Single Mums Are Fighting To Survive

A recent survey finds single mums are worrying about debts, buying food, and paying the bills.

Single mums were recently asked in a survey by BrightHouse* what their top three financial priorities are. (The survey had just a small sample of 500, but I still think they will be strongly indicative.)

Of single mums with access to credit, one of their top three financial priorities is to get out of debt. More than 70% said this, which also means that the majority of single mothers who are able to borrow have in fact done so, or they have gone into arrears on bills.

Making sure there is food on the table is disconcertingly high on their minds too (70%). Paying the rent or mortgage on time (51%) was also selected in the top-three-priorities list by the majority of respondents.

These mums have understandably relegated saving for their children's futures (29%) and saving money for a holiday (37%) in order to attend to their immediate needs: stability, surviving and getting their debts under control.

The vast majority of respondents to the survey have access to credit, which makes those results I've just mentioned reasonably reliable.

Conversely, the survey's sample of single mothers who don't have access to credit is very small. So the figures regarding them are less reliable and need to be taken with a high-blood-pressure-inducing dosage of salt. So I'll just touch on the basics.

It seems from the results that these mothers mostly want to put money aside so their children can go on a school trip (83%), save money for their children's futures (77%) and save for a holiday (64%). Less than a third (28%) are focusing on controlling their debts.

This second group of mothers could theoretically be months in arrears in all their bills and simply not give a damn about their debts, but I would take these results to mean that they've been forced, by their limited access to credit, to either live within their means or to get a soft loan from family.

I'm hoping (quite possibly naively) that they are focusing on holidays and savings because they can afford to do so, but that's a topic that should be researched for another article using other data.

Tips for struggling single mums

Rather than analyse those less reliable data too much, I shall return to the mothers with access to credit. Preying strongly on their minds is paying the bills and surviving. A close family-member was pretty much in the same situation, so I have a fair idea of how dreadful that can be, as well as the mistakes that are often made.

The single biggest mistake you can make is not face your problem or try to tackle it. You might well have your debts and basic survival needs on your mind all the time, but that doesn't mean you're finding solutions. Indeed, you may be trying to hide from the problem.

I'm not one of those who believes we should all talk about money all the time, but if you have a money problem you should certainly seek guidance from friends, family, the Internet and advisors.

Before you do that, however, I have found some really quite excellent tips from Net Doctor that are about your psychological and physical wellbeing. I think that you could easily apply these 20+ tips to your attitude towards debt.

Here are the articles:

• From moaner-to-go-getter. Rather than grumbling to yourself about your debts, read this article, follow the advice, and you'll now take a much more uplifting and energetic approach to your money woes. (Go easy on step 7. This is not an excuse to spend more money!)

• Get motivated for better health. Your attitude towards dealing with debt will be a lot healthier if you modify this plan that is meant to improve your fitness.

Once you're ready mentally, you can focus properly on cutting your bills and getting out of debt.

*BrightHouse is a chain that sells electronic and domestic appliances and furniture, primarily on a `rent-to-own' basis. I don't know anything about this company, so I can't endorse it. Please write about your experiences with it in a comment below.

> Visit our Dealing with Debt board and get anonymous tips and guidance from your peers.