Bibi LYNCH
‘Idon’t want to be a drain on the state. Social security should be there for those who really need it. But that’s me at the moment, isn’t it? I can’t identify with myself as a person who is on benefits. I hate to say to myself: ‘You’re 55; you’re on the dole.’ It’s quite shaming, frankly.”
Nell Powell (not her real name), 55, from south-east London, is one of many who have had to claim benefits as a result of the pandemic destroying the economy – a third of whom are over-50, according to data from the Office for National Statistics.
She left her job as a content creator just after last Christmas – “if I’d stayed there, I’d have gone mad. It was a very demanding job, and I wasn’t being supported” – assuming she could find a more suitable role elsewhere. “But because I left,” Powell says, “I couldn’t claim on my mortgage protection… I had a bit of money in the bank, thinking: ‘I’ll be fine. Something will come along.’ But then Covid hit and turned the world upside down.”
Powell didn’t claim Universal Credit until the end of July, when all her money ran out. It was the first time she’d claimed benefits since she was a student 30 years ago.
Powell, who had a successful career, has now found that “my industry has collapsed. I’ve been spending days on websites looking at jobs and thinking: ‘I don’t even know what that job is.’ It’s hit me that I probably won’t get another job. I’d never thought that before. Now I’m in the benefits system, am I here forever? It’s horrible to contemplate.”
There are now 91,000 more unemployed over-50s than a year ago, while the ONS earlier this month found that a record number of people had lost their job in the three months to September. .
Statistics from the Department for Work and Pensions show that the number of “starts” (people whose Universal Credit claims were accepted) increased to 1.2 million in both April and May – six times higher than the average in the 12 months prior. There are now 5.6 million people on Universal Credit – many of whom will be feeling as Powell does: “Embarrassed. I’ve told people and I don’t like it… You just feel such an utter failure. Because I’ve applied for jobs in supermarkets and I can’t even get those.”
That she is of “a certain age” and single have added further complications, she adds. “I feel peculiarly on my own. People invite you out for lunch and you say: “Sorry, I just can’t [afford it].”
And “claiming benefits changes everything”, she adds – including “your social status because many of us get our identities from our jobs. And when we haven’t got one? It just makes you feel ‘other’.”
Honey Langcaster-james, a psychologist and broadcaster, explains that “there can be a lot of negative perceptions and ill-informed judgments attached to the idea of claiming benefits”.
“This has led to stigma and prejudice… Most people take pride in having something to offer society and take satisfaction from having a job and supporting themselves. If you lose your job, or can’t work because of other circumstances, this can lead to low self-esteem, and that can lead to low mood and even depression.”
Powell has now resorted to trying to sell her flat, “which is looking increasingly unlikely”; her benefits amount to “about £460 a month and my mortgage interest is paid. If anyone thinks I’m having a great time, believe me, going from a salary of £50,000 a year to this…”
Langcaster-james says coping with the emotional effects is key. “Sometimes things happen that are outside of our power and control. We all go through times when we need some form of support.”
Do not hesitate to “take the help that is on offer while you need it, and then find ways to help and support others”, Langcaster-james adds. “The experiences we’ve had this year have been humbling for many of us and have taught us what really matters in life. When we come through this, perhaps we’ll have found new levels of compassion and understanding for people who are currently struggling.”