A MUM is surviving on just pancakes after only having £16 a month to live on.
Julie Harper, 52, has been scraping by since losing her job at M&S during the pandemic.
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The single mum-of-three now fears she’ll end up homeless and lose her dogs as her Universal Credits aren’t stretching far enough.
She claims once the bills are paid for her three-bed Worcester home there is less than £20 to last her an entire month.
Spending around £4 a week at supermarkets, Julie can only afford to buy milk, eggs, flour, bread and butter – but goes some days goes without.
Branding it “embarrassing”, she says she is sometimes forced to put shopping back.
She said: “You don’t even feel human. I feel forgotten.
“It’s embarrassing, I’ve had to put shopping back at the till because I don’t have the amount to spend.
“I last did a big food shop in September and my fridge is empty. I haven’t had a full meal since October.”
Once entitled to £155 a month, Julie’s benefits significantly dropped since her daughter moved out.
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She added: “I didn’t get an explanation why and a breakdown from my housing provider, it just happened.
“The housing company hasn’t sat down with me and gone through it with me, I’m not sure how I got to £16.
“I won’t be able to afford the rent here soon.”
Despite living in her home for 22 years, Julie said she wants to downsize to help with costs.
“I’ve got two spare rooms but no one use to them. It’s penalising me and someone else is losing out,” she added.
“I know just from quickly looking around online there’s people in temporary accommodation with four kids in a one bed flat. It’s not right.
“If I was in a one-bed I could get back to work and better my life.”
Platform Housing said that they are aware of her situation and are looking for a solution.
Lisa Fairlie, director of housing operations said: “We are aware of our customer’s concerns and as such we have been supporting her for some time as well as signposting her to other agencies.
“We will continue to work with Ms Harper to find the right solution for her.”
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