What do you hope for in the budget?

ronib

Well of course breakfast clubs are an essential component in getting every parent back into work and off benefits. Should be interesting to see how it works out long term.

I think that another important component part of getting parents back into work would be employers paying wages that they could actually live on.

Average real wages in the UK will still be lower in 2026 than they were in 2008 (Office Budget Responsibility).

I know there are multiple measures of wages, but it doesn't bode well does it?

More belt-tightening, and what definitely feels like austerity in spite of Sir Starmer insisting that we won't be returning to it.

Maybe it's going to be a different type of austerity, but the "difficult decisions", "hard choices", oh - and the "pain", don't inspire much confidence.

Perhaps though, we're being conditioned to fear the worst so that the reality won't feel quite so bad?

Well of course breakfast clubs are an essential component in getting every parent back into work and off benefits. Should be interesting to see how it works out long term.

Dickens

Re. breakfast clubs - I think they are a wonderful institution - and yes, I'd be happy to pay more in tax to subsidise them, for all children. What is more important than the health and wellbeing of the next generation - especially considering the challenges they are going to face / inherit as they grow into adulthood - climate disasters, wars, and what appears like an increasingly unstable world.

👏👏👏

Well said, Dickens
It is an investment in the future.

Re. breakfast clubs - I think they are a wonderful institution - and yes, I'd be happy to pay more in tax to subsidise them, for all children. What is more important than the health and wellbeing of the next generation - especially considering the challenges they are going to face / inherit as they grow into adulthood - climate disasters, wars, and what appears like an increasingly unstable world.

I wrote some words in bold to emphasise them. That's how I would speak.

Now who's being offended?

FWIW The devil is in the detail. I think the idea would be that they would be heavily subsidised (and maybe free) for children from poorer families. That's what already happens. As I've written before, some schools use much of their Pupil Premium funding on breakfast clubs. PP is worth £1345 for each eligible child (over £7 a day) and there are some schools where over 50% of the pupils are eligible. That's a significant amount of money and enables schools to ensure that all children can attend if they want.

Just realised it was Doodledog who didn't agree with subsidies/means testing. I know locally they aren't cheap so I don't think our local ones are going to be much help for poorer families unless there is help for people struggling to pay.

I think Labour have a plan to make them free but not sure of ages that would apply to.

growstuff

theworriedwell

growstuff

Doodledog The aim of breakfast clubs isn't just to provide poor children with a breakfast. It's been shown that they improve behaviour because children are more settled when lessons start.

I thought they were mainly to allow parents to get to work on time. If you start work at 9 am and your child goes into school at 8.50 am it might be impossible to get to work. Not like back in the day when my sons and their friends would be in the playground at 8 am playing football, they aren't allowed through the gate early now, well at least at my local school where parents do pay for their children to attend.

If you read what I wrote it was "isn't just to provide poor children with a breakfast. In other words, there are a number of advantages. Of course, they provide all children (poor or rich) with a breakfast. They also provide childminding before school for children of parents who need to be at work, but it has also been shown by a number of research projects that general behaviour improves because children have an opportunity to chat and calm down before school starts. Some schools have used Pupil Premium funding in this way and audits have shown that breakfast clubs are an effective use of funding.

Sorry, you seem offended with what I said. You mentioned two reasons for breakfast clubs, providing poor children with breakfast and it improving behaviour as children are more settled. The ones I know of were the third type, trying to enable parents to work and they aren't cheap so unless there is a subsidy, which I know you don't agree with, I wasn't sure how they helped poorer families because as you said it would be cheaper to give them a bit of toast and some cereal at home.

By the way no need for the bold. I can read but if I couldn't writing in bold wouldn't help, bit like the English abroad thinking if they talk loudly and slowly people will suddenly understand English.

theworriedwell

growstuff

Doodledog The aim of breakfast clubs isn't just to provide poor children with a breakfast. It's been shown that they improve behaviour because children are more settled when lessons start.

I thought they were mainly to allow parents to get to work on time. If you start work at 9 am and your child goes into school at 8.50 am it might be impossible to get to work. Not like back in the day when my sons and their friends would be in the playground at 8 am playing football, they aren't allowed through the gate early now, well at least at my local school where parents do pay for their children to attend.

If you read what I wrote it was "isn't just to provide poor children with a breakfast. In other words, there are a number of advantages. Of course, they provide all children (poor or rich) with a breakfast. They also provide childminding before school for children of parents who need to be at work, but it has also been shown by a number of research projects that general behaviour improves because children have an opportunity to chat and calm down before school starts. Some schools have used Pupil Premium funding in this way and audits have shown that breakfast clubs are an effective use of funding.

A lot of children are hungry. Dreadful. You only have to look at visiting sports teams from the poorer side of town to see the difference in markers of wellbeing.

theworriedwell

growstuff

Doodledog The aim of breakfast clubs isn't just to provide poor children with a breakfast. It's been shown that they improve behaviour because children are more settled when lessons start.

I thought they were mainly to allow parents to get to work on time. If you start work at 9 am and your child goes into school at 8.50 am it might be impossible to get to work. Not like back in the day when my sons and their friends would be in the playground at 8 am playing football, they aren't allowed through the gate early now, well at least at my local school where parents do pay for their children to attend.

Yes, I don't think I said it was? I was part of a group that set one up in the 90s. It was so that our children had somewhere safe and supervised to go whilst their parents were on the way to work. It cost more than it would have done to give them breakfast at home, but saving money wasn't the primary aim.

This was during the Tony Blair years, when fewer people were in poverty. Obviously things have changed, and the role of breakfast clubs has changed with the times. With luck the role will change again, with a more compassionate government.

Despite more flexible working patterns and working from home, there will still be parents who can't both drop their children off at school and be at work on time, there will be those who struggle to find the budget for breakfast, those who (for whatever reason) aren't able to do it, and those whose children enjoy the social aspect of it.

It doesn't matter why people use them. They should be available to everyone who needs or wants them, and schools should definitely not be involved in means-testing families or singling out some children for free places and others to ask for payment.

Dickens

Steelygran

mabon1

People I know are living on benefits, they can afford things I am unable to buy as I am a pensioner, a wrong.

I can sympathise with how you feel as a pensioner, but what a lot of people don't realise when they see people on benefits buying the odd treat such as coffee out or having their nails done, is that this is all they have. They usually don't have any security, or money to save for emergencies. It's a very different, insecure way of living.
Of course there are still quite a few people around who think that if you're on benefits you should have absolutely nothing.

Many years ago now a young single mother - I didn't know her, but my late mother did - with learning difficulties, understood (with the help of my mother) how to budget and be very frugal with her spending.

She would, for example, eat sardines on toast with a fresh tomato, and home-baked rice pudding (batch-cooked probably) for dinner. Went to play groups with her toddler, the park, etc - bought or was given, second hand clothes.

Anyway, she actually managed to save money which she put towards Christmas. No idea what she bought, but I believe it was a couple of presents or something for her child.

I can imagine what would've been said about her if, knowing she was 'on benefits' (she did work, spasmodically) they'd seen her buying Christmas presents! Eh!

Back in the day, when personal phones were just being developed from the huge brick-like contraptions into smaller hand held ones - someone gave her one of them, probably the equivalent of today's smart phones. It was thought she needed it to keep in touch with family and friends (and my mother). I can well imagine what would have been said about that.

She could be quite erratic in her behaviour (a medical condition brought on by earlier hydrocephalus) and might well have appeared feckless to some.

I knew about her because my mother took her under her wing - they were both members of a local church social group.

My point is, no-one really knows another person's circumstances - you only 'know' what you see. And that's not the whole picture.

Your mother sounds wonderful.

Steelygran

mabon1

People I know are living on benefits, they can afford things I am unable to buy as I am a pensioner, a wrong.

I can sympathise with how you feel as a pensioner, but what a lot of people don't realise when they see people on benefits buying the odd treat such as coffee out or having their nails done, is that this is all they have. They usually don't have any security, or money to save for emergencies. It's a very different, insecure way of living.
Of course there are still quite a few people around who think that if you're on benefits you should have absolutely nothing.

Many years ago now a young single mother - I didn't know her, but my late mother did - with learning difficulties, understood (with the help of my mother) how to budget and be very frugal with her spending.

She would, for example, eat sardines on toast with a fresh tomato, and home-baked rice pudding (batch-cooked probably) for dinner. Went to play groups with her toddler, the park, etc - bought or was given, second hand clothes.

Anyway, she actually managed to save money which she put towards Christmas. No idea what she bought, but I believe it was a couple of presents or something for her child.

I can imagine what would've been said about her if, knowing she was 'on benefits' (she did work, spasmodically) they'd seen her buying Christmas presents! Eh!

Back in the day, when personal phones were just being developed from the huge brick-like contraptions into smaller hand held ones - someone gave her one of them, probably the equivalent of today's smart phones. It was thought she needed it to keep in touch with family and friends (and my mother). I can well imagine what would have been said about that.

She could be quite erratic in her behaviour (a medical condition brought on by earlier hydrocephalus) and might well have appeared feckless to some.

I knew about her because my mother took her under her wing - they were both members of a local church social group.

My point is, no-one really knows another person's circumstances - you only 'know' what you see. And that's not the whole picture.

growstuff

Doodledog The aim of breakfast clubs isn't just to provide poor children with a breakfast. It's been shown that they improve behaviour because children are more settled when lessons start.

I thought they were mainly to allow parents to get to work on time. If you start work at 9 am and your child goes into school at 8.50 am it might be impossible to get to work. Not like back in the day when my sons and their friends would be in the playground at 8 am playing football, they aren't allowed through the gate early now, well at least at my local school where parents do pay for their children to attend.

Dinahmo

Maggiemaybe

Would it be better if police officers, teachers and doctors were spending their time doing admin? There has to be admin, who sorts out payroll, who answers the phones, who orders the stationery, who negotiates the electricity/gas deal for the year? I'd much rather someone good at admin was doing it and the reality is they will be doing it cheaper than using the police officer/teacher/doctor.

Well said, theworriedwell. The thing about admin is that if it’s done well it just rattles on in the background, and the people doing it aren’t appreciated by the public in general, sometimes not even by the people they’re supporting. The fact is that the frontline staff couldn’t do their jobs without the admin team.

I have a client, a former police inspector, now retired. He now works for the police in a desk job. (Lower salary). Maybe more retirees should do that - very useful with all the trawling through paperwork that they sometimes have to do for a case.

Depends really. Was he the best person for the job? If there is a suitable candidate who isn't a retired police officer should they be overlooked so someone with a good pension can earn a bit more?

I think it will vary with the role. I speak as someone who did a police admin job for 20 years and married to a retired chief inspector.

The return of the winter fuel allowance.

As a matter of interest, what's your rationale for giving the children of two working parents bigger university subsidies?

How would you decide what a "Mickey Mouse course" is?

I'd like to see the income tax threshold raised to at least £15,000 or £20,000. This will help all ages not just Pensioners.

I like to see greater subsidies for university places for people with two working parents. I'd like to see mickey mouse university courses to have no subsidy. I'd like to see that anyone getting free or heavily subsidised University Courses have to work in the Country that paid for them for at least 10 years before they are allowed to take those skills out of the country.

I 'd like to see less money sent overseas for at least 10 years and that money spent of NHS both physical and mental.

I'd like to see the Green initiative slowed down to something more sensible and obtainable without costing hardship to working people.

I'd like to see those pensioners that have saved and invested for their old age allowed to help their adult children financially without the 7 Year Rule kicking in.

These are quite personal I suppose but I really think they are important for all the working people and some of those that can only work part time due to various personal reasons.

Maybe not that exciting, but there's no reason you should live in a house which needs decorating if you've got the money now to pay for it. I don't see why you wouldn't spend it.

growstuff

Allira

maddyfour

growstuff
I love your bluntness. But you’re right, I will indeed be dead if, and when, any inheritance tax might be paid on my estate
However, since the money/estate will be mine, I will regard it as me paying any tax owing, dead or not. My children would not be paying anything if it were not for me having the money in the first place. Anyway, it’s just semantics, and I do not want to pay a single penny out of my estate to the government. I’ve paid tax all my life; I shall ensure there will be none to be paid when I’m dead!

I'm gonna spend, spend, spend!
In fact, I've already started 😂

Good for you!

It sounds more exciting than it is - the house needs redecorating inside and out.

I’d notice if bus passes were withdrawn. It would seriously affect several of my neighbours and affect me occasionally,
but then should I feel guilty that I’m not contributing to local council funding by not paying parking fees?

I'm not sure I understand this. Why would you want to raise the age?

Raise the threshold for applying for Motorbility from 65 to 70.
DH became semi paraplegic at 67. Have had to fund car, hoist, wheelchair, mobility scooter ourselves. Thank goodness for Blue Badge & Attendance Allowance.

Oh well I have just spent the day with my grandchildren and it was tremendous fun. I do wonder where the joy has gone in life.

"All great in theory, an awful lot of parents would just not want to be at home with children."

Exactly! Especially it's usually the woman who stays at home, thus jeopardising her own career and pension contributions.

4allweknow

I wouldn't notice if free bus passes were withdrawn as there is no bus service unless I drive 3 miles, then pay for parking to catch a bus.

Well, I'd certainly notice it.

On the other hand, I wouldn't notice any change to inheritance tax.