Living on £53 a week?

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dandelionclock30 wrote: »

.
However, there are a lot of very vulnerable people claiming benefits and its not always that black and white.There may be people with severe illnesses or learning disabilities, or mental health problems that just dont have the capacity or ability to manage properly...

Agreed; so, for those people, an exemption may be more appropriate with monies paid direct to HA/landlords.

However, for the majority who don't have those issues, giving them back responsibility for their spending is right. If they make choices which are detrimental to their welfare, they should live with the consequences.

hunters

pigpen wrote: »

Because money for the children is paid separately.. the £53 is based on a single person.. they don't have children.. ,my point was that we get very little more than that for 2 of us..

£53 for 1 person compared to £58 for 2.. seems a bit unfair! How are we meant to manage on £29 each when they get £53? .. (the point in idiot terms) I'm not saying I want more because I don't I am more than grateful for what I have but it is the vast difference and the outrage I am indicating.

The point, in idiot terms, is that you are not living on £58 per week though, far from it and there is always the option of at least one of you getting a job and in the case of your fictional couple with no kids on £58 then two of them could get a job.

lindseykim13

I find it bizzare how we people of the uk are all debating how little we all have to live on be it £50 a week or £300 a week it's all pennies to the likes of those in governement who are in charge of what we have to live on! Bankers, millionaries ect aren't here complaining because they barely get touched by these cuts.
Take money from the poorest they'll just role over and take it as they have no choice.

The government are quite happy to be spending billions on building more war weapons and aid for other countries. Not to mention the daft things councils spend our money on (flowers for example) when that money could mean the difference to someone being able to heat their home or make a meal makes me mad.

Pollycat

mummyroysof3 wrote: »

We pay £25ish for water but I don't know over how Many months...I assumed it was 12 though

Don't you think you should know how much your annual water bill is? :cool:

Historically - and I'm going back a lot of years - water rates were paid over 8 months, similar to council tax (old 'rates') which were paid (and still are in a lot of cases) over 10 months.

So people still paying water bills over 8 months and saying 'My water bill is £x per month' really need to put that into perspective.

mummyroysof3

Pollycat wrote: »

Don't you think you should know how much your annual water bill is? :cool:

Historically - and I'm going back a lot of years - water rates were paid over 8 months, similar to council tax (old 'rates') which were paid (and still are in a lot of cases) over 10 months.

So people still paying water bills over 8 months and saying 'My water bill is £x per month' really need to put that into perspective.

Well yes I should but I have to pay it either way and I just include it as monthly same as council tax then it's left over at end. I say left over but the months I don't pay council tax pays for car tax instead :rotfl:

pigpen

hunters wrote: »

The point, in idiot terms, is that you are not living on £58 per week though, far from it and there is always the option of at least one of you getting a job and in the case of your fictional couple with no kids on £58 then two of them could get a job.

The guy in question isn't either.. he pays the bills and has £53 left.. maybe he should look at cheaper accommodation and cutting costs of the bills he has to pay. He should be sent an invite to MSE

And here, at the moment.. 50 people apply for every job on average with over 450 applying for 1 vacancy as a binman not so long ago... which is the case in many parts of the country. When you look at the job centre positions here they are mostly for specialised roles.. teachers, pharmacists etc. which are never filled. OH was told to apply for a job as a maths teacher.. despite having no teaching qualification as it was the only thing they could come up with! it is insane. So yes, there are vacancies but not for just anyone and there are no training opportunities available or they are prohibitively expensive.

amcg100

geoffky wrote: »

Anyone saying they can long term is a liar...What happens when you need new clothes shoes haircuts or a appliance breaks....It is a disaster...And it is outrageous that people have so little to live on...

When on long term benefits new clothes/ shoes are not an option. - these come from friends and family who are throwing things out, or these days from charity shops. When an appliance breaks you try to fix it, and often you can. When all else fails you do without until some kind person offers you their old appliance when they are renewing their own.
PS - I am not a liar, and you are an offensive !!!!

Rosemary7391

Bangton wrote: »

I spend 70 pounds a week on food alone. I thought about this very subject after watching a programme on poverty in the UK last week and I wonder to what detriment people actually live on this. I'm sure someone will pick me up on this but I don't buy tons of food nor processed freezer/ready meals yet to eat plenty of fresh varied fruit and veg etc I feel the need to spend 70 pounds and rarely if ever come under budget. I could probably cut back if I had to but I'm not sure id eat as well as I do now. It saddens me to think of people having to turn the heating off because they can't afford too. To me food and warmth is essential and the reality is far too many in the UK don't have the simple luxuries I just take for granted

I'm genuinely interested - what do you buy and how much does it cost you? My housemate and I were trying to figure out what we would do with so much money to spend on food alone, and just couldn't see how to spend that much! We eat well - all our meals are cooked from scratch, plenty of veg, enough meat, we have fish sometimes. We have a couple of vegetarian meals a week, we have cheese etc and can afford to get nice things where quality matters. And bake a lot of cakes! On around £20-25 a week each.

Our heating has only ever been on for 4 hours a day, tops. If it's cold then we spend the day in the library and the evening in bed doing our work!

geoffky wrote: »

Anyone saying they can long term is a liar...What happens when you need new clothes shoes haircuts or a appliance breaks....It is a disaster...And it is outrageous that people have so little to live on...

I'm not lying! I don't get my hair cut (it's nearly a metre long - very cheap hairstyle to maintain ). Last time it got cut was a couple of years ago when my mother lassoed me before going out for the evening and spent literally a minute with the kitchen scissors cutting the bottom straight.

I've a little money spare each week, so if I 'need' new clothes then I can forgo my coffee that week, or have less meat, and get something nice and durable from a charity shop. Then I alter it to fit myself (usually trousers - I'm short!). My family helpfully listen when I ask for boring things like socks for my birthday/Christmas. I keep an eye out for bargains - my walking boots cost me £10 brand new because they were a mismatched pair that happened to fit me very well, and are still going strong after a couple of years.

I live in rented accommodation so the landlord fixes things like appliances, for my stuff I have some tools and can do minor repairs. Just this week I fixed one of my clarinets for example - that would've cost me a lot of money if I had had to take it to a repair shop.

It really is doable if you plan to live like that!

Bangton

amcg100 wrote: »

It is good that you admit to being wealthy and try to understand
the problems that others face

Maybe I phrased my post wrong. I don't consider myself wealthy. ..more a very average Joe. I spend that because I find it hard not to to be able to eat healthy and well. That's for two of us. .. my partner also rather than just one which was silly of me not to point out.
I earn a good wage but not masses, my home is a two bed terrace in an ok area. I don't have tons of disposable income after bills and I admit to moaning occasionally about my circumstances when my mot for example takes my last penny but threads like this make me realise there are far worse off than me.... but it doesn't make me wealthy. I care about what I eat and that my house is warm so I make a choice to turn on the central heating or spend more on food but to me that's essential. For those that can't make that choice I feel saddened. ..

Bangton

Rosemary7391 wrote: »

I'm genuinely interested - what do you buy and how much does it cost you? My housemate and I were trying to figure out what we would do with so much money to spend on food alone, and just couldn't see how to spend that much! We eat well - all our meals are cooked from scratch, plenty of veg, enough meat, we have fish sometimes. We have a couple of vegetarian meals a week, we have cheese etc and can afford to get nice things where quality matters. And bake a lot of cakes! On around £20-25 a week each.

Our heating has only ever been on for 4 hours a day, tops. If it's cold then we spend the day in the library and the evening in bed doing our work!



I'm not lying! I don't get my hair cut (it's nearly a metre long - very cheap hairstyle to maintain ). Last time it got cut was a couple of years ago when my mother lassoed me before going out for the evening and spent literally a minute with the kitchen scissors cutting the bottom straight.

I've a little money spare each week, so if I 'need' new clothes then I can forgo my coffee that week, or have less meat, and get something nice and durable from a charity shop. Then I alter it to fit myself (usually trousers - I'm short!). My family helpfully listen when I ask for boring things like socks for my birthday/Christmas. I keep an eye out for bargains - my walking boots cost me £10 brand new because they were a mismatched pair that happened to fit me very well, and are still going strong after a couple of years.

I live in rented accommodation so the landlord fixes things like appliances, for my stuff I have some tools and can do minor repairs. Just this week I fixed one of my clarinets for example - that would've cost me a lot of money if I had had to take it to a repair shop.

It really is doable if you plan to live like that!

I ought to have pointed out that's for two. 24 pounds roughly goes on fruit and veg ... pineapples and berries, oranges, bananas and whatever veg I fancy that week. . Usually butternut squash, potatoes, carrots. Then the rest is bread, meat for my partner, extra ingredients for meals such as spices and herbs, milk, halloumi cheese, cereals. I don't know what else usually snacks for work maybe nuts ( which cost a bit). I also get toothpaste and toilet roll with food although not every week . It's hard to say exactly everything I buy because I vary things I eat and cook from recipes and things. I discussed this at work today and people Spend roughly same?