r/BritishSuccess

I don't have kids myself, but you'd have to be living under a rock not to see how much the six-week summer holiday absolutely batters the wallets of parents across the country. Between the price of food, keeping them entertained, and just getting them out of the house, my mates with kids spend half the summer completely stressed out.

So I was actually really glad to see the news this morning about some practical financial help kicking in for the holidays. There is a new "summer savings" rollout focusing entirely on the basics:

• VAT slashed on days out (UK-Wide): They are dropping the tax from 20% down to 5% on things like soft play, kids' cinema tickets, zoos, and children's meals in restaurants everywhere from Croydon to the Highlands. Taking the kids to the local soft play on a rainy Tuesday won’t feel like it requires a second mortgage.
• Free buses for kids (England): For the whole of August, kids aged 5 to 15 get free bus travel across England. (And a nod to anyone up in Scotland—your kids already get this year-round anyway!). This means teenagers can actually get themselves into town or over to the parks without needing to tap their parents for a fiver every single time they step out the door.

Regardless of where you normally stand on the news, it’s genuinely a relief to see some practical changes that actually understand the daily graft working families face across Britain. Anything that makes the six-week break a bit less stressful (and cheaper) is a win in my book.

Anyway, thought this was worth sharing for anyone who was stressing about how to afford the next few months!

It occurs to me that this little island that has free schools, free healthcare, a welfare state, tons of free adult education, and a population that doesn’t take itself too seriously is actually great.

What do you guys love about this country?

I got made redundant in Jan last year. My husband in March. Most stressful time of our lives burning through redundancy money, savings. Taking mortgage holiday and loans. Trying to stay upbeat for our kids and each other but feeling miserable on the inside. We both start our new jobs next month and I can’t wait to get back to normal and start building our lives back up again.

Original post here: https://www.reddit.com/r/BritishSuccess/s/EihZoHfwTB

Just wanted to update you all as requested.

After a significant period of time in labour, born today is my son weighing in at 8lb 7oz at 38 weeks term.

Mother and child doing well. Dad is still shell shocked and cries every time someone offers him coffee.

Couldn’t speak highly enough of every member of East Lancashire Hospitals Trust who went out of their way to support my wife, my child and myself.

I chipped a tooth on Saturday, and was due a checkup so booked an appointment online on Monday. I couldn't remember the name of my usual dentist, so i just booked the first available appointment (for today).

After booking I got anxious about seeing a new person - I'm AuDHD and find dental treatment difficult - so I phoned to find out who I saw last time and when they would be available. They had nothing for more than two weeks, so i stuck with the locum and just asked them to make a note that I might be anxious.

Went in today to find I was seeing my usual person! They'd swapped patients with the locum so I could see the dentist I was used to. I was so grateful!

One small filling, no drilling, no injection, "see you in 6 months". 😁

I want to preface this by saying i am not a person who shouts at children. I have never done it before. I hold it together. I am fine on public transport. I read my book, i look out the window, i do the polite British thing where i silently endure whatever is happening around me and say nothing.

Yesterday there was a child behind me on the 47 who had been screaming, not crying, screaming, for about twelve minutes straight. High pitched, relentless, no sign of stopping. I had my headphones in. I could still hear it. I turned the volume up. Still there. I did breathing exercises in my head. Did not help.

At minute thirteen something in me just. went. I turned around in my seat and said quite firmly "can you please stop that." To a four year old. On a bus. In front of everyone.

I immediately braced for impact. I was fully prepared for the mum to absolutely tear into me becuase i had just shouted at her child in public and i would have deserved it.

Instead she looked at her kid and said "see, you've upset people now. i told you. enough." Calm. Firm. Meant it.

The child stopped. Immediately. Just stopped.

The mum and i made brief eye contact. She gave a small nod. I gave a small nod. I turned back around. Nobody said anything else. Three stops later i got off the bus feeling inexplicably emotional about the whole thing.

Shoutout to that mum. Absolute class. We don't deserve her.

After being diagnosed with epilepsy last year, resigning myself to a short life of little, I have pulled myself out of the depression (I say pulled myself, thankyou NHS). I now feel I am able to work.

This was only my second interview since the behining of this chapter. They offered me the job on the spot. I almost cried.

I'm not trying to boast (although, maybe I am?), I am just very happy that I have made the steps towards accepting, and thriving within, my new situation.

That is all. Thank you Britain.

We often malign our country, often rightly so. One must take a step back and appreciate what we have. Free health care, a social saftey net that allows this space to people, and genuine oppurtunity.

Anyway, I hope at least some of you are is in as good a mood as I am!

My manager has a habit of doing that thing where, five minutes before the end of the day, he suddenly notices there’s still work left.

Then comes the usual “can we all just stay a bit and get this finished?”

No mention of overtime. No mention of pay. Just the expectation that everyone will quietly sigh and accept that leaving on time is rude now.

Yesterday he did it again.

I was tired and honestly just wanted my tea, so I asked, “Is this paid overtime?”

He looked a bit surprised and said no, not really, it’s just to get the work done.

So I said, “Okay, I’ll finish it tomorrow then.”

And at 5, I packed my stuff and left.

Nobody stopped me. No dramatic scene. Just a very awkward silence and one coworker giving me the tiniest nod on the way out.

Today, when the same thing almost happened, someone else asked the overtime question before I could.

A small victory, but I walked home feeling about 20% more employed and 80% less trapped.

I was checking in for a flight and was prepared to have to pay to sit next to my partner. Check in is done and I realise the randomly allocated seats are already next to each other. I feel like I've won the lottery.

Dunno where else to post this, but I just got a surprise noticing I'd (some months ago now) been gifted some money, and Reddit Karma I think, by someone I offered some advice to on Reddit 🤩👍

I was digging about in the user profile settings and stumbled across the feature I wasn't even aware of previously -wanted to add a screengrab but can't see a way to ☹️

Had some car noises for a while which have got worse last week.

Called a new, one man garage, and he booked it in and did the work within two days.

He initially quoted about £1000 as he thought I might need a more significant fix but in total it came to £300. AND he transported the car to and from his garage as it was quite far away and I am on crutches.

Mr Garage man has gained himself a customer for life and my financial anxiety has decreased.

All around success.

My local stopped stocking it sometime around January. Just gone one week, replaced by an own brand loose leaf in a green tin that I tried once and won't be trying again. I switched to the bags and got on with things because what else do you do, but it's been a quiet background disappointment every morning for months.

Wasn't even thinking about it today. Doing the shop, nearly done, went down the tea aisle for the bags and there they were on the bottom shelf slightly behind some peppermint thing. Three of them. I don't know if it was old stock or if someone made a sensible decision upstairs but I didn't stop to think about it, they all went straight in the basket. Got home, kettle on, first cup in about twenty minutes and I genuinely just sat with it for a bit. Didn't do anything else, just drank the tea. My wife asked why I looked so pleased and I tried to explain and she said "right" in that way that means she doesn't get it but isn't going to argue. Anyway I have no idea if they'll have it next week and I've decided that's not my problem right now

Like the old children's tale about "Jack Spratt would eat no fat, his wife would eat no lean".

We fight over the green ones, though, so it's not all rosy.

I have a group of mates that go out for dinner roughly once per month. Nothing fancy, usually either a pub or Nando's. Food's always good, and then someone (usually me) suggest dessert and everybody awkwardly looks around and then inexplicably says that they don't want dessert. Even though I know that many of them definitely do, they just don't want to admit it and risk being the minority of dessert-eaters.

So I came up with a system, where everybody privately votes for their choice, and the system decides who will have dessert for them.

Basically everybody has four options to choose from:
1 - Definitely not having dessert
2 - Doesn't want dessert, but will if everyone else is having
3 - Wants dessert, but won't eat alone
4 - Definitely is having dessert

And the outcome of all the votes determines the fate of the table.

Introducing the system has been a game changer and we've pretty much gone from 0% chance of dessert to 100%. People are weird.

Edit - ok I'd previously just made a prototype but given the popularity of this post I have spent some time on it - https://awhd.es

Was in Tesco yesterday after work, holding a basket that was somehow 80% things I didn’t go in for.

The queue was long but moving, and everyone was doing the usual silent British maths of who was before who. Then a bloke appeared from the side with one sandwich and a drink, doing that casual little shuffle where they pretend they haven’t noticed the queue exists.

He hovered near the tills for a bit, checking his phone, inching closer every time someone moved. Nobody said anything, but you could feel the collective disapproval building like bad weather.

Then a cashier opened a new till and called “next please.”

The bloke immediately stepped forward.

Before he got there, the cashier looked right past him, pointed at me and said, “I think you were next.”

I have never felt more seen in my life.

The bloke did that tiny annoyed laugh and tried to say he only had two things, but the cashier just said, “Still a queue though.”

Beautiful.

I paid for my completely unplanned biscuits, cheese, shower gel and one lonely pepper with the quiet pride of a man who had witnessed justice.

Might frame the receipt.

Sitting at the station, teenager starts playing his phone loud. I asked him where his headphones were, he replied “you have headphones so why is it my problem”

Me: because I can hear your phone through my headphones …

He didn’t turn it his sound off, so I took my headphones off and played my audiobook (on content marketing; which I imagine is very boring if you aren’t working in business or marketing), and my phone was louder.

Explained to passing people that I was showing the teenager how it’s done.

He lasted three minutes before turning his sound off and leaving the station. 💪💪

My daughter told me the thing her son (6) was looking forward to most on our very child friendly holiday was us all being together in one house. Later, I asked my son's son (also 6) what he looking forward to the most when we go away? He thought for a moment and then said 'the house'. Despite everything we have planned for all the grandchildren, the best thing they could both think of was just us being together.

I had to log a bereavement with TalkMobile. I received the following in an email:

>• The number /account has been closed
• ALL charges have been credited and will not be collected nor need to be paid
• When the final bill is produced, this too will be credited
• ALL early terminations fees have been waived
 
Please take this as confirmation that no charges will become due and there is no further action required by you.

I just thought this was a very pleasant way for a company to deal with a bereavement. Just one less thing to have to think about.

I worked retail for years whilst studying and tried to leave for years and nothing. Then I finally got a job in admin for an organisation but it’s just so tedious and boring with no room for professional development or growth.

Been trying to get into the NHS for 2 years but was always rejected, I presume because I had no NHS experience. I have friends and family who work there and I know how hard it can be and how long it took some of them to break through. I was desperate to get in as it’s closer to my house (I cycle everywhere and it meant I could walk there) and had better hours.

Finally had an interview after all these rejections and I didn’t think it went well. I also didn’t think I’d have a hope in hell’s chance as it’s a grade higher than I’m on and more money. Also because it was a similar style job as what I’m on now but for a specific health department which I had no experience of.

Got the phone call a few hours later and they offered me the job! So fucking happy! 🥹

ETA: it’s also my birthday today so getting the news this week was the best present ever