I am a single mother of two receiving UC benefits. The job centre is nagging me but I am not a benefit fraudster.
A single mother of two says she is harassed every day by the employment office but cannot find a job because she cannot arrange childcare for her children.
Darcie Wharton, 23, a mother of two young children, Lily and Jude, explained that she is not a ‘benefit claimant’ and would like to return to work, but she cannot find a place in a nursery or childminder.
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The frustrated woman took to social media to talk openly about her situation and criticised ‘benefit fraudsters’.
She said: “I would like to know how people get away with stealing benefits.
“And that’s something that really makes me angry, because I can count on several hands the number of people I know who are really getting the cold shoulder from the benefits system and are sitting on their asses all day doing nothing and are left alone by the employment office.
“And then there are people like me, for whom the plan all along was to go back to work when my two children were in full-time school, because there is a 16-month age gap. That means they will both be in full-time school in September 2025.
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“And I was the one who persisted to that point and I was literally punished, bullied and hounded by the job centre to find a job, where I would pick up my phone and show them multiple people, I would talk about over 10 nannies that I had contacted and ask ‘do you have any vacancies?’ and they would laugh at me and say ‘no’.”
Darcie explained that it would be impossible to drop children off and pick them up everywhere. She continued: “My daughter is going to school in September for a full day, my son is going to school for a half day in September and they want me to get a job where I take my daughter to school, then take my son to school for morning school or afternoon school and then pick them both up again.
“So it could be that I have pick-up and delivery assignments four times a day and then they want me to work 30 hours around that.
“And they expect me to have a family that can clean up and do my dirty work, that can pick people up and drop them off, and take care of them while I go to work.
“I’m sorry, but news Flash, not everyone has family who is willing to help, or who is able to help.”
Darcie explained that she has no parents to help her, adding: “Her dad’s parents still work full time, her grandparents are way too old and I have no other family.
“Why then am I being bullied and forced to go back to work and told that if I can’t find a job my money will be taken away?
“I wanted to go back to work for so long, but it was so impossible to find childcare. The exact words of the woman at the job centre were: ‘They’ve put money into encouraging people to go back to work, but they haven’t put the same amount into childcare.’
“Why is that my problem? It actually overwhelms me a lot, because I try everything I can and I do everything they ask of me, but I don’t get anywhere.
“They give me jobs and tell me to apply for jobs that aren’t possible. If I don’t have childcare and help, I don’t have it.
“I can’t leave my kids at three and four years old and go to work. I can’t just leave him at home. Someone has to look after him.”
I am literally being punished, bullied and harassed by the employment office to find a job
Darcie Wharton
The content creator claimed that even going into education wouldn’t work, as she shared: “I looked at the education side of things, because of course you can be in education, and an access to higher education course, which is what I wanted to do, because that’s only 12 hours at college or university, and the rest is assignments, studying at home, and then they want me to get a job for 18 hours. So I’m not better off if I study.
“I’m out of options. I’ve applied for night shift jobs but it didn’t work out. It’s a real mess.
“And before everyone literally comes at me with smart remarks, I didn’t ask to be a single parent.
“That was clearly not the intention and I did not expect that to happen. I was in it for life, the other party clearly was not.”
In another video, Darcie responded to a comment that read: “Wasn’t it your choice to have them? What makes you think you could have children and not support them?” and explained: “You’re clearly stupid. Let’s get back to basics, shall we?”
Everything you need to know about Universal Credit
Darcie then confirmed: “I’ve been working, part-time or full-time, since I was 15.
“At one point I was studying and also had two jobs.
“I had children. I had my first child, I stayed on maternity leave, I went back when she was eight months old and I worked from home.
“And then I had my second, who was born 16 months apart, and I stayed home with him during the pregnancy.
“And then my partner got another job, which made more money. That meant I could stay home with the kids and he could work full time and take care of his family. I stayed home and took care of them and did things with them and took them everywhere until they went to school.
I’ve wanted to go to work for so long, but it’s been so impossible to find childcare
Darcie Wharton
“I would encourage everyone, if they can, to stay home with their children and raise them and do all the things that they can do and do as much as they can and make as many memories as they can before they have to go back to school. I encourage everyone to do that.”
But after finding herself single, Darcie admitted: “He decided to leave for his reasons. Rightly so. Which meant I was a single parent with two children under the age of three who I had to support at the time.
“I don’t see you attacking him for the same reason. Yes, fair enough, he works full time, but it’s all on me, all on my shoulders. I have to arrange childcare for those kids.
“It’s not that I don’t want to support my children or that I think I can have children without supporting them.
“I went to raise them because I was with a man who was getting a decent salary and I didn’t have to work.
“I was lucky that I could stay home and take care of them as a mother.”
Finding a job and attending a job is not the problem. Finding childcare so I can attend a job is the problem.
Darcie Wharton
The redheaded mother confessed: “I want to go back to work. I would love nothing more than to go back to work and take care of my children myself, and that’s what I’m trying to do.
“But there is no childcare available in my area. Daycares and childminders, because the government has put money into harassing people to go back to work, but they have not put the same amount into childcare services, so there is limited childcare.
“So is that my fault or is that the government’s fault? Because I think it’s the government’s fault, not my fault.
Child benefit
Everything you need to know about child benefit:
“So before you post your shitty comments, what you said is irrelevant and makes no sense.
“Finding a job and attending a job is not the problem. Finding childcare so I can attend a job is the problem.”
She then asked haters, “What do you want me to do? Do you want me to go to work and leave my two young children under the age of four home alone all day to fend for themselves?
“Is that an option? Is that what you want me to do?”
SOCIAL MEDIA USERS RESPOND
The TikTok clip, which was posted under the username @darcieevexohas clearly caused quite a stir, as the video has already been viewed 50,700 times.
You hit the nail on the head
TikTok user
Social media users were stunned by Darcie’s claims and many responded positively to her comments.
One user wrote: “Well said, young lady.”
A second wrote: “Keep it up girl, you hit the nail on the head.”
While someone else said, “You don’t have to explain yourself!”
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At the same time, many other parents openly talked about their problems.
One mother said, “It’s so hard to find a job as a single parent between school hours.”
Another added: “Exactly the same situation here. I worked 6 days a week after having my kids, private rented house, had everything they wanted. He went to work one day and never came back. I lost everything.”
Meanwhile, a third commented: “So true, my daughter goes to daycare but the hours are only a few.
“Nobody is going to hire me for a few hours. At 21, I’m being harassed by UC, it’s a joke.”
