A Tale of Two Women, Pizza and Possibilities

There was much to choose from in my reading last week. One of the articles I read really struck a chord and caused some discussion in our household. It was an article written by Jo Barker-Marsh. Jo is an unpaid full-time carer for her son. He lives with significant sensory processing issues. Jo is currently claiming universal credit. You may have also seen the article, but if not, you can read it here.

Jo describes an incident where she didn’t feel able to cook a pizza for her son. Having bought one small value pizza, she subsequently didn’t think she could justify the cost of turning the oven to cook it. Her son was distraught and very upset by her decision. Jo uses the pizza incident as an illustration of what it is like to live in poverty at a time of spiralling everyday living costs. Their story really made me stop and think about what that must be like for so many people.

I have never really been in that position. I come from a large family (I had 6 brothers and sisters) and we were never rich, but neither were we poor. I cannot remember being without anything. I was fortunate to be the eldest child so escaped the spectre of having to wear hand me downs. However, as the eldest child, my parents honed their parenting skills on me by trying out their approaches to the everyday challenges of growing up. I think I was possibly a challenging youngster too.

As I grew up and started my own family, I worked as a nurse, and way back then, the salary was just as poor as it is in comparison with today’s salary rates. So it’s true, money was often tight. I was prepared to do anything to earn extra cash. At the time I lived in rural Wales and if you weren’t fussy there were opportunities to earn extra money. I have chopped down Christmas trees, painted houses, put up fences, even driven tractors at haymaking time. Every extra penny helped and over time, I was gradually able to put my life on a more financially secure footing.

I think the despair evident in Jo Barker-Marsh’s story probably comes from not seeing a way out of her current situation, > Indeed there was a sense that things were only going to get worse for her and her son. Sadly, and unlike the rather fatuous Safeguarding Minister, Rachel Maclean, I don’t think there are any easy answers. Getting a better paid job or working extra hours is not an option for many people. I know I was fortunate back in the late 70s to be able to find additional work, but in today’s world, where for many folk a zero hours contract is the norm, there are simply not the same opportunities.

I do like what some supermarkets are doing to help. Recently in both Tesco’s and Morrisons I was offered the chance to purchase a bagged up food bank contribution alongside my own shopping, something I was very happy to do. Asda have re-introduced their 10% discount for key workers including those working in the NHS, in social care and the armed forces. Iceland is offering a 10% discount to folk over the age of 60. It is not a great deal, but like in my early days, every penny saved, can help.

Clearly, international issues continue to impact on the rising cost of living. It is day 88 of the war in Ukraine. This tragic conflict continues to not only be devasting for the Ukrainian people, but is contributing to world food supply chain shortages. The impact of adverse climate change adds to these problems in other parts of the world. Likewise, adverse climate changes are said to be responsible for the continuing high cost of household electricity and gas. A cold winter in Europe last year resulted in stored gas levels being much lower than normal, and hot weather in Asia resulted in more gas being used for air-conditioning – likewise, geopolitical issues have meant that the international demand for gas and oil continue to outstrip supply capacity, with a consequential rise in prices.

Now as regular readers of this blog know, I try and steer clear of making political points. As such, I offer no comment on whether the UK government should introduce a ‘windfall tax’ for the big energy suppliers who have benefited from these abnormally high energy prices. I’m not sure, other than saying every penny saved helps, what such a tax might do for Jo Barker-Marsh and the many other people in her situation. Something has to give, and my view is that our political representatives need to show a little more leadership and application in trying to reduce the impact of the cost of living crisis, particularly on those families who are already vulnerable.

Against this backcloth, I was pleased to read a different story about another formidable woman last week. The story struck me as being both ironic and important as we wait for the outcomes of the Messenger review into the leadership of health and social care services. This was the story of Samantha Jones. If you haven’t heard of her before now, I can tell you she is someone who you soon hear a great deal about. Samantha is a former nurse, who worked her way up in the NHS to become the Chief Executive of two very successful NHS Foundation Trusts. She was recruited into the Prime Minister’s team last February, as part of the ‘partygate’ reorganisation of Downing Street. However, it was only last week that the extent of her role and span of control was revealed. She has become the first Chief Operating Officer for the Downing Street operation – a formidable challenge. If anyone can bring some much needed change and order to what appears to be a shambolic and out of control culture, at the very heart of our government, she can!

I no longer practise as a nurse, but in my mind, I remain and always will be a nurse. Every day nurses make a difference to so many people and do so in so many ways. I’m sure Samantha will be the same, and perhaps, in so doing, begin to find ways in which we can all help folk like Jo Barker-Marsh to no longer worry every day about whether she can cook a pizza for her son or not. We can all strive a for a fairer world.