LOL at BBC article on cheap living

CAT-THE-FIFTH

CAT-THE-FIFTH

CAT-THE-FIFTH

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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-22263706

It goes on how you can live on £1 food a day. However,some slight issues:
1.)The costs of the ingredients is significantly more
2.)The diet had not enough calories
3.)Not everyone has 4 supermarkets to choose from

Then they talk about a lady and her son,who only had to survive on less than £10 a week for food,as she could not claim all her benefits.

I was thinking,£10 a week for a mother and child,that is horrible.

Then I saw this:

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/young-mum-turns-off-heating-so-she-can-1502710

She spends £675 a month on two bedroom flat her flat and gets £490 a month in housing benefit.
 
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Its more the case,you need to really cut back on the accommodation,ie,a bedsite or even a room in a shared house. Probably not ideal with a child,but surely as long as it is not a ****hole,I would have thought the nutrition for a young child is far more important in the longterm,than getting worried about living in cramped accommodation.
 
doofski said:
She left a 30k job to have a child, the moans she can't afford to live on benefits?
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Agreed - and I know I may well get flamed for this but why have a child if you know you're clearly in no position to financially support the upbringing of said offspring?
 
I'm not going to throw stones at this lass. She still needs a two bedroom home, especially with a young child and there really is only so much faffing around you can do when it comes to shopping on the cheap.

£675 for accomodation is a bit steep though and depending on where you are in the country, you could probably get 'better' (if not as outwardly desirable) for much less.
 
These articles are all hilarious just because its "possible" doesn't mean it's actually achievable by the majority of people
Heres a good one
How one BBC reporter tried to live on £53

Gas, electricity, water and TV licence: £23 (total cost split with housemates)
Food shopping: £20.66
Toiletries: £1.14
Mobile phone credit: £5
Broadband: £1.25
Gym visit: £1.20
Travel: £0 (walked everywhere)
Total: £52.55
Trying to live on £53 a week
Click to expand...

Walking everywhere is not an option for the majority of people.... ( a single bus ticket from my house to the city centre is £1.55, how is this woman doing all her shopping walking everywhere? does she live within 20minutes of all these major supermarkets shes using to get her stupidly low food budget)
neither is splitting the cost with housemates unless your a student or something.

Also this woman is not taking account clothing and footwear, she seems to wash her clothes with just water as well....

I bet I could make a huge list of things these people trying to prove a point are not taking into account

Then I saw this:

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news...he-can-1502710

She spends £675 a month on two bedroom flat her flat and gets £490 a month in housing benefit.
Click to expand...
How is her water bill only £15 ?
mines £40 a month in a 1 bed flat and thats up north.... am I being ripped off or something?
 
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The worst thing is, its not she had a kid, thats okay by me though people should consider their financial position before having one, the problem is that she says she was buying a new outfit every week and spending her money partying, she moved from a more expensive flat.

Her trouble stems from being in a £30k a year job, and spending £30k a year, then stopping working while also having a kid, and having nothing to fall back on.

If she didn't buy a new outfit every week, was in a cheaper flat to begin with, and wasn't peeing all her money away in drinking, then she'd have had large amounts of savings, then you have a kid and... while the kid is young and needs more attention you have extra savings to spend.... its not difficult to work out.

Likewise she said her job was difficult due to the commute, but NOT impossible, she was doing it but when she couldn't afford to move to where the job was, or closer(its unlikely that is nothing within 40 miles that wasn't the same or lower rent, its 40miles ffs, there isn't anywhere in the UK where there isn't cheap accomodation within 40miles, and plenty of people with kids live without 2 bedrooms. Anyway she simply resigned a job that she was capable of doing, but was hard, without looking for work THEN resigning when she got another job.

She was reckless with spending, had a kid, had no savings, quit a job without even thinking about the possibility of not getting another one.

Supposedly she is currently spending what 8k a year in rent, and 520 a year in food, if she had been doing that with a 30k a year income, she could be saving 20k a year, if she was instead spending 2-3k a year on food, and 5k on going out and clothes, she could have been saving 10k a year, or enough for 100 of food a week for 2 entire years, or an extra £40 a week on food to top up to £50 a week, for 5 entire years.

Disposable income is great, but people who don't think about the times they might need that money and just throw it all away, to a degree, deserve what they get.
 
Didn't the nutritionist sat next to her say she checked the nutrition content of the meals on her iphone app. Love, ditch the smartphone and you've just doubled your food budget.
 
Total income £820

LOL thats very close to what i EARN, and i EARN it working full time, what a joke.
 
drunkenmaster said:
THer trouble stems from being in a £30k a year job, and spending £30k a year, then stopping working while also having a kid, and having nothing to fall back on.
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The article says she earned £27k a year which is likely the gross figure.

Her net income would have been around £21k.

If it was £30k then her net income would have been around £23k.

Those figures don't take account of any pension contributions she had which would reduce her net income further.
 
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