Any advice on jobseekers and rent appreciated?

kamc63

Hi all ,

Im a new user, just registered in the hope of any advice on my current situation.

I'm 24 and lost my job about 2 months ago. I was on a probation period with an employer that I worked for for around 8 months through an agency. After working for the company through the agency I was offered a permanent contract, which I took and included a three month probation period. So 2 months into the probation, I had a probation review, and my team leader and department manager basically sacked me - they said that they didn't want me to finish the probation and I was escorted off the site.


So I'm now claiming jobseekers and get £100 a fortnight. I'm also claiming housing benefit. My monthly rent is £325, but because I live in a 2 bedroom flat with a flatmate (He is the homeowner but I rented his room through an advert, all legit I have proper legal contract etc) my housing benifit doesn't cover all my rent.

So at the moment I get 250 per month towards my rent, and I have to pay the rest out of my JSA. I have a contract phone that needs paying every month, and other bills, cards etc, building up and I simply can't afford to pay them and eat as well! Over the past month I have lived off of about £30 for food/drink/toothpaste/bankcharges for going overdrawn/whatever.


At the moment I'm spending my days in a library job-hunting, or phoning round places for jobs, or at the jobcentre looking. I've applied for everything going, and I attended one interview that lasted 3 hours but didn't get the job ( for a call centre )

Does anyone know if I would be entitled to any more money at all ? I do want to work and am very actively searching for a job, but meantime I need money to live. Last week I had no money at all before I got my JSA payment, with a week to go, and called for a crisis loan and was refused. I lived off a bag of frozen oven chips for about 4 days, then starved for 2... 2 days spent in bed to conserve energy.

I don't wanna live like this, and really I just want another job! But also I need to be able to survive right now! Any advice from anybody would be appreciated! at the end of my tether...

Cheers

LadyMissA

no I think you just get that. I get no help towards rent as I live with family and am now owing £1000 in 'keep'. All my £67 a week goes on my bills and spent some time eating cereal lunch, not eating breakfast and then eating very cheap evening meals as my mum who is retired can't really afford to buy stuff like she used to when I gave her £300 a mth. I owe £100 to my sister for the dentist and I spend ages doing spread sheets juggling my little bit of money to pay bills. It's a nightmare and I know where you are coming from.

I hear people that get a crisis loan all the time and no idea what you have to do to get it.

kamc63

It is a total nightmare! I've to pay my rent tomorrow, and still havent received my payment, at the moment I've got about £6 in change to my name! If I do get my rent payment tomorrow, which I should (it's supposed to be paid the 23rd, but 23rd being Saturday, im hoping I'll get it Monday) I'll pay my rent but still be £75 short. This could be quite awkward as I live with my landlord... I can pay the rest on Wednesday out of my JSA, but then I'm left with £25 for 2 weeks + a phone bill I can't pay = phone cut off. So I'm screwed for phoning potential employers, or family who live about 300 miles away it's a nightmare situation and I'm doing everything I can to get a job but just can't seem to catch a break. Aaaar!!!

Sharon87

Do you have any items to sell on ebay or to a pawn shop on the high street? Can you do survey sites, they won't give immediate help, but will several months down the line.

How much time do you spend on each job application? The more time the better, even if that means applying for fewers jobs, just focus on a few.

Try to reapply for the crisis loan, take bank statements with you to prove you have no money.

How much is your contract phone? Can you sell your phone and buy a cheaper one to replace it? and then put your contract sim into the new phone. Or ask your company to reduce your tariff. When does the contract end? Go PAYG once it ends.

For food there are food banks in place, maybe Google to find some in your area. Also stick to the basics range and reduced section stuff, go at the end of the day, when food is reduced (not too late or you'll miss it, you'll get to know when your store reduces things).

Good luck in the job search!