Over the past six months, ITV News has followed a group of people who told us how they make ends meet. Everyone is struggling, and with Christmas just around the corner – it couldn’t be any easier, says Chloe Kiddie
As six-year-old Oliver returns home holding his mother’s hand, he proudly shows me the kite he made at school earlier that day.
Height Cost of living It’s not something he needs to worry about yet. But his mother Kate does, especially with the onset of winter.
Inside the house in Bedford, North Devon, which she and her partner rent for themselves and their three children, Kate puts on her coat while cooking tea.
“We certainly didn’t see ourselves sitting in coats and hats inside,” she told me. “We never thought this would be our life, but it is.”
Kate says that over the past six months, “things haven’t gotten any worse… but that’s down to a lot of changes in our lifestyles – doing more work when we can.”
“We are starting to buy more in the savings and basics ranges…and also buying in bulk.”
Kate’s partner is a full-time student. Despite being able to juggle two jobs and claiming Universal Credit, she has struggled to absorb a £110 monthly increase in the family food bill since last spring.
Kate told me that she and her partner had discussed giving up the family dog, Dodie, to save “a few pounds a month”, but couldn’t bring themselves to do it.
“We took her out of a rescue and she’s grown up with our kids. She’s part of the family — so she stays.”
the family Gas bill It has fallen by £60 a month since March, but Kate says she fears what will happen when the heating comes back on.
She prioritizes putting her kids’ food on the table above all else.
On the evening I spent with them, the three of them were merrily delving into hot plates of bangers and mash.
But eldest Alice, 10, realizes that eating meat has become a luxury.
“We don’t have many meals that contain meat anymore, because meat is expensive, so it’s all vegetables.”
Ask her if she’s noticed anything else different at home over the past few months.
“Yes,” she answers. “We have a small heater in the living room and we have to keep the door closed because it’s expensive so we don’t want to heat the whole house.”
More than 200 miles away in Stoke-on-Trent, another family in a different house is facing the same fears.
Joe Tone suffers from chronic arthritis. When winter comes, it gets worse.
“When I’m really cold, I’ll go and sit on a chair in the kitchen and turn on the oven. Being cold is painful and sitting in front of the oven is painful. But it’s the lesser of two evils.”
Jo cannot work and relies on disability payments, or Personal Independence Payments known as PIP. She told me that these days, it’s barely enough to cover the basics.
“We will get to a point where I can’t afford milk. Eggs have become a luxury.”
“Since March, my food bill has gone up by at least £50. My gas and electricity bills have gone down by £60 a month. But I haven’t been able to get gas since March.”
The Chancellor is expected to announce a change to benefits that will require those with mental health or mobility issues to seek work that can be done from home, in her autumn statement on Wednesday.
At the home in Stoke that Jo shares with her husband, who is also her full-time carer, she tells me that’s how she’ll stay – for now.
“I’m going to keep going as long as I can, because when I turn the heating on, I’ll go into debt straight away.
“I don’t think (the government) is thinking about people in my position again – if it doesn’t affect them directly it won’t. Some people say people on benefits get all this money… I wish we did that.” “What we get is not enough to live on.”
Jo says she’s worried her benefits will be taken away, a move she says will put her “on the street.”
“I’m barely there now. If you take my money, you’ll kill me.”
An hour’s drive away in Chester, restaurateur Kingdom Thanga and chef Carl do what they do now every week. They are trying to come up with new menu ideas to try to reduce their costs.
“Produce prices are everywhere. Fish and beef are up… octopus is up too. It’s basically doubled in price.”
Kingdom was planning to put that on next week’s list, but now he’ll have to rethink.
The amount he spends on food and drink has increased by a whopping £4,000 since March.
His rent also rose by £300 a month, and as a result, Kingdom was unable to make any profit.
“Right now, it’s just about staying alive and keeping the wolves out the door. The stress levels are very high, the anxiety, the uncertainty. There are a lot of sleepless nights.”
He says customer numbers have not yet returned to pre-pandemic levels, and in a bid to try to attract more, he feels he has no choice but to absorb the costs himself.
He told me he would like to see the government do more to help businesses like them stay afloat. “When it comes to rates – if it is about halving VAT or getting rid of VAT – there is only so much they can do.
“We forgot.”
He told me that if things didn’t improve, his restaurant had less than six months to survive.
Business tax cuts are being considered, ITV News has confirmed. Chancellor of the Exchequer, Jeremy Hunt, said his “priority is to support British businesses” after promising an “Autumn Growth Manifesto”.
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