Couple eats ONCE a day to feed their three children due to financial difficulties

A couple with three children discovered that they only ate one meal a day to feed their child.

Kate Worby, 29, and her boyfriend Charlie Skudder, both from Devon, describe how they went three days without a full meal to feed their three children.

Despite working long hours at three jobs, including a health worker, entertainer, maid, and full-time student, the couple struggles to make a living due to the recent cost of living crisis.

Struggling to make ends meet with the recent cost of living crisis, the couple shop very carefully and spend £60 a week on their family of five.

A typical dinner for the kids plus an extra serving to share with Kate and Charlie. If there isn’t enough food, they just eat toast or nothing.

‘I would often sell clothes I made to take care of my children,’ she said. I wouldn’t want it otherwise. We would do anything for our children and take care of them.

The couple is trying to put nutritious food on the table for their eight-year-old child, Alice, four-year-old Oliver, and one-year-old Edward, and they feed 80% of their grocers.

In recent months, the rise in the cost of living has affected many families across the country and parents have had to make do without taking care of their offspring.

Kate, who only eats one meal a day, says she prefers to starve to make sure her kids are okay, and often sells her stuff to keep things going.

Charlie and Kate (left to right) pictured together with Oliver, Alive and Edward, insist they sometimes feel “guilty” for having an extended family, but insist it’s up to politicians to help families in need.

Oliver (L), Alice (E) and little Edward (R) usually enjoy pasta, potato dinner or sausage and mashed potatoes for dinner and they are never missing.

He said, “That’s what you do as a parent, We make every cut or sacrifice to make sure they get everything they need.

“No parent or child should be without it, but if you’re struggling, talking to schools or childcare organizations can help. They can provide receipts and advice from the food bank.

“It’s tough and downright ridiculous, but it’s no shame to get into a nuisance. As parents, there’s a constant pressure to deal with little mouths that are constantly growing and need refilling”.

In total, the family spends £60 a week on food, including lots of fruit and vegetables.

Kate says she buys her brands from the supermarket and says she should never go grocery shopping hungry because she ends up buying more.

Their kids usually have school lunches or sandwiches for lunch during the week, and a potato-based meal like pasta or sausage and mashed potatoes for dinner.

They eat apples, bananas, or raisins as a snack to make sure they get five a day.

Their only meal a day for Kate and Charlie is the rest of the food they cook for the kids, or some cheese on toast they sometimes have to share.

As a result, the couple is mentally and physically tired and suffers from a weak immune system. Fighting common illnesses like a cold or cough has been tough, but I hope she gets better one day.

Despite working long hours at three jobs, including healthcare worker, animator, housekeeper, and full-time student, the couple still feel the sticking point.

The mother-of-three says politicians and the public often condemn people with larger families, especially during times of financial pressure, but insist that it’s not their fault.

“We are doing our best during a very difficult time, and it’s not our fault, parents. Parental guilt is bad enough without people judging us for having a family.

Along with the lack of food, the family is faced with difficult choices to “eat it hot or eat it”.

Kate said: “No matter how many children we have, no one could have predicted the dire situation we would be in.

“It hasn’t always been the case for us or for many families with cases like ours. We were not prepared for the explosion of price increases that came without warning just after the pandemic started to settle in.

‘I have a chronic mental illness which means stress has a big impact and making sure the kids are well enough, the food is often too much.

Kate says she’ll always create and stick to a menu plan, only buy what she needs for the meals she’s planning and won’t disclose it.

“If we can’t or don’t have enough kids for the rest of the week, we grab some bread from the freezer and eat two slices of toast. If we have enough cheese, we have it.

“It’s about making sure kids have everything they need to thrive.

“We have never seen this coming and we will do our best to overcome it, but our children will not suffer from it at all. Their safety and well-being, both physical and mental, is our priority.

It’s not a crime to fight right now as a parent or anyone else, it’s certainly not our fault, and we’re not alone.”

Kate has said earlier that she often finds herself having to invest money because she miscalculated her weekly budget, which she found “embarrassing”.

But the family provides more food by expanding their meals with frozen vegetables, and when the kids are hungry, they forgo dinner to keep them happy.

Kate found that the Aldi supermarket was the cheapest and most convenient for her.

A reported smart spender, Kate has also found ways to expand the weekly store.

She said: “I make a meal plan, buy it, and stick to it. I also make a list of foods we all love and throw them away for the month.

“I will make my own sauces and cook from scratch, investing in seasonings and permanent products.

‘I also freeze bread to avoid wastage and make a large shop instead of a small shop.

“It’s best to try shopping after dinner, because hungry shopping means collecting more than you need.

“I think Aldi is the cheapest supermarket and most supermarket-owned brands cut the food bill significantly.