Gingerbread are asking for some key changes to improve the lives of the UK’s 2 million single-parent households, many of whom are struggling financially, in the new government’s first Budget on the 30th October.
The Budget is an opportunity for the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves, to update Parliament and the public on the state of the UK economy. She’ll also announce any further economic plans for 2024-25 and beyond. Gingerbread, and their single-parent campaigners group, have already submitted our Budget representation to the Treasury. They are asking the Chancellor to:
- Ensure Universal Credit (UC) is set at a level that covers the costs of essentials for single parents, and either review or abolish sanctions
- Remove the 2-child limit on benefits, which could lift 300,000 children out of poverty
- Take more action on childcare, particularly for single parents who are studying or retraining, and create incentives for employers to create more flexible and part-time roles.
Single parent campaigner Nicola explains how the threat of Universal Credit sanctions affects her:
“Last week during a work meeting, I got a Universal Credit message notification. My hands started to shake, and I couldn’t concentrate on the call. When I logged into my UC account, I found a link to a training course. My Work Coach had added a jaunty ‘saw this and thought of you’, as if she’d found a book I might like.
The threat of sanctions hangs over every day. When I pass the local foodbank, I imagine the awkward conversation when I turn up for the first time. Would ‘I got sanctioned’ be enough? Or is it like prison: head down, tight-lipped, get out quickly with your tinned vegetables? I squirrel money everywhere – overpaying my utility bill, hoarding payments to my Healthy Start card and never spending a Tesco voucher. I’m not being paranoid. My Work Coach threatens sanctions at every appointment. I want to see a Universal Credit system that supports my work, instead of hobbling it.”