Summary
It probably sounded really good round the polished Cabinet table. Get Tracy Towerblock off benefits and into a job, stacking shelves at the local Lidl, her self-esteem will soar with the inner glow that comes from earning the minimum wage, and she'll no longer be a burden to the state. Meanwhile, her kids will be packed off to the local school's breakfast club, where they will be given a healthy meal of porridge (rather than the choco clusters Tracy buys because she is poor and, ministers think, stupid). The kids will miraculously be able to come off the Ritalin they've been having for their ADHD, pass all their GCSEs and become brain surgeons. Only one problem with Work Secretary Peter Hain's plan for force single parents out to work - it's unworkable.
If there is one section of the population who are already massively over-committed, it is single parents. Raising a child in a two-parent household is tough, but try doing it with only one pair of hands, Mr Hain. All the cooking, cleaning, washing, not to mention dressing, bathing, story reading and homework supervising, falls on one pair of shoulders. Adding a job on top of that is simply not practical for many, especially if the children are small.See the full content of this document
Extract
More Woe for Single Mums ... And Kids
I am a single parent of three children, aged seven and under. Sometimes, about six o'clock, usually, I feel like rolling myself into a ball like a hedgehog and staying like that. I feel overwhelmed by the practical, financial and emotional demands of the job.
People in more conv...See the full content of this document
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