Heather storyline on EastEnders

[whoops]

Just watched last night's EE now.

It annoyed me more than anything. Heather has never had problems asking people for money in the past - it's practically all her character ever does. Why, all of a sudden, is she too proud to admit that she needs help?

 

[stacie-leigh]

Don't watch this show (not in the UK) but here in Canada, about 40% of food bank clients are apparently under 10. I brought in tons of baby formula/baby food once and the women were shocked and thanking me so much. Apparently their most needed item. I drive by it daily and over half the lineup is women with young babies.

What a great idea x

It's strange..People who smoke and say they have no money always say ' you will always find money for cigerettes '
I just wonder how??[/QUOTE

That bugs me!! My mum is terrible for that...she struggles to buy food and stuff for my brother as she likes to go out on the piss all the time...and yet she ALWAYS has money for fags

Yes that is what I was saying. I was brought up on benefits and there were plenty of times when we had no gas. Yet my mum always, always had fags. And I'm sure she isn't the only one.

Hey Stacie how you doing hun xx

Hi Amy

I'm fine thank you, Keira is full of cold though. Poor baby.

Any sign of Madeleine? x

 

[PepsiChic]

im sorry, its a soap. George is fine, he doesnt really starve, hes a well fed happy baby whos only on set for a short amount of time with lots of breaks, cuddles and love.

ps. george isnt his real name either. but i dont know what it!

 

[someoldgirl]

im sorry, its a soap. George is fine, he doesnt really starve, hes a well fed happy baby whos only on set for a short amount of time with lots of breaks, cuddles and love.

ps. george isnt his real name either. but i dont know what it!

Haha INDEED!
He is in fact TWINS! I saw them in a magazine - they both look very well looked after in real life!

 

[bloodbinds]

im sorry, its a soap. George is fine, he doesnt really starve, hes a well fed happy baby whos only on set for a short amount of time with lots of breaks, cuddles and love.

ps. george isnt his real name either. but i dont know what it!

Think we're all well aware of this B ut it's fun to dicuss these kind of things, and somewhere in the country and world it is real!

 

[PepsiChic]

im sorry, its a soap. George is fine, he doesnt really starve, hes a well fed happy baby whos only on set for a short amount of time with lots of breaks, cuddles and love.

ps. george isnt his real name either. but i dont know what it!

Think we're all well aware of this B ut it's fun to dicuss these kind of things, and somewhere in the country and world it is real!

im not being nasty! i just think people get so upset about some silly storyline on a soap that is hardly realistic and makes everyone cry!

i stopped watching soaps such a long time ago!

i dont even have to watch them now i can just log on to bnb and read the whole thing!

 

[Foogirl]

Of course, it is a soap but I am certain there are people who are in Heather's situation, especially living in London. It is a very expensive place to live and for a lower wage earner, salary just doesn't come close to paying for the basics. Let's also not forget that, at the moment, people are being more and more squeezed as inflation means prices are rising fast. I'm not on the breadline by any stretch of the imagination but I've noticed my weekly shop is far more expensive than it was even 12 months ago. As someone has said, it only takes on thing to slip for the whole balance to come falling down.

I think what we have to remember is Heather isn't the sharpest knife in the drawer. I suspect it is less about pride and more about being ill educated and not wanting to cause a fuss. She would always have relied on Shirley to help her out but in her head, Shirley has her own problems at the moment and so wouldn't want to impose. She doesn't really have any other close friends to turn to. She did ask Darren for help and IMO he is the one who has dropped the ball. More than once his girlfriend has commented on how unclean George is, and it was clear to see that Heather was struggling too. He's too wrapped up in his own life ("sorry, I've just spent my payrise on the champagne") to pay any heed to her needs.

Hopefully now they will use the storyline to bring in Social Services and help her get back on her feet.

Someone said Heather left George before the CM poisoning happened and so it wasn't confusion. That's totally wrong. For about three or four weeks now, we've seen Heather with flu like symptoms which are classic for CM poisoning. It is something that can happen over a long period of time and go unchecked because people think they just have a cold - more so because it is more likely to be in the winter when these bugs are more prevalent.

For those who are worried about CM, you can buy a detector with an alarm for around £20 from any hardware store. These are really simple to install. If you can't stretch to that, you can buy "First Alert" indicator cards for a few pounds which you place next to any gas appliance and they change colour if CM is present.

I'm actually quite pleased EE have run this story as it highlights the dangers of CM poisoning, as well as showing how some people might be struggling at the moment and that maybe we should be more aware that some need lots of help.

I cannot believe that many people aren't at all aware of the benefit system. Alright I'm sure that people who live on the streets probably aren't aware of the help they are entitled to, but Heather isn't one of those people.

I'm a well educated, intelligent person and the benefits system is a mystery to me. Trying to look at tax credits when I was on maternity leave was a nightmare. I gave up looking as I couldn't work out whether I was entitled or not. I'm sure if I were struggling I'd find where to ask for help, but to assume folk always know what they are entitled to is mistaken

 

[beatnick]

i havent read through the thread completely but i must say that the episode did bother me quite alot. i cried when she said about it being cold to george (its upsetting me now typing it) because our basic instinct is to keep our babies warm.

its so sad and i am sooo lucky that my family would never see us like that.

when i was growing up my mum used to feed us jacket potatos and on the quiet eat the skins in the kitchen where she had no money to buy much food. but WE were never hungry or cold.

ive changed so much about things on tv like this since having zakk.

 

[Serene123]

The benefit system is impossible to work out. It really is. I tried to work out if someone was entitled to anything and it was mission impossible. Thank God for CA.

It upset me when she left George, I couldn't believe it. I don't like to think that people do that

 

[leelee]

In this day & age it doesn't happen. Unless the parent is abusing their benefits and not spending it on what they should!! But being on JSA or IS you have the option to get crisis loans if you really have nothing, and if you have a minor that doesn't have food/milk/nappies or electricity/gas to they can't refuse you money, the just can't. The jobcentre then take out a £1 of our benefit off you a week to pay it back.

It can and does happen if people are not aware of what they are entitled to and that they can get crisis loans.

Hmmm those people would seriously have to have NO clue whatsoever, which would be worrying when they have a baby to look after OR too lazy to find out what's out there to help them.

The staff at jobcentre's, citizen advice bureau's etc are so very helpful and give info out at the drop of a hat (I know - I've been in the situation where I've had to find stuff out from them). I'm not saying people on benefits get bucket loads of money, but there's a LOT of help out there for them. Like I say, a crisis loan is really easy to obtain - even if it's just for £10 for a tin of formula, or £3 for some own brand nappies. I see so many people fiddling the crisis loan help system, as there's no way the advisor on the phone can tell what you do and don't have.

I hardly think that someone that is ill-educated about the welfare system isn't fit to look after a baby. And just because someone isn't aware about where to go does not make them lazy.

 

[sb786]

DH was at the shop the other day and a man came in looked sheepishly around and whispered to DH if he wouldn't mind buying a small tin of formula as his baby was hungry and the mother's milk had dried up due to not getting enough food in her belly. DH bought the man 3 big tins and some nappies. He almost cried with gratitude

Thats so sad Well done to your oh for helping him out though.

What a Wonderful thing your husband did.....

 

[Tasha]

You know when I went and asked, at where you use to need to claim before it was the job centre who dealt with Income Support, what I was allowed to claim and they said they couldnt tell me That is why some people dont know.

Heather works two jobs, but they are not full time, just bits and pieces here and there so 16 hours a week (for instance), so £90 odd a week if you didnt know what your allowed to claim is not much.

Have to say I was brought up on a council estate, neither me or my friends ever went without for our parents.

 

[smokey]

im sorry, its a soap. George is fine, he doesnt really starve, hes a well fed happy baby whos only on set for a short amount of time with lots of breaks, cuddles and love.

ps. george isnt his real name either. but i dont know what it!

Think we're all well aware of this B ut it's fun to dicuss these kind of things, and somewhere in the country and world it is real!

im not being nasty! i just think people get so upset about some silly storyline on a soap that is hardly realistic and makes everyone cry!

i stopped watching soaps such a long time ago!

i dont even have to watch them now i can just log on to bnb and read the whole thing!

Of course we are all aware its a soap but its still good to be able to discuss the points behind the storylines.
Most of this thread has been about how a mother could put pride before her child (a good debate in itself) rather then about the actualy soap and actors themselves

 

[smokey]

Of course, it is a soap but I am certain there are people who are in Heather's situation, especially living in London. It is a very expensive place to live and for a lower wage earner, salary just doesn't come close to paying for the basics. Let's also not forget that, at the moment, people are being more and more squeezed as inflation means prices are rising fast. I'm not on the breadline by any stretch of the imagination but I've noticed my weekly shop is far more expensive than it was even 12 months ago. As someone has said, it only takes on thing to slip for the whole balance to come falling down.

I think what we have to remember is Heather isn't the sharpest knife in the drawer. I suspect it is less about pride and more about being ill educated and not wanting to cause a fuss. She would always have relied on Shirley to help her out but in her head, Shirley has her own problems at the moment and so wouldn't want to impose. She doesn't really have any other close friends to turn to. She did ask Darren for help and IMO he is the one who has dropped the ball. More than once his girlfriend has commented on how unclean George is, and it was clear to see that Heather was struggling too. He's too wrapped up in his own life ("sorry, I've just spent my payrise on the champagne") to pay any heed to her needs.

Hopefully now they will use the storyline to bring in Social Services and help her get back on her feet.

Someone said Heather left George before the CM poisoning happened and so it wasn't confusion. That's totally wrong. For about three or four weeks now, we've seen Heather with flu like symptoms which are classic for CM poisoning. It is something that can happen over a long period of time and go unchecked because people think they just have a cold - more so because it is more likely to be in the winter when these bugs are more prevalent.

For those who are worried about CM, you can buy a detector with an alarm for around £20 from any hardware store. These are really simple to install. If you can't stretch to that, you can buy "First Alert" indicator cards for a few pounds which you place next to any gas appliance and they change colour if CM is present.

I'm actually quite pleased EE have run this story as it highlights the dangers of CM poisoning, as well as showing how some people might be struggling at the moment and that maybe we should be more aware that some need lots of help.

I cannot believe that many people aren't at all aware of the benefit system. Alright I'm sure that people who live on the streets probably aren't aware of the help they are entitled to, but Heather isn't one of those people.

I'm a well educated, intelligent person and the benefits system is a mystery to me. Trying to look at tax credits when I was on maternity leave was a nightmare. I gave up looking as I couldn't work out whether I was entitled or not. I'm sure if I were struggling I'd find where to ask for help, but to assume folk always know what they are entitled to is mistaken

I wouldnt have a clue if im intitled to anything, I never claimed most of the stuff I could have during pregnancy and the starter grant thing because A: I didnt have a clue how to or that most of them existed and B: because I didnt need to, I dont agree with taking money that I dont need and someone else does

 

[ttc_lolly]

In this day & age it doesn't happen. Unless the parent is abusing their benefits and not spending it on what they should!! But being on JSA or IS you have the option to get crisis loans if you really have nothing, and if you have a minor that doesn't have food/milk/nappies or electricity/gas to they can't refuse you money, the just can't. The jobcentre then take out a £1 of our benefit off you a week to pay it back.

It can and does happen if people are not aware of what they are entitled to and that they can get crisis loans.

Hmmm those people would seriously have to have NO clue whatsoever, which would be worrying when they have a baby to look after OR too lazy to find out what's out there to help them.

The staff at jobcentre's, citizen advice bureau's etc are so very helpful and give info out at the drop of a hat (I know - I've been in the situation where I've had to find stuff out from them). I'm not saying people on benefits get bucket loads of money, but there's a LOT of help out there for them. Like I say, a crisis loan is really easy to obtain - even if it's just for £10 for a tin of formula, or £3 for some own brand nappies. I see so many people fiddling the crisis loan help system, as there's no way the advisor on the phone can tell what you do and don't have.

I hardly think that someone that is ill-educated about the welfare system isn't fit to look after a baby. And just because someone isn't aware about where to go does not make them lazy.

I'm referring to those already on benefits (see my OP - people on JSA and Income Support), they have to go to or call the jobcentre to get signed on & receive their money anyway it's not that hard then to ask the same people about what help is out there for them! So I still stand by what I said.

 

[Tasha]

In this day & age it doesn't happen. Unless the parent is abusing their benefits and not spending it on what they should!! But being on JSA or IS you have the option to get crisis loans if you really have nothing, and if you have a minor that doesn't have food/milk/nappies or electricity/gas to they can't refuse you money, the just can't. The jobcentre then take out a £1 of our benefit off you a week to pay it back.

It can and does happen if people are not aware of what they are entitled to and that they can get crisis loans.

Hmmm those people would seriously have to have NO clue whatsoever, which would be worrying when they have a baby to look after OR too lazy to find out what's out there to help them.

The staff at jobcentre's, citizen advice bureau's etc are so very helpful and give info out at the drop of a hat (I know - I've been in the situation where I've had to find stuff out from them). I'm not saying people on benefits get bucket loads of money, but there's a LOT of help out there for them. Like I say, a crisis loan is really easy to obtain - even if it's just for £10 for a tin of formula, or £3 for some own brand nappies. I see so many people fiddling the crisis loan help system, as there's no way the advisor on the phone can tell what you do and don't have.

I hardly think that someone that is ill-educated about the welfare system isn't fit to look after a baby. And just because someone isn't aware about where to go does not make them lazy.

I'm referring to those already on benefits (see my OP - people on JSA and Income Support), they have to go to or call the jobcentre to get signed on & receive their money anyway it's not that hard then to ask the same people about what help is out there for them! So I still stand by what I said.

But this is supposedly happening to someone who is working so would not be on either of those, and therefore could not get a crisis loan.

They also take mpre than £1 a week back, so if your already struggling, less money wont help.

 

[ttc_lolly]

In this day & age it doesn't happen. Unless the parent is abusing their benefits and not spending it on what they should!! But being on JSA or IS you have the option to get crisis loans if you really have nothing, and if you have a minor that doesn't have food/milk/nappies or electricity/gas to they can't refuse you money, the just can't. The jobcentre then take out a £1 of our benefit off you a week to pay it back.

It can and does happen if people are not aware of what they are entitled to and that they can get crisis loans.

Hmmm those people would seriously have to have NO clue whatsoever, which would be worrying when they have a baby to look after OR too lazy to find out what's out there to help them.

The staff at jobcentre's, citizen advice bureau's etc are so very helpful and give info out at the drop of a hat (I know - I've been in the situation where I've had to find stuff out from them). I'm not saying people on benefits get bucket loads of money, but there's a LOT of help out there for them. Like I say, a crisis loan is really easy to obtain - even if it's just for £10 for a tin of formula, or £3 for some own brand nappies. I see so many people fiddling the crisis loan help system, as there's no way the advisor on the phone can tell what you do and don't have.

I hardly think that someone that is ill-educated about the welfare system isn't fit to look after a baby. And just because someone isn't aware about where to go does not make them lazy.

I'm referring to those already on benefits (see my OP - people on JSA and Income Support), they have to go to or call the jobcentre to get signed on & receive their money anyway it's not that hard then to ask the same people about what help is out there for them! So I still stand by what I said.

But this is supposedly happening to someone who is working so would not be on either of those, and therefore could not get a crisis loan.

They also take mpre than £1 a week back, so if your already struggling, less money wont help.

You never know - Heather could be on income support AND working off the books, cash in hand

I was just using £1 as an example - it depends how much you borrow of course. But it makes no difference still. If you took out loads of crisis loans and all your benefits were being eaten up with repayments, you can STILL keep applying for crisis loans to pay for basic needs.

 

[leelee]

im sorry, its a soap. George is fine, he doesnt really starve, hes a well fed happy baby whos only on set for a short amount of time with lots of breaks, cuddles and love.

ps. george isnt his real name either. but i dont know what it!

Think we're all well aware of this B ut it's fun to dicuss these kind of things, and somewhere in the country and world it is real!

im not being nasty! i just think people get so upset about some silly storyline on a soap that is hardly realistic and makes everyone cry!

i stopped watching soaps such a long time ago!

i dont even have to watch them now i can just log on to bnb and read the whole thing!

Of course we are all aware its a soap but its still good to be able to discuss the points behind the storylines.
Most of this thread has been about how a mother could put pride before her child (a good debate in itself) rather then about the actualy soap and actors themselves

 

[Tasha]

You never know - Heather could be on income support AND working off the books, cash in hand

I was just using £1 as an example - it depends how much you borrow of course. But it makes no difference still. If you took out loads of crisis loans and all your benefits were being eaten up with repayments, you can STILL keep applying for crisis loans to pay for basic needs.

Yep maybe.

Crisis loans it says it depends how much you have previously borrowed from the social fund, so I guess they will stop giving at a certain point.

 

[ttc_lolly]

You never know - Heather could be on income support AND working off the books, cash in hand

I was just using £1 as an example - it depends how much you borrow of course. But it makes no difference still. If you took out loads of crisis loans and all your benefits were being eaten up with repayments, you can STILL keep applying for crisis loans to pay for basic needs.

Yep maybe.

Crisis loans it says it depends how much you have previously borrowed from the social fund, so I guess they will stop giving at a certain point.

I suppose, but especially if there are kids/babies involved they can't just let you go without. I don't know anybody that they ever have. We've also got so many charities, support help (eden housing, shelter, salvation army, etc) that are also there to help people with places to live, help with utilities and food