stressed , fed up and very down

mummyofboys

Statement of Affairs and Personal Balance Sheet
Household Information
Number of adults in household........... 2
Number of children in household......... 2
Number of cars owned.................... 1
Monthly Income Details
Monthly income after tax................ 384
Partners monthly income after tax....... 1065
Benefits................................ 796
Other income............................ 80
Total monthly income.................... 2325
Monthly Expense Details
Mortgage................................ 0
Secured/HP loan repayments.............. 0
Rent.................................... 550
Management charge (leasehold property).. 0
Council tax............................. 78
Electricity............................. 55
Gas..................................... 55
Oil..................................... 0
Water rates............................. 38
Telephone (land line)................... 0
Mobile phone............................ 35
TV Licence.............................. 12.12
Satellite/Cable TV...................... 70 ( includes landlane)
Internet Services....................... 18
Groceries etc. ......................... 240
Clothing................................ 0 ( i never buy new things my son has older son hand me downs and older one has little borthers hand me downs)
Petrol/diesel........................... 100
Road tax................................ 20
Car Insurance........................... 115
Car maintenance (including MOT)......... 0
Car parking............................. 0
Other travel............................ 0
Childcare/nursery....................... 453
Other child related expenses............ 0
Medical (prescriptions, dentist etc).... 0
Pet insurance/vet bills................. 0
Buildings insurance..................... 0
Contents insurance...................... 0
Life assurance ......................... 0
Other insurance......................... 38.97
Presents (birthday, christmas etc)...... 20
Haircuts................................ 0
Entertainment........................... 0
Holiday................................. 0
Emergency fund.......................... 0
account charge bank..................... 25
Total monthly expenses.................. 1923.09

Assets
Cash.................................... 0
House value (Gross)..................... 0
Shares and bonds........................ 0
Car(s).................................. 0
Other assets............................ 0
Total Assets............................ 0

No Secured nor Hire Purchase Debts
Unsecured Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
rent arrears...................250.......0.........0
council tax arrears............162.......0.........0
credit card (husband)..........1900......100.......0
tax credit overpaymen..........800.......27.77.....0
overdraft......................2600......85........0
overdraft......................750.......0.........0
loan...........................400.......49.77.....0
loan...........................320.......64........0
isme ..........................600.......18........0
littlewoods....................400.......36........0
littlewoods ...................700.......30........0
credit card....................300.......30........0
credit card (mine).............700.......40........0

rent and council tax arrears need to be paid asap.

well behind on credit card payments and littlewoods

mummyofboys

I currently have to ebay

wii and wii fit balance board
wedding dress
wedding veil
new wedding shoes
some new expensive boots that were given to me but dont fit

I am hoping this will raise some to clear off council tax and rent arrears

mummyofboys

dancingfairy wrote: »

I think anyone would be stressed by that lot:
1) marriage and wedding - stressful even if a positive sort of stress
2) ill child and uncertainty
3) ill husband
4) 2 children and house to run
5) doing college course
6) debts

Some things can't be sorted quickly easily but some can be perhaps managed a bit.
The debts you can get help with and indeed people on here can provide advice on that. In a realted vein are you husband and child getting as many benefits as they/you are entitled to? I would have a look on the entitled to website as a first port of call.
Whilst it's great you have been accepted for uni in September I wonder if postponing it for a year would help? This would hopefully enable you to get any diagnoses your child requires and any support - emotional, practical and financial in place as well. Hopefully things with your husband will have changed for the better too. It gives you another year to get a plan in place to tackle the debts without the added pressure of uni on top as well.
Regarding the debts I would go to the website makesense of cards and fill in the budget planner (SOA) to get a crystal clear idea of where you are right now with it all. I will try and post a link in a minute.
This will enable you to see whether you can meet your debt repayments right now, highlight any areas to be addressed etc. If you can't meet your repayments then you can start to consider things like a debt management plan (dmp) through one of the debt charities etc.
df

I dont want to do this as currently the NHS pay tution fees and also the bursary which both do not have to be paid back. It is very likely ( have been told by finance department of college and uni on the open days) that because of funding cuts its unlikely they will pay all tution fees as of next year and cut the bursary in half. It really wouldnt be in my best intrest to go down this route as it would add more to my debt x

mummyofboys

supersavershal wrote: »

I dont mean to rain on your parade.I am a senior nurse in the NHS and at the moment most hospitals are struggling with budget cuts and vacancy freezes.None of the students we took on this year have secured a job, nurses are being made redundant, so you would be competing with very experienced nurses for jobs.Why would you do three years very difficult training with little chance of getting a job at the end.My SIL is due to qualify in September as a childrens nurse and cannot get a job, if you dont believe me take a look on the NHS website for band 5 posts, they are few and far between and the last time we advertised a position we had 170 applications.
Dont think of doing a course because you get funded to do it, nursing is hard and you have to be cut out to do it.I expect a lot from students.Can you manage long hours of placements and do your degree coursework at the same time.You might not get your off duty until about 3 days before you start, can your childcare arrangements withstand that.Who will look after your children when you are doing, lates, nights, weekends and 12 hr shifts? My students have to do the same shift I do and that is the same everywhere, you work exactly what your mentor works.Then you have to do a degree on top of that, and what for ? No job at the end of it.The NHS has to lose 45000 nurses this year.

Hi

Thanks for your post..yes Im aware of the job issue within the NHS at the minute.. I am not simply doing this degree as it is funded I was saying that is one of the reasons I did not want to put it off, and also because I have worked very hard to secure my place at uni!

I have wanted to be a nurse since I left school, but what with moving and and having to work and then having my children I have not had time nor a chance to do it. I am very aware of how hard the degree is, currently I am working, studying at college, studying outside college and volenteering with PALS so I am aware that my life will be shifts/ not many days off ect. Pretty much what I am doing now to be honest.

However I am currently on the minimum wage and have been since I was 16, I want to go into a job I not only want to do but a job that will give me career prospects. I am aware it is very hard to get in, however I am very determined and I have already fought my way onto the access course, and fought against many applicants at a fantastic Uni. I believe I can compete. I am not going into this job with false hope of thinking im walking into a job, however if i dont I can keep trying whilst still working at a minimum wage job so what will I have lost?

I also hope to move abroad in the future and completing this degree will also help me in the future

mummyofboys

Also yes my bursary will be minimum however

I only earn 96 per week currently.
I pay £453 for childcare ( my eldest starts school in september so that will be half that cost gone)
Tax credits do not class bursary as an income so my household income will "go down" therefore evening itself out.

mummyofboys

I have been informed by tax credits that bursary does not counted - you should inform your sister

I am a student nurse, do I qualify for tax credits?

• If you are a student nurse , you will be eligible to claim Child Tax Credit if you have at least one child who normally lives with you. Any NHS bursary you receive will not count as income in deciding your eligibility to Child Tax Credit

Taken from -http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/taxcredits/questionsaboutwork.htm

My uni course will be 37.5 hours per week with 50% placement and the other in class. I have arranged with my boss that I can keep 2 shifts per week also if required when I am not on placement.
so it will even out like I said, plus for childcare I have my in laws, sister, retired mother ( who has already offered to help out when I go )

The abroad issue I am talking way in the future and I currently have around 9k debt which I would hope I will pay off a long time before I go.

Agreed you personally would take someone with more experience, there would be many I assume who would give people a chance ( You yourself had to start somewhere and where given the chance) and look on the positives that I would have an up to date degree with alot of volenteering experience ( I have been doing this for 4 years also within care homes)

mummyofboys

Placements that you are sent on that are more miles from your home to uni can be claimed through my uni I have already looked into this

Tixy

Hi

Sorry to hear how down you are feeling at the moment. I've looked through your SoA and put in a few suggestions. You may have already looked at them all but if not might be a few small savings that could be made.

Does this list at the bottom show all your debts? as the very end of the SoA seems to have been cut off.

jay_mi10 wrote: »

Statement of Affairs and Personal Balance Sheet
Household Information
Number of adults in household........... 2
Number of children in household......... 2
Number of cars owned.................... 1
Monthly Income Details
Monthly income after tax................ 384
Partners monthly income after tax....... 1065
Benefits................................ 796
Other income............................ 80
Total monthly income.................... 2325
Monthly Expense Details
Mortgage................................ 0
Secured/HP loan repayments.............. 0
Rent.................................... 550
Management charge (leasehold property).. 0
Council tax............................. 78 are you entitled to the 25% discount with you being a student - and if so are you claiming it?
Electricity............................. 55 have you checked the comparison sites recenthly for gas & elec to see if you are with cheapest supplier and on lowest tariff? (the online tariffs are usually quite a bit cheaper than the standard ones)
Gas..................................... 55
Oil..................................... 0
Water rates............................. 38
Telephone (land line)................... 0
Mobile phone............................ 35
TV Licence.............................. 12.12
Satellite/Cable TV...................... 70 ( includes landlane) can you look for a cheaper deal (or switch to freeview and just get a landline/internet for around £25).
Internet Services....................... 18 as above can you combine this?
Groceries etc. ......................... 240
Clothing................................ 0 ( i never buy new things my son has older son hand me downs and older one has little borthers hand me downs)
Petrol/diesel........................... 100
Road tax................................ 20
Car Insurance........................... 115 do you shop around for this? is there a reason its so high - is it a high ins car or is it down to the driver(s)
Car maintenance (including MOT)......... 0 you really need to budget a bit here.
Car parking............................. 0
Other travel............................ 0
Childcare/nursery....................... 453
Other child related expenses............ 0
Medical (prescriptions, dentist etc).... 0
Pet insurance/vet bills................. 0
Buildings insurance..................... 0 do you have this?
Contents insurance...................... 0 and this?
Life assurance ......................... 0
Other insurance......................... 38.97 what is this for?
Presents (birthday, christmas etc)...... 20
Haircuts................................ 0
Entertainment........................... 0
Holiday................................. 0
Emergency fund.......................... 0
account charge bank..................... 25 does this work out cheaper than using a standard account? does it come with a free/reduced overdraft?
Total monthly expenses.................. 1923.09

Assets
Cash.................................... 0
House value (Gross)..................... 0
Shares and bonds........................ 0
Car(s).................................. 0
Other assets............................ 0
Total Assets............................ 0

No Secured nor Hire Purchase Debts
Unsecured Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
rent arrears...................250.......0.........0 have you spoken to them to arrange repayment? maybe offer 50/month
council tax arrears............162.......0.........0 are you in touch with the council? have you come to an arrangement with them?
credit card (husband)..........1900......100.......0
tax credit overpaymen..........800.......27.77.....0
overdraft......................2600......85........0
overdraft......................750.......0.........0
loan...........................400.......49.77.....0
loan...........................320.......64........0
isme ..........................600.......18........0
littlewoods....................400.......36........0
littlewoods ...................700.......30........0
credit card....................300.......30........0
credit card (mine).............700.......40........0

rent and council tax arrears need to be paid asap.

well behind on credit card payments and littlewoods

I would guess you may need to default on your credit agreements and consider a DMP or something. So that you can pay off your priority debts. Have you spoken to a debt charity at all yet?

sp1987

jay_mi10 wrote: »

Statement of Affairs and Personal Balance Sheet
Household Information
Number of adults in household........... 2
Number of children in household......... 2
Number of cars owned.................... 1
Monthly Income Details
Monthly income after tax................ 384
Partners monthly income after tax....... 1065
Benefits................................ 796
Other income............................ 80
Total monthly income.................... 2325
Monthly Expense Details
Mortgage................................ 0
Secured/HP loan repayments.............. 0
Rent.................................... 550
Management charge (leasehold property).. 0
Council tax............................. 78
Electricity............................. 55
Gas..................................... 55
Oil..................................... 0
Water rates............................. 38
Telephone (land line)................... 0
Mobile phone............................ 35
TV Licence.............................. 12.12
Satellite/Cable TV...................... 70 ( includes landlane)
Internet Services....................... 18
Groceries etc. ......................... 240
Clothing................................ 0 ( i never buy new things my son has older son hand me downs and older one has little borthers hand me downs)
Petrol/diesel........................... 100
Road tax................................ 20
Car Insurance........................... 115
Car maintenance (including MOT)......... 0
Car parking............................. 0
Other travel............................ 0
Childcare/nursery....................... 453
Other child related expenses............ 0
Medical (prescriptions, dentist etc).... 0
Pet insurance/vet bills................. 0
Buildings insurance..................... 0
Contents insurance...................... 0
Life assurance ......................... 0
Other insurance......................... 38.97
Presents (birthday, christmas etc)...... 20
Haircuts................................ 0
Entertainment........................... 0
Holiday................................. 0
Emergency fund.......................... 0
account charge bank..................... 25
Total monthly expenses.................. 1923.09

Assets
Cash.................................... 0
House value (Gross)..................... 0
Shares and bonds........................ 0
Car(s).................................. 0
Other assets............................ 0
Total Assets............................ 0

No Secured nor Hire Purchase Debts
Unsecured Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
rent arrears...................250.......0.........0
council tax arrears............162.......0.........0
credit card (husband)..........1900......100.......0
tax credit overpaymen..........800.......27.77.....0
overdraft......................2600......85........0
overdraft......................750.......0.........0
loan...........................400.......49.77.....0
loan...........................320.......64........0
isme ..........................600.......18........0
littlewoods....................400.......36........0
littlewoods ...................700.......30........0
credit card....................300.......30........0
credit card (mine).............700.......40........0

rent and council tax arrears need to be paid asap.

well behind on credit card payments and littlewoods

For tv, phone and internet you are paying a combined £88 a month. This is big. I pay £17 for combined phone and broadband with O2. We don't have sky.

Car insurance is big at £115. Can the car be swapped for a lower insurance group model?

Can bank account fee of £25 be removed by using a non-paying account?

Could you just open a basic account to pay wages/income etc into with a bank you do not owe money to and treat the overdrafts as 'debts' to be repaid rather than as where your money comes in and out of?

I think some of your spending could be improved on which is good because it means there is extra money in there that you can move around. Sometimes budgets are so tight that you cannot see where somebody could get any room for manouvre.

You need to get those debt repayments negotiated to be lower per month and ensure they only contact you in writing so it does not add to your stress. Are these your debts/partners debts/joint?

gettingbackontrack

supersavershal wrote: »

Have you factored in your petrol costs? You will be sent on placements all over the place.I personally think taking on a course of this intensity is really mean when you have young children, you will miss out on them growing up and you cant even say it is for a better life as the job prospects are so poor.

Well, I think you're the one being "really mean". Apparently there are no jobs, the course isn't very good, you wouldn't take on someone from the course, the course is too hard, the OP will have to travel, she will get a criminal record and now she's being unfair to her children.... Anything else you can hit this poster with? I thought this board was about support not judgment..... especially to someone who's already posted that they're very down. Shame on you for trampling on someone's misery (that's me being unshamedly judgmental!!)

OP - well done for posting on here. This is my first time here - I'm three-fifths through paying off my debt and wish I'd posted at the beginning. There's so much help and good, constructive advice (for the most part, anyway!). Well done, too, on getting into university, that's a real achievement. You know things are likely to be tough but you're bettering yourself and looking for a better life for your family which is admirable.

You'll get lots of good advice on here re your spending but one thing I would say is sort out those priority debts. Rent and council tax are too important and must be looked at before catalogues etc.