Tag: goverment

Ashton Under lyne, baby, Black Isle Media, Boris Johnson, Brighthouse, confidence, Cookery, coronavirus, covid 19, Decision maker, DLA, domestic violence, domestic violence,, DPAC, Elderly, ESA, eugenics, Family, feminism, Food, Food bank, Free, frugal, fuel poverty, G4S, government, Housing, hunger, International Women's Day, Jeremy Corbyn, Jobcentre, Ken Loach, loose women, Mandatory reconsideration, Money saving tips, New Charter Housing, Northern resisters, Payday loan, PIP, poverty, prepaid energy, prepaid energy metres, sanctions, suicide, targets, Tax credits, television, Television Licence, Television Licence fines, Teresa May, The Big Issue, The Labour Party, The Poor Side Of Life, Theresa May, trade union movement, Uncategorized, Universal credit, womens rights, Workfare, Workprogramme, young people

Long foodbank queues on Christmas Eve.

A friend of mine that volunteers at a foodbank has just sent me the below images. They asked if their anonymity is kept and of course I’m respecting this.

The photos were taken as they were arriving for their shift at the food bank. It wasn’t open for some time, but the queue was already massive, people arriving early to make sure that they’d get some food.

As you can see the queue consisted of People, all differing in their needs. What can’t be missed is the people using wheelchairs queueing for food parcels.on Christmas Eve.

Also in the queue are elderly people and families with children.

You don’t need me to tell you that this shouldn’t be happening , it’s heartbreaking.

You can always find the measure of a country by seeing how they look after the poor, young, elderly and disabled.

The conservative government is blatantly failing on this front. As a country we can’t be proud of this either.

Being proud of a country is about being proud of what it actually does right, and how it treats those in need. It’s not about waving flags and singing the national anthem.

We can however also look back on history and also be ashamed for the very same reasons. Ignoring the fact that the UK government is causing direct harm to people won’t make it go away.

Whilst the government has been focusing on ridiculous things like blue passports people are dying, thousands are becoming homeless and many are becoming ill from poverty related illnesses.

Meanwhile the public are bombarded with images of the royal family having a lovely Christmas, the people queuing at this foodbank and others won’t be able to celebrate.

Its simply not acceptable.

I messaged the volunteer that took the below images and this is what they said

It felt like a slap in the face for them too. It’s a reminder of their privilege. Because despite having their own difficulties they can sit in a warm house, with food, having just wrapped presents for their family.

They went on to say that it makes them angry and sad that this is happening, that they wished that they could do more to help. There’s more that many could do, so let’s do it.

Helping others doesn’t have to cost a penny. A kind word, saying hello in the street makes the world of difference to someone that lives alone and hasn’t spoken to anyone for a long time.

Being a friend costs nothing also, sharing what you no longer need doesn’t either. Of course I realise that many people have nothing to give to someone else.

Let’s spend the festive period and the coming year to be kind and thoughtful towards each other. We need to do this because the government won’t ever care about you.

Faces and building names covered out of respect for the people queuing.
No one should be forced to literally beg for food on Christmas Eve.

Please read, share, tweet and email this blog post. This makes a massive difference and it raises lots of awareness. Thank you!

A huge thank you to everyone that has and is supporting my blog and campaign. I really appreciate it and I couldn’t do this without your support.

If anyone would like to donate there’s a donat button at the top and side of this blog post.

Ashton Under lyne, baby, Boris Johnson, Brighthouse, confidence, Cookery, coronavirus, covid 19, Damien Green, Decision maker, DLA, DPAC, Elderly, ESA, eugenics, Family, feminism, Food, Food bank, Free, frugal, fuel poverty, G4S, government, Green Party, Housing, hunger, Jeremy Corbyn, Jobcentre, Ken Loach, loose women, love island, Mandatory reconsideration, Money saving tips, New Charter Housing, Northern resisters, Payday loan, PIP, poverty, prepaid energy, prepaid energy metres, sanctions, Steven Crabb, suicide, targets, Tax credits, television, Teresa May, The Big Issue, The Labour Party, The Poor Side Of Life, Theresa May, trade union movement, Uncategorized, Universal credit, womens rights, Workfare, Workprogramme, young people

Merry Christmas one and all.

Dear readers I write this blog on Christmas Day, a day when people are expected to celebrate and be happy.

Sadly because of the government’s cruel Universal Credit system and the torturous PIP and ESA DWP ‘medical’ assessments thousands of people won’t be able to celebrate, cook a Christmas dinner and exchange gifts.

This year is tougher than normal because we are still in the middle of a pandemic that the government is trying it’s best to ignore.

Today the UK’s official Covid death toll has surpassed 70,000 on as 570 more people died today.

Let that sink in 570 people have died from Covid 19 on Christmas day. Also a total of 70,000 people have died as a result of Covid 19.

Meanwhile the government continues to ignore this, they just don’t want to know and they certainly don’t want to help.

70,000 families will be grieving as will their friends. But hey let’s ignore them and continue to put the public at risk.

Wouldn’t it be fantastic if the government actually tool some positive action, set an example to the rest of the world and protected people. This won’t happen though.

It appears that the government is in some sick competition with America about how many people will die from Covid 19.

Then we have the thousands of people now unemployed as a result of the pandemic. Now facing the inhumane universal Credit system, many can’t understand how they’re expected to survive on so little money.

Thousands of people won’t be able to give anyone presents this year, heat their home and have a Christmas dinner.

This year the queues for food banks and suchlike places have more than doubled. Families are queuing for hot meals in city centres and children and their parents are hungry because they don’t have the money to survive on.

How sickening it is that I have to use the world surviving… People shouldn’t be surviving they should be able to live, be happy and have enough money to be able to feed themselves and their children.

I want to be positive I really do but it’s extremely hard to find the good in all of this. We shouldn’t be celebrating the fact that food banks are opening and organisations and charities are working extremely hard to find food to give to hungry people.

Theres a reason why the government likes foodbanks. If given the opportunity one of their Tory MPs will see this as a photo opportunity.

Foodbanks save the government thousands of pounds every year. They also take the responsibility of feeding people away from them and moves it to the foodbanks and organisations to do this.

No wonder Tories smile so much at the thought of another foodbank opening.

Basically what I’m saying is yes please support your local foodbank but please remind the government of their duty of care towards the people of this country.

Normally we would see the government’s opposition making a speech or statement about the terrible neglect of the poorest and most vulnerable of this country. This year it’s virtually silent.

Sir Kier Starmer quite rightly made a speech about Brexit, but he failed to address the needs of the poorest and most vulnerable of this country.

As a result thousands of people are feeling neglected and unimportant and totally pissed off with the political system in general.

So what do we do now? We support each other in whatever way that we are able to.

A friendly word, a smile can sometimes be enough.

We have to be there for each other because this damned government will never never care.

A huge thank you to everyone that reads and supports my campaign and blog. Your kind words and support have kept me going throughout my own covid 19 nightmare.

Sadly I’ve got pleurisy again, thanks to long covid. Hopefully I’ll be better soon.

For anyone that would like to donate towards my campaign and blog there’s a donate button at the top and side of this blog post. Thank you!

Please read, share, tweet and email my blog.

Ashton Under lyne, baby, Boris Johnson, Brighthouse, confidence, Cookery, coronavirus, covid 19, Decision maker, DLA, DPAC, Elderly, ESA, eugenics, Family, feminism, Food, Food bank, Free, frugal, fuel poverty, G4S, government, Green Party, Housing, hunger, Jeremy Corbyn, Jobcentre, Ken Loach, loose women, love island, Mandatory reconsideration, Money saving tips, New Charter Housing, Northern resisters, Payday loan, PIP, poverty, prepaid energy, prepaid energy metres, sanctions, Steven Crabb, suicide, targets, Tax credits, television, Teresa May, The Big Issue, The Labour Party, The Poor Side Of Life, Theresa May, trade union movement, Uncategorized, Universal credit, womens rights, Workfare, Workprogramme, young people

Covid 19. What happens to the survivors and the families of those that have died?

Dear readers and subscribers it appears to be Thursday once again. I hope that you are all ok and as well as you can be.I’ve had a pretty busy week having a telephone consultation with my respitory consultant, blood tests and talking to my GP.

For covid survivors I’m one of the lucky ones. I have a doctor that listens to me and echoes mine and my consultants concerns. This is a rarity though.

Why is this a rarity you might ask, everyone should be treated this way. The sad reality is that they aren’t.Helping a patient with Covid 19 is extremely hard because they’re dealing with the unknown. Covid also presents itself differently with each and every person that catches it.

There isn’t any real ‘normal’ symptoms with Covid 19 because of this.For me, covid hit my lungs pretty hard, most likely because I already had mild asthma.

Covid likes to find a person’s weak point and attack there.

For other people they can get more neurological symptoms and not the classic symptoms. For them getting help is extremely hard.

Like my doctor said, so many doctors haven’t got a clue about how to deal with it unless they’ve had the time to research it themselves. I can imagine that finding the time to do this would be hard for them.

This leaves us with a massive problem though. Thousands of people with long covid symptoms are being ignored,some are being told that there’s nothing that can be done for them when that’s not true.

I was both unlucky and lucky enough to be admitted into hospital and this fast tracked me to the follow up care that I need. This is why I consider myself lucky in this respect.

But still thousands of people that are suffering with delibatating symptoms are being ignored, left on their own with no support at all.

Every covid survivor deserves to be listened to and to have their symptoms investigated. It’s vital that this happens. The fact that it isn’t happening is a complete travesty.

Then we have the families of loved ones that have died from Covid 19.They’re not being listened to at all.

The government is so far refusing to meet with them to discuss their needs and concerns.

Why the government refuse to meet them is unknown as of yet, but I do believe that they’re avoiding any contact with the public but my be is that they don’t want anyone challenging their extremely bad decisions

.Also add into the mix the farcical second lockdown. This lockdown won’t be successful because schools are still open etc. Unbelievable isn’t it.

We’ve also as a result of this got the real possibility of a lockdown over the Christmas period. To be honest I don’t mind this because we need to get this virus under control but so many people will suffer as a result of this possible decision.

Basically the government has done what it does best… Mess everything up, ignore the public and walk away.

This leaves the public to do the best that they can with very few resources if any.We are facing very bleak times and are going to do this with little or no Government help and it’s extremely worrying.

We have thousands of people that will be facing destitution in the coming months and they need help and representation.

We then have the terrible decision to remove Jeremy Corbyn from his position. They then allowed him to return but without the whip.

This is exactly what we don’t need at the moment. Jeremy deserves to be given the whip etc back.

The labour party should be united to fight the Tories against their terrible decisions that they’re making about the pandemic etc.

Instead it’s divided the party and members are leaving. Would it be too much to ask for some real united opposition?Can they please stop this witch hunt and focus on the government’s faults instead?

I urge them to think about this.

Thousands of people have died as a result of contracting covid and their families need help and support.

Thousands of people are ill with Covid and they need support.Thousands of people suffering from long covid need support.

They all need this support to come from the government’s opposition.We need this now.

I’m eight months into my long covid battle and it’s been awful. I’m trying to keep strong and fight back but it’s hard at times.

I don’t think that I could have done it without the help and support from my online friends

.For those without this online support it can and is a very dark and lonely place to be. Please spare a thought for them.

I’m going to end it there because I have to go and collect my meds.
Please keep safe you are important and I do care about you all.

Please read, share, tweet and email my blog.
I don’t get any funding for anything that you do.

Having covid has put an enormous strain on my finances.

For anyone that would like to donate there’s a donate button at the top and side of this blog.

Thank you to everyone that reads and supports my blog and campaign.

Ashton Under lyne, baby, Boris Johnson, Brighthouse, confidence, Cookery, coronavirus, covid 19, Decision maker, DLA, DPAC, Elderly, ESA, eugenics, Family, feminism, Food, Food bank, Free, frugal, fuel poverty, G4S, government, Green Party, Housing, hunger, Jeremy Corbyn, Jobcentre, Ken Loach, loose women, love island, Mandatory reconsideration, Money saving tips, New Charter Housing, Northern resisters, Payday loan, PIP, poverty, prepaid energy, prepaid energy metres, sanctions, Steven Crabb, suicide, targets, Tax credits, television, Teresa May, The Big Issue, The Labour Party, The Poor Side Of Life, Theresa May, trade union movement, Uncategorized, Universal credit, womens rights, Workfare, Workprogramme, young people

It’s official the government wants children to be hungry.

Well yesterday the government hit an all time low. Not only have they purposely neglected to protect the public from Covid 19, they’re now allowing our children to become hungry.

As a covid 19 sufferer I know exactly how vicious this virus can be. Thousands have does from it and the secondary infections that follow.

Thousands of people have also lost their jobs as a direct result of Covid 19.

The government have been woefully neglectant in the so called support that they’re giving the public. They even plan to take away the extra £20 top up money for universal credit and tax credit claimants in April.

It might not sound like a lot to many, and it isn’t but it is helping people to survive this covid 19 nightmare.

This week Andy Burnham and the other metro mayor’s took a stand against the governments covid phase strategy.

I live in the Greater Manchester area and the monies offered to our local councils weren’t enough to help anyone.

Thankfully Andy won his fight in parliament this week, but it’s a bitter pill to swallow.

It’s not enough to compensate people, nor will it make a big difference in the R rates. I’m a big believer in a full lockdown for at least two weeks, and everyone should be adequately compensated.

Yesterday a motion was put forward in parliament to ensure that all children would receive free school meals in the autumn and Christmas holidays.

Despite putting up a good fight, Tory MPs voted it down. They don’t care if our children are hungry, not do they care if we die from Covid 19.

Boris Johnson’s cruel, evil Government voted down a motion which would have prevented a million kids going hungry over the half term & Christmas holidays.

This is proof that they don’t care and will never care. Some Tory MPs are disgusted in their behaviour as are some ex Tory MPs.

The fact is that the Tory party has always been cruel and judgemental. They believe that the working class person is responsible for their own poverty, and they fail to acknowledge that they are the ones responsible for this.

If they could they’d round us all up and throw us in workhouses again like they did in the old days. Maybe this is why they always hark on about the good old days.

They now claim that eating is a choice that we have to make and it isn’t a necessity. They claim that all working class parents are bad parents because they can no longer afford to feed their children and themselves.

The truth is that the majority of parents living in poverty are bloody good parents. They feed their children before themselves and often go without meals to do so.

I honestly was waiting for the day that the government would stoop as low to suggest that eating food is a choice. That our children don’t deserve to eat, that they must go hungry at any cost.

They actually want our children to be hungry.

The ramifications of child hunger don’t just end when a child grows up. Not only does it hinder development it also causes health problems that continue throughout their lifetime. It also can cut their lifespan short.

We’ve already seen the return of Victorian illnesses and this is going to become a whole lot worse.

Combine hunger and the covid 19 and you create the perfect storm. The covid 19 virus loves to target a person with a weakened immune system, so I expect the child and adult mortality rates concerning covid 19 to rise substantially.

Being poor is no joke, I know because I’m in this situation myself, and the lack of care and consideration from the government never fails to anger me. Some high poverty areas voted for the Tory party because they were more concerned about Brexit than their well-being. This has bit them on the bum big time and hopefully they regret their actions now.

It’s going to be a struggle for many to donate food to food banks as more and more people are plunged into poverty yet the need for them will be greater than ever.

The Tory party actually like the fact that we are literally begging for food to survive. They love it, it brings back memories of the deserving and undeserving poor, only now no one’s deserving.

God help you if you’re northern and working class. They don’t even hide their hatred of us.

We all need to be angry about this, we need to remind them that we won’t be walked over like this. That every human being deserves a good quality of life. This isn’t an extremists views it’s a basic necessity.

So what will happen to the odious, lazy prime minister Johnson?

Johnson has been a failure since day one and I’m certain that he only got the job because of what he’s got on everyone else.

There is a time though that the Tory party will have to do some damage limitation. They’ve now lost thousands of supporters and if there was a general election in the near future they could well loose.

Will they do the dirty on him and get rid? Who knows but what I do care about is the future of our children.

I’m a Thatcher’s child, I grew up in a time where the working class was hated and poverty was everywhere.

I grew up with a lot of anger about this and a determination to try and help others and to try and change things.

I’m positive that our children will never, ever forget the cruelty inflicted upon them. They will fight back like I have I just hope that they’re more successful than I’ve been.

Health-wise I’m still not 100%, I’m struggling to stop coughing and to get my breathing back to normal. Yesterday I had to go out to do some errands and I felt awful, trying to breathe and beat exhaustion.

Please keep safe everyone and let’s continue to fight the heartless Tories. We can’t allow them to continue their cruelty towards the working class and also northern England.

It’s not the desolate north it’s beautiful with amazing people living there.

My thoughts go to other areas entering phase three of the so called governments covid strategy and also to the areas entering phase two.

We were in phase two for ages and you can get through this.

Now is the time to ignore the conspiracy theorists and to follow the hygiene and mask rules.

We need to beat this virus and every precaution helps.

Please read, share and tweet my blog.

Thank you to everyone that supports and reads my blog and campaign. Thank you so much!!!

I don’t receive any payment for any of the work that I do. If anyone would like to donate this would really help me. There’s a donation button at the top and side of this blog post. Thank you!

Ashton Under lyne, baby, Boris Johnson, Brighthouse, confidence, Cookery, coronavirus, covid 19, Damien Green, Decision maker, DLA, DPAC, Elderly, ESA, eugenics, Family, feminism, Food, Food bank, Free, frugal, fuel poverty, G4S, government, Green Party, Housing, hunger, Jeremy Corbyn, Jobcentre, Ken Loach, loose women, love island, Mandatory reconsideration, Money saving tips, New Charter Housing, Northern resisters, Payday loan, PIP, poverty, prepaid energy, prepaid energy metres, sanctions, Steven Crabb, suicide, targets, Tax credits, television, Teresa May, The Big Issue, The Labour Party, The Poor Side Of Life, Theresa May, trade union movement, Uncategorized, Universal credit, womens rights, Workfare, Workprogramme, young people

Thousands of people that lost their jobs due to Covid 19 refused Universal Credit and any other help.

Dear readers its Thursday and I’ve just returned home from the hospital. I managed to get a cancellation appointment for a CT scan for my lungs.

Anyway you can imagine my disgust when I saw this article in The Guardian.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/sep/30/hundreds-of-thousands-who-lost-jobs-in-pandemic-denied-universal-credit

I don’t need to tell you that the DWP and government are disgustingly selfish people that care nothing about the working classes health and wellbeing.

This was no surprise to me.

I knew that the government would try and shaft these people for having the nerve to lose their jobs. In their eyes a pandemic is no excuse for not working and is certainly not an excuse for not looking for none existent jobs.

We’ve seen this before and no matter how much we tell people that this could happen to them we were still ignored.

Their futures are looking very different from last years. No one could plan for the pandemic because we didn’t know that this was coming.

Some of us knew that this was going to happen way back in December but theres no way that we could save up just incase. We have no spare money.

No savings allowed.

The DWP and the government’s reasoning for this is because these people ‘they have savings’.

They don’t care that it takes around six weeks for a universal credit claim to be processed. By then their savings will have gone to pay their rent, mortgage and food.

They could become homeless.

It’s extremely unreasonable to believe that these people lost their jobs through any fault of their own. But still the government will punish them because its what they do best.

The DWP has forgotten that there’s a pandemic.

Hello DWP, we are in the middle of a pandemic.

There are very few jobs out there so stop putting people under pressure to find work.

Lets not forget that thousands of people, probably many of those that lost their jobs are recovering from Covid 19. They’re unable to work.

There are very few jobs to find and there’s certainly not enough to look for work for 35 hours a week.

If you refuse to do this then they’ll sanction you. It’s all about punishing innocent people.

Their aim is to bully us until we give up altogether.

Where’s the safety net?

There is hardly any safety net left to help people. It’s extremely hard to make a claim for any type of social security.

When you manage it the DWP lie and make it extremely hard to continue to do so.

Claimants are given unrealistic goals that they have to attain and are spoken to like shit.

The sad fact is that many of these newly unemployed people that have been refused help believed that the government would help them.

They didn’t realise how cruel and callous the system can be.

The DWP certainly aren’t there to help anymore.

How very dare anyone make a claim for the help that they’re entitled to.

My heart does go out to them though. They’ve been thrown very abruptly into the lions den. I hope that none of them vote for the Tories again.

There are no jobs.

I’m certain that many of these people that have been refused help thought that they could find a job. I’ve heard this thousands of times when talking to people outside the Jobcentre.

In the first few weeks people have hope for a better future but that soon wears off.

The reality that there are no jobs kicks in pretty soon. People sell or pawn their possessions and many loose their homes because they can’t afford to pay their rent or mortgage.

Don’t expect local councils to be sympathetic either. It’s all bloody wrong.

We aren’t criminals and shouldn’t be treated like this. But we are.

You are left on your own to cope and this is very scary for many that thought that the safety net would be there for them.

A foodbank reliant society.

We are quickly becoming a food bank reliant society. Most of the people that have lost their jobs will become reliant on them.

Talking from experience I know just how humiliating it is.

Some foodbanks have reintroduced the three bag limit. So people are only allowed to eat three times a year?

Thanks for that.

I’m a firm believer that anyone that needs the help from a foodbank should be able to do so freely without judgement and for as long as they need them.

More and more people are becoming reliant upon food parcels to survive and many food banks are already struggling to cope with the demand.

I do what I can to help but its only a drop in the ocean.

Support your local independent foodbank.

Fuel poverty.

Winter is on its way and thousands of people are going to be extremely cold this year. Heat or eat will be a choice that they will have to make.

Fuel poverty is very real.

No one should be forced to live in a cold house without hot water. But hey, the government doesn’t care about this either.

Having to live in the cold like this is very dangerous for both body and spirit.

Does the government realise this?

Yes they do but they don’t give it a thought. They’re resentful of us being here, alive.

The pandemic is still here.

So many organisations and supermarkets are returning back to normal. Very soon they’ll be very little support for anyone shielding or recovering from Covid 19.

It’s not as if there was a lot of help out there in the first place.

What are we supposed to do? Risk catching covid to go for appointments and to run errands?

This is exactly what we are having to do. It’s shocking.

Unemployment.

As we face more people becoming unemployed since the 1980s don’t expect the government to help.

The government are still intent on taking the extra £20 a week extra payment away from Universal Credit and Tax Credit claimants in April.

I bet they’ve got a countdown click counting down the days until so many of us are thrown into even worse poverty than we are now.

So many people are relying on this money to survive. But once again the government doesn’t give a stuff.

£20 is a lot of money to us. For the Tories it doesn’t even cover the cost of their breakfast.

They don’t want us to survive.

They don’t want the working class person to have any decent quality of life. Its even worse for people with disabilities and illnesses. They’ve been suffering for many years now.

Their actions say that they don’t care, will never care so stuff you.

What can we do?

Like I said last week we need to continue to support each other because no one else will.

A kind word can make such a big difference.

As for myself it’s been a bad long covid week for me. I haven’t been able to do much except advise people and signpost them for help.

I’m also one of those people that doesn’t qualify for any help from the government even though I badly need lt.

So many of us are struggling to get through this and your not on your own.

We can and will get through this. We need to.

Ashton Under lyne, baby, Boris Johnson, Brighthouse, confidence, Cookery, coronavirus, covid 19, Decision maker, DLA, DPAC, Elderly, ESA, eugenics, Family, feminism, Food, Food bank, Free, frugal, fuel poverty, G4S, government, Green Party, Housing, hunger, Jeremy Corbyn, Jobcentre, Ken Loach, loose women, love island, Mandatory reconsideration, Money saving tips, New Charter Housing, Northern resisters, Payday loan, PIP, poverty, prepaid energy, prepaid energy metres, sanctions, Steven Crabb, suicide, targets, Tax credits, television, Teresa May, The Big Issue, The Labour Party, The Poor Side Of Life, Theresa May, trade union movement, Uncategorized, Universal credit, womens rights, Workfare, Workprogramme, young people

Laughed at for wearing a face mask.

Dear readers it’s Thursday once again. I hope that you are all as safe as you can be.

Good news! So far I haven’t rebounded again and I’m praying that I’ve seen the end of my Covid 19 battle. However I am aware that I can potentially catch it again.

My daughter came home from school last Friday with a virus. Thankfully it wasn’t Covid-19 but it quite easily could have been.

Viruses are free to travel around the school corridors and classrooms. There’s no way that schools can contain it.

Yesterday I spoke to one of my daughters teachers and she was very worried about working in this environment. It’s hard getting the balance right.

Children need to be educated, they need that contact with their friends at school but they shouldn’t be at risk of catching covid 19 and passing it on to family members and friends.

There’s no ideal solution, I wish that there was. So many people are at risk of catching covid 19 and I’m sure that I’m not the only person to be concerned about this.

Yesterday I had to go to my local town to do some errands. It exhausts me, but needs must so off I went.

I would do online shops but I can’t afford to do this.

I was happy to see more people wearing masks, but so many wernt. It’s so frustrating.

A friend of mine said that it’s good manners to wear a mask and it also shows consideration for others.

I have to agree, it is and more need to wear them.

As I was walking towards a shop that I had to go into a man looked at me, laughed and said that I was an idiot for wearing a mask because they do nothing.

I didn’t get the chance to reply because he walked off pretty quickly and I’m not exactly going to go chasing him down the street. I don’t have the energy.

This persons attitude isn’t unusual though. So many people are saying that covid 19 is a conspiracy, that masks don’t work etc.

I’m sure that you’ve all heard and seen comments like this.

I wear a mask because I’m bloody petrified of catching covid 19 again. It’s taken me months of struggling to get over it and my long covid battle isn’t over yet.

I also wear a mask because I don’t want anyone else to catch any viruses that might be walking around with me. I want to be responsible and help as much as I can.

I also wear a mask because Tameside is now in the double red zone and is heading for another lockdown.

Now going back and to the man that laughed at me for wearing a mask. I’m certain that he will change his mind about wearing one of he catches it.

It’s impossible to get a covid 19 test at the moment. The government has completely failed everyone. The testing process is a shambles and don’t get me started on their rubbish track and trace scheme.

We have all been failed by the government, I and others expected this though.

In other news, my local hospital Tameside Hospital has been in the news again.

Sadly its a hotbed for covid 19 and patients on non covid wards have died from it.

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2020/sep/16/tameside-hospital-covid-deaths-are-canary-in-the-mine

Maybe this was caused by people not adhering by the government guidance for wearing masks and keeping hands clean. Who knows but I’m sure that they’ve played a part in this.

My thoughts and prayers are with everyone that has died from covid 19 and their families. It’s heartbreaking especially when so much of this was completely preventable.

Yesterday I cut my hand on a tin in my rubbish bin. It was totally my own fault, I wasn’t paying attention.

It looks like it could do with a couple of stitches but there’s no way that I was going to go to the hospital after this weeks covid 19 news.

I cleaned it and have bandaged it and I’m sure that it’ll be ok.

This did get me thinking though.

How many people are choosing to stay at home rather than seeing a doctor when they need to?

It’s a scary thought.

How many people have absolutely no support and are trying their best to get through this nightmare which is covid 19?

The government has been extremely negligent in providing support for people. They don’t care and it appears that they’re quite proud of their attitude regarding covid 19.

This leaves us living in some kind of limbo waiting for covid 19 to catch us.

All I can suggest is to keep yourself as safe as you can do. You know yourself better than anyone else.

Don’t let anyone else judge you for the decisions that you have been forced to make to keep yourself safe.

I really hope that you all manage to keep safe and as well as you can be.

Please read, share and tweet my blog.

A massive thank you to everyone that supports my blog and my campaign.

I couldn’t do this without you. Your support means the world to me.

I receive no funding for anything that I do and it’s a struggle to say the least.

This week I helped four families.

For anyone that would like to donate there’s a donate button at the top and side of this blog. Thank you x.

Ashton Under lyne, baby, Boris Johnson, Brighthouse, confidence, Cookery, coronavirus, covid 19, Damien Green, Decision maker, DLA, DPAC, Elderly, ESA, eugenics, Family, feminism, Food, Food bank, Free, frugal, fuel poverty, G4S, government, Green Party, Housing, hunger, Jeremy Corbyn, Jobcentre, Ken Loach, loose women, love island, Mandatory reconsideration, Money saving tips, New Charter Housing, Northern resisters, Payday loan, PIP, poverty, prepaid energy, prepaid energy metres, sanctions, Steven Crabb, suicide, targets, Tax credits, television, Teresa May, The Big Issue, The Labour Party, The Poor Side Of Life, Theresa May, trade union movement, Uncategorized, Universal credit, womens rights, Workfare, Workprogramme, young people

Send your children to school. We don’t care if you and your children get Covid 19.

Dear readers it’s Thursday once again. Hopefully this latest lot of antibiotics are working.

Covid 19 has really taken its toll on me, I’ve never been this ill for so long. I really want to get better and back to normal I really do.

I’m sure that other recovering Covid 19 sufferers feel exactly like I do. We can’t plan our weeks or even days.

Our immune systems are damaged making us susceptible to any other viruses out there, and of course there’s the possibility that we might be able to catch Covid 19 again.

This week sees the return to school for our children. The government doesn’t care about our childrens health and the health of our children. They don’t even care about the teachers, classroom assistants and staff.

Nope our children MUST return to school.

https://www.thetelegraphandargus.co.uk/news/18691158.coronavirus-dixons-kings-academy-confirms-case-reopen/

It’s easy for people to say that we should just keep our children off school and home educate. I’d do this if I could. I’ve always wanted to home educate my daughter.

Sadly I don’t have the knowledge to do do. I also can’t afford it. But I admire all parents that do home educate their children, they do a wonderful job.

You see my daughter wants to return to school. She misses her friends but she’s also apprehensive about her return.

It’s a huge worry. To say that I’m terrified of catching covid 19 again or any other virus.

I’m still recovering from covid 19 and another bout of pleurisy. My daughter deserves a mum that’s well and active again, not the person that I am now.

I do my best but I know that she’s been worried and upset about me being ill.

I feel like a complete failure even though I shouldn’t. Every day appears to be a struggle for me both physically and financially.

But I will recover many won’t.

I’m extremely worried about the parents and relatives of school age children that have disabilities and long term illness.

The ramifications of them contracting covid 19 are extremely serious but once again the government doesn’t care.

Personally I believe that it’s too soon for children to return to school, the pandemic hasn’t disappeared it’s still here infecting people.

Like I’ve mentioned in previous blog posts I realise that children do need educating but the government has given zero thought to their return.

This morning I was talking to a parent who’s child has already been sent home from school because they’re ill with possible covid symptoms.

I suspect that this will be happening to thousands of children up and down the country.

Will schools be shut again if lots of children, teachers and classroom assistants become ill?

What will the governments response be?

Also what will the oppositions response be also. So far from what I’ve seen and read Starmer is in agreement with the government, so he’s not exactly going to support us is he.

This only leaves us, as parents and educators to take it upon ourselves to make the right decision for our children.

If you decide that you want to home educate your children to keep them and your family members safe then go for it.

You know what is best for your children and there are plenty of support groups out there to help you.

If you decide that sending your children in school because it’s the right decision for you and your children do it.

You have to do what’s best for you and your family. I do urge you to have some kind of preventative protocol at home to prevent you and your loved ones safe.

Remember that it can take months to get over catching covid 19.

I really hope that you all keep safe and well, I don’t want you to be ill like I have been or worse.

I have however been helping people from the confines of my home.

I’ve signposted people and managed to get food for four families with the help of a local organisation.

I can’t stop caring about people, I just can’t. Hopefully I’ll be fully recovered soon.

Lots of love and solidarity to you all. Your support really means the world to me. I wouldn’t have been able to get through this without you all.

It’s been a long struggle for so many of us but we will conquer our struggles.

Please read, share and tweet my blog. This makes a massive difference and it raises so much awareness.

A massive thank you to everyone that supports my blog. I couldn’t continue if it wasn’t for you.

Thank you so much!

For anyone who would like to donate there is a donate button at the top and side of this blog.

Thank you!

Ashton Under lyne, baby, Boris Johnson, confidence, Cookery, coronavirus, covid 19, Decision maker, DLA, DPAC, Elderly, ESA, eugenics, Family, feminism, Food, Food bank, Free, frugal, fuel poverty, G4S, government, Green Party, Housing, hunger, Jeremy Corbyn, Jobcentre, Ken Loach, loose women, love island, Mandatory reconsideration, Money saving tips, New Charter Housing, Northern resisters, Payday loan, PIP, poverty, prepaid energy, prepaid energy metres, sanctions, Steven Crabb, suicide, targets, Tax credits, television, Teresa May, The Big Issue, The Labour Party, The Poor Side Of Life, Theresa May, trade union movement, Uncategorized, Universal credit, womens rights, Workfare, Workprogramme, young people

DWP nudging claimants into looking for non existent jobs. We need to see an end to expensive school uniform policies.

Dear readers its Thursday once again and once again I’m unwell.
After my last admission to hospital I’ve now got another dose of pleurisy thanks to long covid.
I really want to be well again I hate feeling like this.

In other news fellow blogger  Frank Zola has published his blog stating that the DWP have been nudging claimants into finding none existent jobs.
Read it here

https://mrfrankzola.wordpress.com/2020/08/26/millionsofdigitalnudges/amp/?utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=email_subscription&__twitter_impression=true

If this link doesn’t work I’ll try and sort it out.


It’s absolutely ridiculous to be putting such pressure upon claimants whilst we are in the middle of a pandemic.

There’s hardly any jobs out there at the moment.
It’s also extremely worrying that many of these people will be recovering from covid 19.

Where are people going to find these none existent jobs? Zero hour contracts? Self employment?

Believe me when I say that the demand for employment is far higher than the actual jobs available.

You can also bet that the DWP will sanction people for not finding non existent work even though they claim to be using a ‘light touch’ admin at the moment.

I predict thousands more people becoming homeless in the near future.
The government isn’t offering and substantial help either. They just don’t care.

It’s extremely worrying. You’d think that the DWP would understand this but it appears that they don’t.


The demand upon food banks and outside help is going to become much higher and independent food banks and organisations are really going to struggle to survive.

If you can please support your local independent organisations. They usually receive no funding and they rely upon donations.


School uniforms once again.

I can guess that you’re fed up with me talking about school uniforms now but I have an update.
This morning I was interviewed by ITV about the cost of expensive school uniforms.

Having to pay for these expensive uniforms puts immense pressure upon parents and children.
All parents want the best for their children but they just can’t keep up with the ever increasing cost of school uniforms.

I’m in the fortunate position to be able to campaign against the need for these expensive school uniforms.
As I’ve said before they don’t make a child learn more, it’s just an added burden upon parents and children.

Whilst I think that it’s brilliant that charities are doing their best to support parents with school uniform costs, I want to challenge the need for them in the first place.

Charities and organisations are already under immense pressure to help people.
I prefer to end the need for expensive uniform in the first place which will in turn help the charities and organisations.

That said if you know of any charities that are helping parents with the cost of uniforms and uniform pieces please comment below. I want every parent that are struggling to get the help that they need.

I’ll have to sign off now because I feel awful but I will be back again next week.

Please keep safe and wear a mask etc when going out.

For everyone struggling, I hear you, I’m in the same position as you. We can get through this.


Thank you so much to everyone that reads, shares, tweets and supports my blog.
It’s been a tough year and I really appreciate your support.


For anyone wanting to donate there’s a donate button at the top and side of this blog.
Ashton Under lyne, baby, Boris Johnson, Brighthouse, confidence, Cookery, coronavirus, covid 19, Decision maker, DLA, DPAC, Elderly, ESA, eugenics, Family, feminism, Food, Food bank, Free, frugal, fuel poverty, G4S, government, Green Party, Housing, hunger, Jeremy Corbyn, Jobcentre, Ken Loach, loose women, love island, Mandatory reconsideration, Money saving tips, New Charter Housing, Northern resisters, Payday loan, PIP, poverty, prepaid energy, prepaid energy metres, sanctions, Steven Crabb, suicide, targets, Tax credits, television, Teresa May, The Big Issue, The Labour Party, The Poor Side Of Life, Theresa May, trade union movement, Uncategorized, Universal credit, womens rights, Workfare, Workprogramme, young people

School uniforms. A cost to high for many to pay.

Dear readers it’s Thursday yet again. I hope that you are as well as you can be and also hope that you are safe.

I’m rather annoyed with myself because it appears that the pleurisy is back. Yesterday I went for tests and hopefully I will know what antibiotic will be successful in getting rid of the damned thing.

I’m writing this in the midst of a migraine so I apologise for any spelling mistakes etc.

This week has been a particularly bad week for me. Like so many parents I’ve been worrying about my daughters return to school and buying her uniform.

Thousands of families are also worrying about this though. So many people have become unemployed as a result of the pandemic.

I also suspect that thousands of parents have been ill with Covid 19 like I have as well.

My frustration lies with the schools. They know that their pupils parents will be struggling yet they still demand that all pupils wear a school uniform.

I have no argument with the idea of school uniform though. My argument is with the extortionate cost of school uniform.

Back in the day when my older children were at secondary school I was able to purchase their uniform items quite cheaply at Asda or suchlike. I could also buy a school patch to put on the supermarket uniform.

I’m sure that many of you remember being able to do this.

Sadly it’s not the same now. Schools and uniform shops have cottoned on to the idea that there’s money to be made from this.

It was then that embroidered school logos on specific school uniform pieces bought at specific uniform shops would be accepted.

I know at my daughters school everything bar the school shirts have to have this embroidered logo on them.

I was surprised that the girls had to have a specifically embroidered skirt with a choice of two designs. The boys can wear any type of black school pants, bought from any shop and they don’t have to be embroidered either.

I see this as blatent discrimination, but the school is an academy so they do exactly what they want to do.

Anyway, what I’m trying to say is this. I believe that all schools should take into account the cost of uniform and the massive loss of employment and income due to the pandemic.

From my experience it was far easier when my daughter was in primary school. They did a uniform swap there. It’s far more difficult to do this in secondary school though.

Like I’ve already mentioned in my previous blog, I’m also worried about pupil, teacher and classroom assistant safety.

Why can’t schools return to the old way of doing things? It was less discriminatory and a whole lot cheaper.

They won’t though because there’s money to be had from this.

Personally I think that this cost is too much for many of us to bear. I can imagine that thousands of parents will be going without food, trying to patch up old uniform pieces up or taking loans out from dubious money lenders.

Thousands of parents will be trying to manage on meagre Universal Credit payments, some will be sanctioned and living on a reduced income, many will be homeless and living in temporary accommodation, many will be awaiting the decisions of their ESA and PIP medicals and appeals.

No parent or carer should have to go through this though, it’s morally wrong. An embroidered logo doesn’t enable a child to learn more or to achieve higher grades does it.

Surely our children deserve a better quality of life.

Like I said earlier I’m not against school uniforms but I am against the high cost of them.

We are living in unprecedented times, no one could have predicted the suffering caused by the pandemic.

I do know that organisations such as schools should be more understanding and they should offer cheaper uniform alternatives for pupils but they certainly aren’t rushing to do this are they.

It’s much harder to find second hand secondary school uniforms that fit than it is for primary school uniform.

Good luck to all parents and carers trying to get ready for their children ready for the return to school. Maybe one day it will become easier.

Please read, share, tweet and email my blog. It’s very important for the truth to get out there.

A huge thank you to everyone that reads my blog and everyone that supports it.

I run my blog and campaign on a very low budget. For anyone wanting to donate there’s a donate button at the top and side of this blog.

Ashton Under lyne, baby, Boris Johnson, Brighthouse, confidence, Cookery, coronavirus, covid 19, Decision maker, DLA, DPAC, Elderly, ESA, eugenics, Family, feminism, Food, Food bank, Free, frugal, fuel poverty, G4S, government, Green Party, Housing, hunger, Jeremy Corbyn, Jobcentre, Ken Loach, loose women, love island, Mandatory reconsideration, Money saving tips, New Charter Housing, Northern resisters, Payday loan, PIP, poverty, prepaid energy, prepaid energy metres, sanctions, Steven Crabb, suicide, targets, Tax credits, television, Teresa May, The Big Issue, The Labour Party, The Poor Side Of Life, Theresa May, trade union movement, Uncategorized, Universal credit, womens rights, Workfare, Workprogramme, young people

Covid 19 the unwanted gift that keeps giving.

Dear readers it’s been a tough old week for me and my Covid 19 battle.
Sadly I rebounded again and I’m now completing my fifth round of antibiotics.

Tough yes but however I do know and I appreciate that I have it much better than many have had it. I’m alive and I’m very grateful for that.

So yesterday I ended up back at the hospital with yet another reoccurrence of the pains that I’ve been getting.

I wanted answers, I wanted to know why I keep feeling like this. I hate the unknown which doesn’t fit well with Covid 19.

I had my bloods taken, x rays and scans done and I waited for the results.

Eventually I saw a lovely doctor who totally got it, he understood exactly what I’ve been going through.
He explained that my bloods are OK but from the scans he could see scarring on my lungs.

I then asked him about the pains and my sometimes galloping heart rate.


The answer was this. Because of the pneumonia and pleurisy my lungs have taken a battering and the pains are as a result of the remnants of the above and the scarring.

I asked him about my heart rate and he said that my heart appeared to be ok after being on a heart monitor. He said that lots of people who have had covid 19 get this and so far they don’t know why.
He’s referred me to a respiratory specialist and another specialist regarding my heart rate and for more tests.

Covid 19 damages your body in so many ways and because its an unknown virus it’s hard to get answers about anything.
Research is being done though and maybe we will get some answers soon.


I got some very good advice from the doctor and my friends. I need to stop trying to to too much, I will heal but it takes quite a long time to get back to somewhat normality.

This doesn’t mean that I’m going to give up campaigning though, infact it means the opposite.

We need to continue to campaign more than we have done before.
Our rights are being eroded away at a fast rate and so many things are being missed because of the Covid 19 pandemic.

Every day I publish the official Covid death rates, you know the deaths that the government wants us to forget about. They want the public to forget about Covid 19. It’s up to us to continue to publicise them.

Covid 19 is still having a massive impact both national and locally.

Whilst I was at the hospital yesterday I saw three very ill people being admitted to the hospital because of Covid 19. I know this because covid patients are being directed to another specialised department.
Their stories are the stories that the public don’t get to hear. The man that collapsed at home because of covid, the woman found in her bed seriously ill, the man that walked into the department and nearly collapsed when he got there.

Remember that their and our life’s don’t matter to the government and to some local authorities. Out of sight and out of mind.

Please keep in mind that telephone medical assessments are taking place once again.
If you have to have one of these examinations treat it as if you were at their medical centre.
Have a list of all of your medications and illnesses or disabilities. Try and have someone with you and ask them to take notes also.

I’m going to continue to plod on as I say, trying my best to give my daughter a good childhood despite having a very deminished income.
I can honestly say that I’ve never felt so bad about being a bad mother because I can’t give my daughter what her friends have.
Every day I feel this guilt like many parents do. Tough some say, that’s life. Except that it shouldn’t be like this.

The kindness and support of my friends has kept me going as have OUR NHS.
I’m determined to be back out there ASAP but I’m still helping people the best way they I can from home.

I want to thank each and every one of you for the support and friendship that you have given me. When I say that it means a lot to me I really mean it.

Stay safe everyone, wear a mask and wash your hands. Self isolate if your vulnerable and do whatever is right for you to continue.


Please read, share, tweet and email my blog. Thank you so much to everyone that already does this.

For anyone who would like to donate there’s a donate button at the top and side of this blog. Thank you x