Please tell me I can survive on £80

[catlady39]

I currently have £80 left in my purse, and to pay all my bills, I cannot take any money out until 5th July.

There's me, 2 teenagers, a toddler and 4 cats. I spend about £20 a week on petrol. I have two weeks cat food in the house. We have frozen fruit and veg in the freezer, some pasta and rice in the cupboard - then mostly just stock herbs/sauces etc. So the cupboards aren't empty, but nothing substantial.

I've had a clearout and been selling things to make some odds bits of cash but nothing major.

I recently lost my job, had court/divorce fees, and am just temping. I'm setting up a business, which is taking time but will be a good wage by October. Just need to get through these few months. Please help.

How fussy are your cats? If they'll eat anything I'd pop a post up on an animal specific local FB group and see if anyone has any spares their fickle beasts won't eat that they would be willing to let you have. Lots of giving and receiving of cat food goes on on my local cat and animal pages. I've given away lots that way because my fussy overlords change their preferred flavour on a whim.

If not supermarket points, do you have any e.g. Boots Advantage card points?

Try searching for local independent food banks. Our local one doesn't need a referral and personally I'd be pleased for my donation to go to someone that's had the tough ride you have.

Have a look at the Money Saving Expert guide on switching bank accounts. It is free cash. Might not come through in time but would certainly help for next month.

Also another vote for Olio - lots of food given away on there in my area.

@RedPink I don't have any family and I can't ask any of my friends

@squee123 great idea about animals on fb...heading over to have a look!

Porridge, pasta, eggs and beans.

I think you need help though. Good luck.

Hey if you do end up using a good bank (despite, shock horror, holidaying when you did have money which is totally bloody reasonable) you can always donate replacements back when your cash is flowing again. With interest even if you like.

Can you eke out your cat food to last longer by giving them smaller portions? Often animals eat too much nowadays, like people! Do they catch any of their own food? We rely on our cats to keep the mice down in the barns & stables, but this may not be an option if you are a town/city dweller. Have you tried your local pet shop/country store for free samples? Also, on-line pet food websites offer samples & money off vouchers if you sign up. Can you supplement their food with anything else? Ours love scrambled egg, broccoli, fish skins and licking out the oil from fish tins! I also buy reduced meat - the freezer is stuffed full! They are currently eating a pack of sliced cooked chicken from Morrisons, reduced to 10p (this will do 6 meals with a sprinkling of scrunchie added). With fetes & school events I often come home with the leftovers of the barbecue/hog roast for the animals. It would otherwise get thrown away, so just ask! Also, a wanted request on Freecycle might be worth a try. I wish you well.

How are you getting on @catlady39? Have you managed to work out a meal plan within budget? If you need any more help, maybe try posting everything you have in your cupboards and how much you have? Then we can help you work out some meal plans on budget?

@mynewkindle
I've just seen your reply to my post, and the words "surviving universal credit" made me take a pause. I can't believe that's a phrase actually being used. I know lots of people use our food bank because of benefit cuts but I never ask too many questions; I feel like it's not my business. But the fact that organisations like yours actually hand out packs on surviving universal credit is heart breaking. No one should be in that situation.

I went to Iceland with the £20 and filled up my freezer with bags of sausages, fish fingers, that type of stuff. Odd bits of fresh things like cheese and eggs.
I spent £4 in Tesco on lentils, bread and tins of things.
With that and what I already had, I've got a good 20 hot meals.

I've put a full tank of petrol in, £40. I know I will easily use that before 5th so at least I know that's ok for a while. Saving £10 for the last few days.

Good ideas on here for the cats. That's my next mission.

You are all amazing.

If ex is paying the teens' lunch money make sure they know that things are tight at home and they must make it stretch as far as possible for the next couple of weeks.

DC's school offer a 2 course meal for the same price as a panini, for example. One will keep them more filled up than the other.

There's all kinds of food banks and some don't require a referral, you can always donate back in a few weeks when your situation changes. Can you take a few bar shifts in the evening, can your ex loan (or give) you an extra £100? Otherwise hit the supermarket for pasta, currently Morrison's has 12 cans of chopped tomatoes for £3 and 12 cans of chickpeas for £3, 10kg of rice is £10. Not sure how your culinary skills are but I could certainly feed you for £80 it just will be a bit boring and no exciting snacks.

@Kennehora

Presumably he pays child maintenance, and he's agreed to also pay their school meals. He will also feed them when they are at his house. Why should he also pay for food when they are with the OP? It's not his job. She needs to provide for them when she has them and he provides for them when he has them.

@stucknoue, I think, if I'm correct, that the OP has £80 until 5th July out of which she has to spend £20 a week on petrol, so her food budget is severely compromised.

Go to the supermarket at the end of the day to get discounted food. Try the olio app for people throwing away food and other items.

If you have any time, then do some online surveys for cash. A lot of them pay very little, but Qmee soon adds up, and the best one I've found is Prolific. I think you need to earn £10 to cash out, but you could probably do that in a week. Get the teenagers to do them too.

@Kennehora

If my ex couldn't afford to feed the kids during his time with them, I wouldn't give him a penny but I would keep my kids with me. She's just been on holiday... how does that conversation go. "Hi ex, I know we've just been on a holiday but now I've got no money. Can I borrow some?".
It doesn't sound good. He might be a really lovely guy who would offer it, or he might not be. But OP said she has no one she can ask so I'm guessing he wouldn't offer it.

Also, if no one's suggested this already, head to Moneysavingexpert.com as there's loads of useful tips on there.

@Kennehora it was agreed maintenance. He won't do anything he isn't forced to.

Ex only has contact with one child, once a fortnight. There's no extras and no contact in between.

Lentils (green ideally) are great as they are cheap, provide good nutrition and go far.

A very simple recipe is-

Fry an onion in a big pot until soft
Add lentils (depending on how many people and packet size) and quickly stir to get covered in oil
Add at least two pints of water (check packet of lentils for correct volume per lentils), you need to cover the lentils with same amount of water as if you were cooking pasta
Add two stock cubes and some pepper and let it cook for about half an hour (keep an eye on the bottom of the pan), adding more water if needed (should end up less fluid than a soup)
Add at least half a cabbage shredded and any meat torn up (ham or bacon works well so a pack of value bacon bits can work well)
Cook for a further twenty minutes

Serve up in bowls with a slice of toast or bread.

This can be varied to suit what you can get cut down in terms of vegetables and meat.

I'm a food bank branch manager.

You have dependants you are struggling to feed due to a temporary crisis.

That is what we are there for.

Please look into it.

It wont be fancy but it'll provide 3 days of food and you should be able to get assistance until your situation improves (3 weeks?)

My gas/electricity company are being ridiculous, as I build up debt over the winter, they have more than doubled my payments and won't waver.

Cancel the direct debits and set up standing orders instead for what you want to pay them. You might lose a £50 annual discount, but for that when I was on a tight budget I preferred to have the money in my pocket, rather in the bank account of the energy company.