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Tuesday Jun 30, 2009

Could you live on £15 a week?

One challenge is the GX allowance. £15 a week is all we have to live on, outside of food and accommodation costs. It’s actually quite good for me, since it’s stopping me buying all those naughty treats which inundate vulnerable civilians who dare to wander the streets of Ealing. This is good for developing good budgetting and dietary habits before the total freedom of University hits me in October. People can supplement their allowances with their own money, but I’d rather learn to live on £15 a week; why not, if you know you can?

We’re staying in a YMCA at the moment, which is both a challenge and an opportunity. The residents come from different backgrounds, but most are fairly troubled: some are here because they’ve got leanring difficulties, so need some extra support; others are homeless; others are recently out of prison... I don’t know every reason, but none are here just through their own choice. Mealtimes etc can be a very lively experience, especially if you end up with more beans than the person behind you etc etc! But really, nearly all the residents are extremely welcoming, friendly and curtious towards us- lively young peopeleare often actually the masters of such courtesy, I find! Anyhow, it makes life more interesting, and complements our program’s aim to teach us about development and social problems in the UK.

We're looking forward to moving to King's Lynn, and finally settling into our host homes. But until then, there's no risk of boredom in London. We've seen the sights of central London, prepared for the King's Lynn phase, helped teach salsa to the elderly, cleared half a lawn full of nettles at a YMCA, rediscovered shopping, met another GX group for their farewell party, watched a film and attended a meeting about climate change... Life is full to the brim!

Posted by Sally ( 10:43 AM )
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