Cherry's Cash Dilemmas Page #5

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- That is really tasty.

- Aww.

- Thank you so much.

- You're welcome.

- SQUEAKS:

- Thank you so much!

- THEY LAUGH

'But after another three hours of lively conversation, I am beat.'

It's definitely rekindled my faith in the kindness of strangers.

My hosts have been really generous, they've cooked me a meal, and now...

I have a lovely room to sleep in

and I haven't paid a penny, it's amazing.

Today I don't feel like

Doing anything

I just wanna lay in my bed...

'Next morning, it's an early start,

'with a free yoga lesson from my host.

'And a hearty breakfast.'

- Bye!

- ANDREA AND TOM: Bye!

Oh, today I don't feel like

Doing anything...

'And despite a very long wait, I hit hitchhiking jackpot.

'Nurse, Therese, and her son,

'give me a lift all the way back to London.'

- Thanks so much, I can't thank you enough.

- You're welcome.

Bye, guys. Have a good day, bye.

Oh, my God! They've literally taken us all the way back to London

I'm in London, baby!

I can't believe it.

I've had food and I've slept somewhere

and I haven't...spent any money,

no cash has passed my hands.

Amazing, and I've met some incredible people!

Extraordinary.

'So, my freegan experiment was a great adventure

'but I don't think I could live like that for long.

'And for many people, life without money is not a choice.'

'I've come to meet mum, Claire,

'in Merthyr Tydfil, in the south of Wales.

'The area is one of the most deprived in the UK

'with almost 30% of children living below the poverty line.

'And Claire's children are amongst them.'

- Hi! Come in.

- Hi, Claire.

- All right?

Good, thank you.

'Claire's day starts at 5.30 in the morning,

'when she squeezes in chores before work.'

- How many children do you have?

- Seven.

- You've got SEVEN kids?

Yes, I've got the full range, I've got older children -

she used to be a stroppy teenager but she's not now -

and then I've got the younger ones.

'Claire is the sole breadwinner for their family.

'Husband, Dave, is a full-time dad

'but doesn't claim benefits.

'And the disability allowance they once received for their autistic son, Callum, has been cut,

'leaving a lot of pressure on Claire's shoulders.'

So, how much do you bring in a week?

A week with the child tax is roughly about,

I'd say about, 100, 150,

- which sounds a lot.

- Wow.

No, it doesn't, you've got seven kids, it doesn't sound a lot.

Well, it's nearly 40 a week, dinner money

so that's gone straight away before we even pay any other bills.

Oh, my goodness. How do you make that work?

We just have to account for every singly penny.

Do you worry about bills?

Constantly, it's all the time. You know, every day you're thinking -

especially if you get unexpected bills -

it's constantly thinking, "Am I going to have the money for this?

"Am I going to be able to pay that?" So, it is really hard work.

Most weeks, I'd say on a Sunday, we haven't got a penny,

we literally have not got any money left at all.

- See you later.

- Bye, Dave. Ta-ra.

'Claire works as a Learning Support Assistant

'at a school, seven miles away.'

This is my usual route. THEY LAUGH

- Like a valley, isn't it?

- Yeah.

- Are you all the way up there?

'As the family can't afford a car,

'Claire has to take two buses in to work to make the hour-long trip.'

It's basically just waiting now for my chauffeur to turn up.

'The Gurnos Estate is one of the largest council estates in Wales.

'Healthy life expectancy is low, and suicide rates are high.

'The estate and the area have become known

'for a lack of employment opportunities,

'after the closure of its coal mines,

'and nearly a third of the people here, claim benefits.

'Despite the cards being stacked against her, Claire is determined to work.'

- What sound do you need, Tyler?

- "Th."

- "That".

Cordy, what have you got? Have you got a "Th?"

- Olivia?

- "Ch."

- You've got a "Ch" sound?

- Yes.

- Yeah, well done!

You seem to really love your job?

Absolutely adore it, best thing in the world.

Coming in to somewhere and taking over the care

of somebody else's child, that is really privileged.

You know when you see them reach a goal?

It's like, wow!

- Yeh! Well done!

- Well done!

You've saved all those cats. Right, now, sshh!

If you didn't work and you were claiming full benefits

and disability allowance, how much could you bring in a month?

I'd say...

..roughly about what we're on, perhaps a little bit less,

but you wouldn't have the added...

payments, like the dinners

and things like, you would get a lot more help on top.

If you added that all up, you'd potentially be bringing in double

what you're earning now.

- Possibly, yeah.

- So, why go to work, what is it?

It's given me my dignity back and my self-respect.

I'm proud of myself. A couple of years ago, I couldn't have done that.

I'd look in the mirror and thought, "You're worthless."

When have been the hardest struggles?

One of the hardest was when Dave had to come out of work,

we really were struggling financially

and there'd be times when we had no money for nappies.

You just feel useless, totally and utterly useless.

You think, "Why on earth was I put on this world?"

What was the lead up to those circumstances?

I was pregnant with my first child with Dave, my husband,

got to the hospital, and they couldn't find the heartbeat.

They just sort of looked at me and said, "Baby dead, nothing I can do,"

and just walked off and left the midwives.

(What?!)

I had to go through...

..what came naturally, which was labour.

And...

..it was difficult,

and we just sat and, you know, held her and talked to her

and...

..it doesn't go away.

I mean, I couldn't cope, but I had to because of the children

but I knew...

for Dave, it just totally devastated him.

'Dave fell into a depression after the loss of their daughter

'and couldn't return to work.

'The family faced financial ruin and almost lost everything.'

So you were dealing with horrendous, horrendous trauma,

- bills coming in, neither of you working...

- Yip.

the stigma of potentially signing on to benefits

- and having to still be parents...

- Yeah.

..all of that combined?

And obviously, we had to go through the funeral, as well,

and when it came, I thought I was doing so well

and then, Dave had to carry her...

to the grave, and that just...

..totally finished me.

Claire and Dave have been through a nightmare

and the problem is, is that...

when you've got no money, no savings,

no rich friends and family to bail you out,

there's no safety net, there's no leeway,

the rent still has to be paid, the bills still have to be paid.

They don't stop coming, so you just have to pull yourself together

and get on with it. Which, when you've dealing with

what they've had to go through,

I really don't know how they've done it.

'The next day, I join Claire on a shopping trip.

'As a special treat, she's taking the boys on a picnic.

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