Two sisters, two different lives – the shared reality of Britain’s cost of living crisis

Nicola and her younger sister Karen live just three miles apart in Greater Manchester, but their financial situations look very different. Nicola relies on benefits after a workplace injury changed her life. Karen works part-time while raising a young family with her partner.

Yet despite their different circumstances, both women say the rising cost of living has left them under increasing pressure.

Their story offers a snapshot of modern Britain, where the line between ‘working families’ and those receiving benefits is often far less clear-cut than public debate sometimes suggests.

Everything changed after her accident

Nicola, 44, lives in a semi-detached rented home with her three children, Jack, 23, Beth-Anne, 20, and her 17-year-old son, who has additional needs and is not in full-time education due to his disability.

Before her accident at work, Nicola had been employed and financially independent. But after suffering an injury that required surgery, everything changed.

After struggling to access disability living allowance and eventually taking the issue to court, Nicola’s income dropped and she began falling behind on priority bills.

Her current income is made up primarily of universal credit, disability benefits and child benefit, totalling just over £2,300 a month. But much of that disappears immediately on essential costs.

Her rent alone is £667 per month, while gas and electricity cost nearly £270 combined. Food and housekeeping for the household comes to around £505 each month, while taxis, necessary because of mobility issues and caring responsibilities, cost £173.

There are also additional care-related costs linked to supporting her disabled son.

Nicola says the timing of benefit payments can make budgeting particularly difficult.

“I do struggle from month to month because all my payments come in more or less around the same time so I feel rich for a week or so,” she says. “But with the rise in energy and food I’ve found I’m struggling even more and having to lend off my mum sometimes till I get paid, which is a vicious circle.

“I’m going back to work soon because I just can’t afford to live on LCW [limited capability work} now I’m getting better.”

The emotional toll of debt

Nicola says financial pressures quickly became overwhelming.

Things reached crisis point when bailiffs arrived at her home over unpaid debts. She recalls one particularly distressing visit from a debt collection agent she says threw paperwork at her and demanded full payment by the next day, threatening to seize belongings from the house, including computers used by her disabled son for schoolwork.

Eventually, Nicola sought support through Money Wellness, where our advisers informed her about council tax support and housing benefit options she had not previously realised she could access.

Her eldest son Jack works full-time for a fence and gate company, often leaving early in the morning and returning late at night. Nicola says she does not ask him for money because he manages his own expenses.

Meanwhile, her daughter Beth-Anne has just started work as a housekeeper at the same place Nicola once worked. During Nicola’s recovery, Beth-Anne effectively became a young carer within the household, helping support the family day-to-day.

Working but still feeling the squeeze

Just a few miles away in Atherton, Nicola’s younger sister Karen faces a different set of challenges.

Karen, 37, lives with her partner and their daughters, aged five and seven, in a semi-detached home they bought in 2018. She works 22 hours a week at Tesco while her partner works full-time at a food distribution company.

Unlike Nicola, the household receives very little state support beyond child benefit.

Yet Karen says the family still feels financially stretched.

Their mortgage costs £520 per month, while council tax, utilities, insurance, petrol and food quickly push household expenses much higher.

The couple have already postponed their wedding plans for three years because they simply cannot justify the expense while trying to stay financially secure.

Karen says she's finding budgeting increasingly difficult with her daughters' extra-curricular activities, with swimming lessons costing £54 a month, while hobbies and after-school activities add another £50.

Even preparing for the new school year requires careful saving.

“We all muck in”

Despite their different situations, both sisters say family support has become essential.

Neither household uses food banks. Instead, they rely on one another and wider family support when times become difficult.

“We all muck in and help each other out,” says Nicola.

Their experiences reflect a growing reality across the UK, that financial insecurity is affecting households regardless of whether they are in work or receiving benefits.

While public conversations often draw a distinction between the two, the sisters confirm real life is far more complicated.

Benefits have provided Nicola with a safety net during a period of ill health and caring responsibility, but they have not protected her from debt, stress or fear of losing her home.

Meanwhile, Karen’s working household still finds itself carefully monitoring every outgoing as wages struggle to keep pace with rising living costs.

As the cost of living continues to challenge households across Britain, Nicola and Karen’s story highlights how financial pressure cuts across traditional divides, affecting families in different ways, but often leaving them with the same worries about security, dignity and the future.

For both women, the issue isn’t about luxury or excess. It’s about stability.

Image: sisters Nicola and Karen