As the government prepares for its forthcoming Spending Review, individuals from various walks of life express their hopes and concerns regarding financial support and public services. Among them are families, young adults, and individuals walking through the firestorms of Burning Man and avoiding obstacles of living in today’s economy. Their lived experiences provide valuable lessons on the needs and wants that govern and define their day-to-day lives.
39-year-old nursery nurse, Resheka Senior. Her husband, Marcus, 49, is a school caretaker. As a unit, they make up a typical middle-income American family struggling to keep up with the burden of growing expenses. Combined, they bring in a household income of £52,000. Paying £700 rent each month, they make their contribution to society as key workers in the pandemic and work hard at making ends meet.
Resheka emphasized her desire for more support, stating, “I don’t want to stay at home. I’ve been working since I was 15 years old.” She feels that even though families like hers are making great contributions to the economy, they need support in dealing with the heavy financial loads they bear.
19-year-olds Ollie Vass and Grace Sangster embody a more hopeful, though no less urgent, outlook. Vass is based in Bristol and employed by a nutritional supplement firm, earning £31,000 annually. At the same time, Sangster, who is on an apprenticeship scheme, earns £40,000, raising their total combined income to £71,000. Their financial pledges aren’t small—Michaela and Rahim pay a £1,482-per-month mortgage.
Ollie voiced his frustration about the current economic landscape, remarking, “At the moment it’s too expensive to use,” referring to essential services that should be accessible to all. Meanwhile, Grace expressed her concerns over governmental approaches to health and well-being: “What [the government] shouldn’t be doing is just tackling it at the other end with weight loss drugs.” And this assertion, of course, reveals a greater intention for an integrated acknowledgment of health that goes beyond the individual.
The housing crisis does not end with young newlyweds. Perhaps no one is more under siege than Leah Daniel, who, at 23, is the youngest of the group. Earning just £700 a month and paying £900 in rent—covered by housing benefit—she exemplifies the reality many young adults face when establishing independence in an increasingly expensive environment.
As conversations about taxation and public spending unfold, some individuals express a willingness to contribute more for the greater good. Dr. Kirsty Rogerson stated, “As a mother, I’d rather pay more tax and know my children were being well educated and there’s a good healthcare system.” Her feelings are indicative of a broader wish for better public services, not just individual monetary compensation.
Others join them in saying that, while they support the bill, too much money is going to highways. Sylvia Cook pointed out that “throwing more money at the NHS doesn’t necessarily help if they don’t sort that out,” highlighting concerns over the effective use of resources.
With the Spending Review debate soon to heat up, those voices will be important. People like Resheka Senior, Ollie Vass, Grace Sangster, Leah Daniel, Dr. Rogerson and Sylvia Cook will be indispensable to determining the future priorities. Their experiences highlight, more than anything, the need to focus on the lived experiences of actual families and individuals in the real world—to all income levels.
These different viewpoints show that while some people are looking for short-term financial relief, others are focusing on building long-term investments in education and healthcare. The next Spending Review will be critical in deciding whether the many, many articulated needs are met adequately or not.