Thursday 23 November 2017

And Then

I have noticed that i tend to get more viewers the more miserable my life becomes , is that because of the Eastenders effect? The more miserable life is the better it makes you feel about yours ? I do wonder , but then again some of you been visiting for years and are a wonderful supportive bunch .
Things have took a grim turn yet again , wage slip due to illness this month wont cover the cost of running the business . So income zero for both of us and its xmas , im glad we dont celebrate except for a turkey dinner , which is languishing in the freezer , its going to be fully frozen this year and all i will need is a bit of fresh veg .
Im expecting the bank to shut down the business in the next 30 days , ive broken my agreement by not earning enough ..ho hum ...plus there was the news that the DWP have finally clarified the rules for self employment and universal credit , you must work at least 35 hours and have an income after expenses of at least £1700 and something a month , something ive not achieved since Mr Bah Humbug took a turn for the worse , if i was getting Carers Allowance I would have to work 24 hours a week on top , so theyre saying i must care 35 hours a week and also work 24 hours a week , so you must work 59 hours a week to qualify for any help at all????  Plus theres the fact that I work far more than 35 hours a week caring , im up 3 to 4 times a night at the moment , with his endless nosebleeds and toilet trips and helping him back into bed after he falls out and being punched and kicked over and over , one of the things your not supposed to mention if youre a carer,  im struggling to fit work around the Drs and Hospital appointments and it looks as if im going to have plenty of my own shortly .
Then to make matters even more fun , we had a really odd council surveyor turn up peering through our windows , strange bloke a bit like Jacob Rees Moggs younger brother . But it would seem that he had been sent to investigate the "claims" that we dont have double glazing ..lol  I explained the whole sorry tale about how none of the houses in this street that were council houses had double glazing and that the council actually accused us of stealing and selling the double glazing , he looked at me gone out until my next door neighbour come out and had a go about it, they have lived here through the whole fiasco , the council paid for double glazing and the fitters put in single upvc windows about 15 years ago and somebody at the council signed them off as double , when this was finally admitted 5 years ago, they promptly fitted double glazing in the 2 pensioner properties and left our 4 houses with the single glazing . Now the problem is that the new folks over the road have a premature baby whos stuck in hospital because there home isnt up to Letable home standard which states they must have double glazing in when a tenancy is granted , I was already aware of this because im an evil old gossip but the man from the council says they can only fit new windows every 30 years and they dont get any more money from central government for refits . Unless theyre vulnerable tenants , I pointed out my partner and the fact that my neighbour collects her pension in February , so hes off back to see what he can do , but being a surveyor he had a good root round and was suitably appalled at some of the so called repairs that have been done and the fact that a lot of the repairs that have been signed off have never been done . So we have them coming to do the gutters and roof repairs that they have signed off as been done  on all the houses tomorrow , under the actual councils supervision , the painting up outside that has been signed off twice is going to be done in the spring , we have a meeting about the heating tomorrow , should be a laugh as we have none due to lack of funds.
The one he really liked was the window they had fitted kitchen cupboards over the top of without removing and bricking it up .....have fun folks

20 comments:

  1. Bloody hell Kate....you must feel like you're in a bottomless whirlpool. I've said it before but I really don't know how you cope with it all.
    What an absolute farce your council is although I can't laugh....I just want to bloody cry for you.
    I'd say keep your chin up but how you would with all this crap to deal with is beyond me.
    Hugs-x-

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    1. Im sure i must have been something dreadful in a previous life .....thats the best explanation i can find

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  2. I started reading your blog when my daughter and her partner (who is in a wheelchair and has Aspergers) were evicted (job lost due to illness so couldn't pay rent). The council are currently refusing to give them emergency accommodation because - well, it's a different reason each time they visit, despite having legal advice from the Citizens Advice Bureau that the council are actually not adhering to their own guidelines. So my daughter is currently sleeping on the floor on a mattress in my spare room(of a small bungalow) so her partner can have the single bed (the room is approx. 8ftx8ft), and the wheelchair doesn't fit into the bathroom so partner cannot access shower (does have access to a loo). They cannot claim Housing Benefit due to living with me (parent) and although they are receiving PIP and Carer's Allowance the partner has been refused ESA and is currently appealing it. They can't get help with ramps etc. as this "is not a permanent address". I only have my works pension which is less than £10k a year, although mortgage is paid off, so I am currently trying to help them through the minefield of council/DWP regulations and contradictions. I thought I was reasonably intelligent and resilient but to be honest it's enough to send anyone mad (not that there's any help available for that due to cutbacks). So reading your blog doesn't make me feel better about my life - it just makes me incredibly sad/angry/resigned that there seems to be so many people in similar positions and so little help. And so many people seem to think everyone on benefits are "scroungers" when the reality is so very different. I read everything I can to try to find out new bits of information which might help as there doesn't seem to be any one place that can really advise. We are often referred to different departments/agencies just to finally get referred back to the beginning like some incredibly intricate Escher drawing.

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    1. Add something else to the mix , call social services and report the situation , they have a much bigger boot than most and they quite enjoy sticking it up the Council

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    2. We were advised to go to adult social services but they turned us down - twice for different reasons. One benefit has been denied as the disability is seen as temporary; another benefit has been denied because the disability is permanent - WTF? I have been told that I have to "evict" them from my property but I only took them in because the council refused any help whatsoever in the first place and they would literally be on the streets (I had already paid for a week in a cheap hotel). They have written to the local councillors and MP. and are currently awaiting an appeal decision on Friday which, if it goes their way, means they can start the process all over again. Meanwhile the documents seem to get lost each time they go to the council offices, so we have to keep copying them. As you probably know, there are an awful lot of documents required just to get through the door. If I had read this I would have thought it was fiction but sadly there are actually people who are worse off than this, as at least I am able to provide a roof over their heads and food, and my daughter has found a local homeless charity which has showers which may be accessible for partner, but bus fares aren't exactly cheap so I end up ferrying them around. Anyway, I wish you all the best with your battles.

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    3. I can just imagine the excuses from the council , biggest mistake was letting them move in with you , because you have put a roof over their heads , youre not classed as overcrowded which is the only reason they gave Young Baldrick a place in a hostel when we were stuck with him. You do your best because its your family and it seems that everything any sane caring human being would do makes it worse , its soul destroying every day

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    4. Everyone advised me against taking them in but how could I not? They were literally sitting outside the council offices with their bags the first time they were turned down. How is someone in a wheelchair meant to sleep on the streets? The thing is I know how bad the social housing situation is, and private rentals are out of their budget - even with Housing Benefit, and of course they have specific needs because of wheelchair. I also know how councils are struggling for funds (no-one wants to see their council tax go up), and the general uncertainty in the economy (due to Brexit?). But I also see the appalling waste of resources, and money spent on consultations to see how best to save money, and cash given to football clubs which disappears, and, and, and - I could go on forever. No news yet re appeal decision due today. It will probably come through late this afternoon but I don't allow myself to be hopeful any more as the disappointment is too hard.
      The awful thing is as I said before - there are so many people in similar (and worse) situations, but we all feel so alone.

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    5. I have to say I admire your daughter for staying with her partner .She is strong and decent human. I am hoping the situation will improve

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  3. I'm speechless, I can offer nothing other than a virtual hug.

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  4. Kate, just reading about your situation is heartbreaking. I can't imagine living it. (Same for your follower Aileen) All these government agencies and their workers need a good kick in the butt to wake them up to the reality of the "have nots" lives. I guess that would be a Christmas miracle.

    Strength my friend, and maybe some luck wouldn't hurt.

    Hugs, Pam

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  5. It is positively Orwellian! I read these posts and honestly - I just don't know how to respond - it is totally insane and more and more it seems that it is the most vulnerable who get caught up in these insane situations! I hope that posting and the sympathy that we can offer at least helps you to know that you aren't alone in the world.

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    1. meanwhile my mother thinks we should all be gassed for failing in life , she doesnt get the irony of the fact that having lived through the war she has turned into a nazi .

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  6. Your situation makes me so upset and angry .I had so many times in my life the most unbelievable situation( of course to do with money)Long story but I am OK now. It pisses me really badly when somebody is blaming poverty on individuals. For some reason I started to read some frugal blogs hopefully to Learn something useful.
    Unbelievable amounts of cruelty and and horrible advices do not spend.Spend what if you don't have.

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  7. I've been following you for about a year more in the hope of seeing things improve for you. I've learned a great deal about our welfare system from you that I knew nothing about. Like Hester I feel helpless to your plight and can only offer up a prayer that something changes soon, positive vibes and a virtual hug. Tx

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  9. Thanks Kate for your inspiring comment. Too many people only want to tell you horror stories and they don't help. As I written to you before we've had dealings over the many years that tom has been ill before with the social so am not looking forward to the battle before us with form filling etc and trying to convince them that he is ill. Life can be so shitty sometimes and in the end you have to wonder what its all about but I'm not a quitter in any sense of the word so will just get on with things. I love you blog for its honesty and like your last comment admire you enormously.
    Briony
    x

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  10. I have only just discovered your blog. I am so sorry that life is so hard. I had no idea that the U.K.s economy was so dire. I wish you well, that your husband recovers and that your situation improves in a hurry. Hugs to you.

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