Single parents with children aged one claiming benefits??

[puddicat]

What do abers think on this one,having to be seeking work when your child is 1 year old???

[PatriciaH]

Is this online ? can you send a link puddicat or is it just a qustion youre asking

[Drisgirl]

Hey puddi

I dont see the problem with working when your child is one.

I went back to work when my 2 were 7mths old each time and that was before you could claim for childcare.

No probs getting a job and having the satisfaction of looking after yourself and also i would assume there was another parent involved as no-one is a 'single' parent so a contribution from the 'absent' parent in the form of maintenance would help.

Hope youre well -we have a thaw going on her -lulling us into a false sense of secutirty i think lol.

[PatriciaH]

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Question

[puddicat]

hi dris hopes u well,sorry no link,my mucker was talking about it,wasnt it was something to do with the queens speech??

[Drisgirl]

Havenae caught that yet -will have a wee look on the news.

Im fine ta -think its now getting crisper (altho it was slush when I was walking from work) so am gonna try and clear the pavements and grit them -just the ones in front of my house lol.

[puddicat]

dris you had much snaw lol,i was all ready for some,really really icey yesterday,but today damp grey and dreicht!!!

[Goodsoulette]

its a nightmare in reality. I became a single parent when my youngest was one and my eldest was five, I went to work but then winter came and the nursery was phoning me to pick sick baby up, flus, viruses, tummy upsets almost every week. Then on the other weeks the other one was ill. I was barely at work, people pretended to be nice about it but the backstabbing and work environment became unmanageable. When they both came down with slapped cheek I chucked my job in.

I think six or seven is probably a sensible age to insist parents return to work. They tend to have a better immune system. If like me you have no other help other than registered child care than you are shafted as soon as one of them becomes ill. Maybe getting out of work parents into college, or training courses from preschool age is the way forward though, getting prepared to return to work.

[ddaisy992]

i think its apalling,I know that some women need too work or want it but for me, a year wuld have been far too young.

[cazzz1975]

totally agree with goods there!

[puddicat]

Its a bit of a quandry for me,because i think decent single parents will suffer, and the jeremy kyles types will maybe get there tubes tied!!!

[QueenOfAmber]

If your on benefits you are expected to start work again by the time your youngest child is 1. If you don't it's illegal. :)

[puddicat]

illegal single scroungers ffs they dont care lol!!!

[QueenOfAmber]

Yep, your right. (Sadly)
In Britain there is loads of people of benefits when I came over - Birmingham and London have loads of council flats. :P

[Drisgirl]

Believe me its not easy being a mother of two young children but needs must.
I threw the towel in when R was 12 and J 8 -not bad going and that was support from their dad.Its not easy -I had one haviing tonsillitis and then when it cleared up then the other got it -problem was that J has fits.I picked her up from the childminder one night and driving home she fitted and I had to drive with her on my knee to get home before i could call an ambulance.I still had to barry on -nothing else for it .
See the the bg difference between me and others was I had a mortgage and wasnt entitled to any help at all -so I had to work to keep a roof over their heads and food in their mouths.I still to this day have never claimed or been entitled to any help as I have a mortgage.Penalised.

Luckily this has made my children strong independant adults who apart from a slight hiccough havent ever claimed nor would they.They would rather work their arses off than take easy money.-even taking second jobs.

I am glad that myself and their dad have brought them up with a very strong work ethic and its paying off.

[sara3]

the new rule from October is that if your youngest child is 11, you have to shift from Income Support to Jobseeker's Allowance, and look for work.

from October 2009 they are lowering the youngest child age to 9, and October 2010 is will be 7.

or something very much like that!

[theonlyone]

A lot of the unmarried mums have never worked
pregnant at 15 /16 ..the child is a meal ticket ..
but get a home and benefits ..and they smoke
drink and wear designer gear ..
Where did I go wrong in my life ? Easy ..I went to
work and made a life for myself ..there used to
be a work ethos ..what happened to it ?

[sara3]

some of us still have it, theonlyone.. and our kids will be better for it.

[Lore]

Oh I'd love to be able to wait until my little man turns one before returning to work but sadly, I'm back in Feb. Saying that, I've chosen to go back part time just so I can still spend a bit of quality time with both him and our 2 yr old daughter. It'll be tight on the purse strings but at least I'm keeping my foot in the door at work , have a sense of identity away from the home and able to provide for the munchkins.

[theonlyone]

Not having a go at the Mums who want to work
but when I see the girls with the babies ..and
the way they speak to them ..they all swear by
2 years old ..I have a niece who is one of them..
but dropped out of school ..met a thicky bloke ..
end of story ..the thicky has now gone ...
so another sad girl who was on track to
go to Uni ....