My mum passed away from covid in April 2020. Not long after, I was fired from my job. They were looking to make people redundant anyway and then used the pandemic as an excuse. It turned into a case of “We may rehire you once we know what the situation is”, but I was left …
I was living in Stevenage but got into rent arrears with the council and was evicted unexpectedly in October 2020, during the first lockdown. I was really surprised at this in lots of ways – the reason I had been given the place was because I had mental health issues and had tried to commit …
Normally I have to choose between monthly bills and food – that’s been going on for a couple of months now. The Universal Credit uplift was my shopping money and I’m getting in so much debt now. My bills – like everyone’s – have skyrocketed. House bills are rising but income and benefits aren’t. The …
I’m a single parent with five children. I only get money for three of them and have a Housing Benefit cap, so my Housing Benefit has been cut over the past six months. I get paid £70 Income Support every two weeks and that goes on household bills. By the time everything has come in …
I have my own limited company and was working on the railway, most recently, up until July last year. I started having trouble going to the toilet. I was diagnosed with cancer and two operations later, I now have a stoma. The chemo really had a big affect on my wellbeing – even more than …
I don’t earn enough money to support both me and my son and I had to do something, so I accessed Southend Council for a grant for food. They deal with Epping Forest people and I live in Sheering. Now I have a new job, I should be able to make ends meet. I was …
I was a person who always worked. I was a self-employed live-in carer, but in 2016, the work became less and less, so I sought an employer. I was then made redundant in 2017. In 2020, I became a widow. I’m now on Universal Credit, but at 64, I find it very difficult to find …
