How on hells earth are we supposed to manage!

jtktb

mildred1978 wrote: »

Why should the state pay for your lifestyle choices? Your OH has other children to support. He can't afford to support all of you.

If your job was so good perhaps you should have gone back and let your OH stop working.

At what point did I say the state should pay? We CHOSE for me to give up work, I know that, we are now chosing for me to return to work. Shoudl it really be the case though that we are worse off with us working that if we're not!?

jtktb

missindecisive wrote: »

have you thought about childminding/ironing/babysitting/ebaying? not much more than pocket money but it could help

I'm already ironing and ebaying and that helps, although we don't have a lot left to sell!
We only really need to eb a couple of hundred pound a month better off but in order to do it I need to work full time in a well paid job

sarahevie

You would be better off neither of you working - it is wrong on so many levels but true.

My OH earns 17.5K a year and I work evenings in a supermarket, because of the disregard this year we still get tax credits, but next year we won't. As, like you say, every pound you earn comes off them.

I actually enjoy working in the supermarket, get discount, whoopsies, have made friends, can do extra hours for 'more' money.

Single parent with 3 children can get £23,000 a year, this is tax free before you even think about free school meals, prescriptions etc (just try entitled to). Completely wrong but true

bobajob_1966

sarahevie wrote: »

You would be better off neither of you working - it is wrong on so many levels but true.

My OH earns 17.5K a year and I work evenings in a supermarket, because of the disregard this year we still get tax credits, but next year we won't. As, like you say, every pound you earn comes off them.

I actually enjoy working in the supermarket, get discount, whoopsies, have made friends, can do extra hours for 'more' money.

Single parent with 3 children can get £23,000 a year, this is tax free before you even think about free school meals, prescriptions etc (just try entitled to). Completely wrong but true

The OP does not have three children. The OP is not a single parent. Your figures are not entirely accurate.

How embarrassing!

bobajob_1966

I'll ask again ...

bobajob_1966 wrote: »

Why are things getting tighter? If it has only become a problem in the past six months what has changed for you?

jtktb

sarahevie wrote: »

You would be better off neither of you working - it is wrong on so many levels but true.

My OH earns 17.5K a year and I work evenings in a supermarket, because of the disregard this year we still get tax credits, but next year we won't. As, like you say, every pound you earn comes off them.

I actually enjoy working in the supermarket, get discount, whoopsies, have made friends, can do extra hours for 'more' money.

Single parent with 3 children can get £23,000 a year, this is tax free before you even think about free school meals, prescriptions etc (just try entitled to). Completely wrong but true

Exactly, I never got anything like income support because we are married and we have managed, now I want to return to work to improve things its impossible!

jtktb

bobajob_1966 wrote: »

I'll ask again ...

Nothing has changed as such specifically, the cost of living is just so much more now to what it was. Its gradually got worse and worse with using savings up more and more and now the last 6 months or so its getting really tight each month

midnight_express

jtktb wrote: »

We will lose our tax credits due to me working full time, I've done the online calculator things and they say we will not get our credits anymore but we will be some childcare credits of about £300 which will help, they always have a habit of deciding that you shouldnt have had them the following year though!

bobajob 1966, very helpful thanks, we did think about it before, that is why I waited 6 years till I was in a very good job and earning a decent wage, we decided we could afford for me to stay home and not work and we have done until the last 6 months or so when things are getting tighter, I apologise for not forseeing the economic downturn. We dont get any benefits as we're married we arent living like kings you know, things are just more expensive now and I'm just trying to resolve the situation before it gets too bad.

What do you think the thousands of pounds a year you get in ChIld BENEFITS and tax credits are?

midnight_express

jtktb wrote: »

At what point did I say the state should pay? We CHOSE for me to give up work, I know that, we are now chosing for me to return to work. Shoudl it really be the case though that we are worse off with us working that if we're not!?

No it shouldn't which is exactly why tax credits should be abolished.

bobajob_1966

jtktb wrote: »

Nothing has changed as such specifically, the cost of living is just so much more now to what it was. Its gradually got worse and worse with using savings up more and more and now the last 6 months or so its getting really tight each month

Then you need to look at what you are spending. Whilst the average cost of living has increased, there is no reason why you cannot change your spending habits/ switch utility suppliers to buck the trend.