why is it that teenage parents?

Question

get such a hard time for the fact they live in council accomodation?yet no one seems to notice that the mass of council property is actually bungalows in which oaps reside in.everyone needs a roof over there head regardless of the situation that leads them there.even if i had not been a teenage mum or a single parent now i doubt i couldve afforded to live anywhere else anyway.its affordable housing.not a handout.

i very much doubt that any young girl gets pregnant just for the housing as the council will not house you until you have babe in arms.im not thinking the idea of being pregnant+homeless appeals to many

Answer 1

Hi, I didnt have my first child until I was 28 and had been married for 10 years. however im sick of people picking on tennage/single mums. Its hard being a parent and quite often they have been let down by family or men and end up in this situation which I dont think anyone would choose. Why shouldnt they have some help? Theres plently of thiefs, nonces and perverts out there you hear about every day getting help and support. All these women have done is get pregnant whether on purpose or not that their choice. Theres plenty of real scum out there to direct your anger at so get real people!

Answer 2

Council property is there to help those that are more in need and on low incomes, or it should be...
Personally, I think the reason teenage mums etc, get such bad press is because the media judges them on what, in truth, does appear (statistically speaking) to be the majority of teenage parents, getting pregnant for the sole purpose of getting cheap housing and claiming benefits..
I was a teenage mum, and I did apply for council accomodation, in which I lived for 6 years before going into private rented...
Now, again a single working mum, I find private rented accomodation beyond my financial budgets and would happily go into another council property...
I am past the stigma attached to council tenants, I work, who cares what other people think.. Don't let public opinion damage your self opinion. You probably woldn't be in this situation by choice....

Answer 3

I don't think it is the housing that is the problem. I think it is the whole "teenage single mother" thing - the person who has children in an unsettled environment. A few years ago there were few teenage mothers to be a burden on the state - people gave up their babies so that other, more financially secure, parents could adopt them. This meant that the kids had a better life financially.
Now, kids are born to young mothers who are very young. Mothers who themselves are children. This means that other people who don't have children, can't have affordable housing. I know my son could never afford private rent.
I know other people who would love council houses but there are none available. We dont' even have a waiting list where I live. This is the real pity - there are so many people who need cheaper accommodation, but can't afford it. What is the alternative - to build more? Or how about having teenage parents having to live at home with their babies until they can afford to pay the same rent as the rest of us?
Sorry - babies are lovely. I'd love more but I can't afford them.

Answer 4

I think that the perception is that 'teenage' mums use their pregnancies to get themselves onto the housing list, which otherwise they would find very hard to do, but with a small child or baby the council has a duty of care, with higher priorities to the elderly, disabled and young children. And so I think many people see teenage mums as a. irresponsible for having children without being able to support them, and b. as sometimes deliberately having kids so they can get a flat/house etc.

Frankly having been a single mum for a while (in my late twenties) I'm not sure that just being 'given' a council flat would have been ANY incentive to deliberately choose to have a baby on my own. So it's not a view that I personally subscribe to, but you ever read the Daily Mail, I think you'd find that was their key rationale for raging against single mums, and teenage mums in particular.

Answer 5

The operative word here is `teenage`.
Anyone with half a brain would realise the best way to mess up in this world is to become a teenage parent, and attempt to have everyone else pay for it. That`s why they get a hard time. look around you, not everyone has got half a brain, others have heard of contraception, know what it is and use it, they don`t go round moaning about people living in council property, they don`t have children when they themselves are children, they stay in school, and learn, they leave school and go to work, grow up, save, when they can afford it, get married perhaps, then, and only then if they have enogh income, have children, if they cant, they dont.
And the upshot of your question is not why teenage parents have a hard time, it is why have the oap`s got a bungalow and you haven`t.

Answer 6

It's not all teenage mums that are given a hard time, and it's not because they live in council housing. The ones that are given a hard time are the ones who get hand outs, don't bother to even look for work or try to help themselves and expect to get everything on a plate.

Like any group in society teenage mums are susceptible to stereotyping and the actions and behaviour of a few can lead to them all being tarred with the same brush.

Answer 7

I have no problems with teenage parents getting housing. I feel it shows a sense of responsibility, by providing a home for a child rather than expecting others to bring up their child, hats off to them it is not an easy thing bringing up a child no matter what age you are! Also do people forget about the immigrants that came to this country and were put into flats which were furnished for them? Nothing against them, but I get annoyed when this country easily forgets and condemns it's own.
Good luck to you!

Answer 8

its not the teenagers getting the hard time. its the mentality. a lot of people are annoyed with the mentality of some teens thinking its a good idea to have a child to get a house.

it is a waste of taxpayers money. the parents should be teaching values to say woah... i am not going to ruin my opportunities before i leave school. but they arent.

i doff my cap to any teen that steps up if they make a mistake and takes responsibility. well done to them. but i just believe that if you didnt want a child... then there are more than enough ways to prevent it. and prevention is better than cure.

i understand that you shouldnt throw people out on the street for getting pregnant. thats fine. but there is so much more that could be doent o prevent young girls taking on so much.

Answer 9

Well said! I was a teenage mother and i lived in a council house for two years and i can honestly say i did not deliberately get pregnant for a flat tho i have to admit that i do know some girls who have and they annoy me because they make it look that we all do it for that reason hench giving all teenage mums a bad name. Me and my partner worked hard after our child was born and we now have moved and bought our own home and im very grateful for the flat and benefits we were giving at the start to help us look after our child and start to build a future for ourselves now we are giving back to society

Answer 10

i got preganant at 16 my daughter is now 16 and i have nothing to offer her if she came home pregnant at this age.. i hate the fact i've become trapped in the social security sector.. i wish i had gone straight to college after having my daughter and straight into employment who knows where we could have been now.. i'm in housing association accomadation and to be perfectly honest i would rather be living in a tent in the middle of a field don't get me wrong my house is beautuiful but the area it is in has had such an impact on my life because of the drug users drinkers vandals and teenagers taking over and ruling the streets at only 33 i feel like a pensioner affraid to go out after dark..