer head, I'd like to try and reiterate what I was trying to say on the first night, if I may, mainly because I was a wee bit upset that some posters thought that I was being lah-di-dah about people on benefits...

As I have stated before on this thread and others, I am a big fan of the welfare system. It's a cornerstone of a civilised country that actually gives a crap about those living on the breadline. However, as many of you have said, there are lots of us "working poor" that do not qualify for the healthy start vouchers/free prescriptions/free school meals but we ain't rich nor do we have much disposable income. When you don't have much disposable income, you do tend to seek out value for money in pretty much everything; food, bills, clothes etc etc. You don't find many working poor shopping in upper-end food shops because finances dictate that you can't. Or you can but you'll end up with less, which is your prerogative. I'd be extremely grateful for those vouchers and certainly wouldn't be upset if I couldn't redeem them in certain food shops. I wouldn't feel it shameful if I had to use them in Asda rather than Waitrose because them's the breaks when you're receiving a benefit. No-one is suggesting that anyone using these vouchers must queue soup-kitchen style with other voucher-users in an "inferior" supermarket, thus denying the users of any dignity. Plenty of us have to shop in "inferior" supermarkets because our salaries don't stretch to Waitrose/M&S. I hope this makes sense.

And for the record, I just got some Lloyd grossman cooking sauces from Asda for £1 each! £1.78 in Sainsbury's. Also, they're selling 4 tins of Napolina tomatoes for £1.50. So I don't see Asda as inferior. I can buy the nicer brands that I like without being fleeced. Yeah sure, it's not as nice a shop as Sainsbury's but I'm not paying over the odds to fund Jamie Oliver to make irritating adverts telling people how nice athparaguth is. I hope no-one reading this has a lisp or I really am in the shit...