And sadly two of my three children make up this shocking statistic!
As a parent you start to look at why; was it me? Was it something I did? Could I have done more?
I have three children (20, 18 & 16). The youngest only being saved from increasing this number by attending, what the college considers to be a full time course (2 days a week) in plumbing. My eldest two both achieved GCSE pass grades, my daughter excelled in her GCSE and A levels, an A* student! What a proud parent I am… I am quite proud of myself too. My children have always given me the most pride in what I have achieved in my whole life!
However with the number of unemployed 16- to 24-year-olds increasing by 66,000 over the quarter and reaching a staggering 965,000, (the highest figure since records began in 1992), it makes me very afraid for my children in the future and the futures of the other 965,000…
So was it my fault? As a single parent I have worked tirelessly to bring up my children in a stable home and have the financial ability to give them a lifestyle to match that of their peers. I broke up with their father 14 years ago and ended up in a lot of debt, and without a job to fall back on I found us losing our family home and moving into council property. I wasn’t going to let that stop me though. I picked myself up (with my three babies in my arms) and soldiered on… And the rest they say is history. I now own my own debt advice and solutions business, I don’t carry any debt around with me and I have been fortunate enough to give my children a lifestyle many would aspire to have!
Sounds good? I missed out on a lot though, listening to my children talk about what their friend’s mums do for them and then how my children joke now about not remembering who it was that taught them to ride a bike or how mum never took them swimming, so they’re not strong swimmers; makes me cringe sometimes. Did I put too much emphasis on working hard and respecting money? It is a fine balance especially when you’re a single parent. You can’t turn the clock back though, you can only take the lessons you’ve learned with you.
So with all the years of effort from me, them, my family and my friends; missing out on many of the wonderful milestones they achieved I had at least thought they now have the educational foundations to start out in the world of work… Not so!
Yesterday I was listening to an interview on the radio, and it could so easily have been my son talking to the reporter… It went a little like this;
“I get up around lunchtime, have some breakfast, watch TV for a while then I log onto a few job websites – there is never anything but I do it, then I log out and just end up playing my football games on my computer.”
This hit me like a rock falling from the sky, it just doesn’t matter how much effort you put in, and how many sacrifices you make as a parent you just cannot stop the inevitable. I listen to my children telling me how many jobs they’ve applied for, I see how destroyed they are after months of knock backs. How do two very young and talented adults cope with the rejection?
I just don’t think the love of a mother is enough now
What is? Do you know?
Georgina Earle
Women in Debt
