The ups and downs of being a working- class parent in Glasgow
- Flora Irvine-Hall
- May 5
- 7 min read
Updated: May 13
By Flora Irvine-Hall
This article is part of a series which explores how working class culture in Glasgow is changing. All related articles are available to read on this website. This project was produced by Flora Irvine-Hall, Sasha Main, Ryan Mullen, and Lola Lea.
*Disclaimer* As a journalism blog, we are aware that poverty and the working class are not the same thing and are no way are we trying to say they are. However, there is a relation to poverty and being working-class. Working-class individuals, especially if they have so-called unskilled jobs, do face a higher risk of poverty. This is why this article talks about both poverty and the working-class.
When we think of working-class parents, we may hold a preconception of hardships and struggling. But how accurate is this?
While being a working-class parent is not all doom and gloom, it would be inaccurate to claim that raising children on a lower income comes without difficulties.
A BBC News article from March 2025 revealed that the Scottish Government failed to meet legal targets for reducing the number of children living in poverty. Statistics from 2023-24 revealed that the relative rate of child poverty was at 22% while the rate of absolute poverty sat below 17%.
Although these poverty rates have gone down (relative poverty was at 23% in 2022 while absolute rates were at also at 23%) the government failed to meet their goal of getting relative poverty below 18% and absolute poverty below 14%.
A 2022 article from Cambridge University investigated the 2017 Child Poverty (Scotland) Act. The goal was to decrease the relative poverty rate from 25% to 10% by 2030/32. The Scottish Government introduced the Scottish Child Payment (SCP) which would provide a direct transfer to households with a fixed rate for any child that was eligible. While this all sounds well and good, the article points out that as the payment increases, the marginal gain in the reduction of child poverty decreases. The article argued that a “policy-mix” option which would combine the SCP, targeted cash transfers and other policy levels such as childcare provision would be more effective at dealing with child poverty.
More specifically to Glasgow, CCI Glasgow revealed that in 2023 there were 24,252 children living in poverty which is 24% of all children living in Glasgow. Per week, they were £115 below the poverty line.
The report also stated that in 2024 59% of children living in poverty came from households where at least one adult was employed.
Even more concerning, it was also found that 10,103 children were in absolute poverty.
Glasgow resident, Jenna Forbes, whose name has been changed for privacy reasons, is working class and a mother to a one-year-old girl. She agreed that the government could do more to help with working-class parents. She is particularly passionate about parents having more help after birth.
Jenna said: “At the start I think all parents should be getting some kind of help with their new-borns,” she said. “Especially with your first one because a lot of us struggle at the start.”
Jenna went on to say that having more affordable childcare for infants would be very beneficial.
“Even just for two hours or something like that. Even if it’s just one day a week.” said Jenna.
Jenna also stated that the resources available to single-parent households needs to improve.
“For childcare resources, I feel like we need more for single mums because a lot of single mums don’t have family members or their child's dad to look after them. They have to do it all themselves.”
Another Cambridge University study from 2024 also revealed that there was a high number of single parent families and households relying on emergency food revision were suffering from food insecurity. The study revealed that the main factors that led to food insecurity were insufficient income, welfare reform, food inflation and geo-political events.
The study also revealed that food insecurity was negatively correlated with sufficient nutritional intake which led to poor mental and physical health. Although there have been policy actions to help with food insecurity among children such as food voucher schemes and free school meals, further evidence is required to see if these policies have been successful.
One of the reasons for food insecurity could be the scrutiny that a lot of working-class families face. Jenna shared some of the other misconceptions that people have about working class parents.
“I think a lot of people think that because you’re working class that you’re always busy and that you’re not really spending any time with your kids. But if you’re at home a lot, they’ll just say that you’re being lazy.”
Jenna lives in social housing, which means she lives in an affordable area which allows her to work part-time so she can spend quality time with her daughter.
Jenna works in a care facility for the elderly. She shared some of her frustrations about her workplace and their lack of understanding for staff with small children.
Jenna said: “I think they need to be more considerate. When I was off work because my daughter was sick, I was pulled into the office, and my supervisor did not understand at all. She's a mother herself and she said ‘Oh, I remember back in the day I would just stick my child in a taxi.’ I've got a one-year-old and a pram. So obviously I would have to get my mum to look after her and I’d have to drop her off in a taxi and then get to work before eight. I work a 12-hour shift and a six-hour shift so if it was for a six-hour shift, most of my wages would be spent on taxis.”
Despite the struggles and stigma that Jenna faces, she doesn’t let it get in the way of raising a happy child.
“I just think I've got one mission to do in life and it's to make money when I'm at work and that's for my daughter. I'm working to make enough money to go to soft play areas and go swimming. I can afford to take her to different places and buy her nice clothes because I'm working,” she said.
Clothes are another element of raising children that can be very costly. According to Money Helper, £243 is the average amount of money spent on clothes during the first month.
This can be very stressful for working-class parents with small children but Merry-Go-Round, a charity shop based in the Southside of Glasgow, has been very beneficial for a lot of parents.
Merry-Go-Round makes being a parent more affordable. They have a large range of clothes, prams, toys, cots and more.
Mark, the store's retail supervisor shared the history of Merry-Go-Round.
“Fifteen years ago, Sam who started the charity, was pregnant, and heavily involved in reuse so she wanted to buy second-hand items for her child. And she went around, looked all over different charity shops and every charity shop had the same, small corner at the back of the store. She couldn't really find what she wanted. So, she came up with the idea of a baby shop where you could get everything you needed.”
While there are of course stores where you can get everything baby related, they are not nearly as affordable as Merry-Go-Round. On the Mammas and Pappas online store for example, a set of sleepsuits is £24, and some prams can be over £400. This is not affordable for the average working-class parent. Merry-Go-Round will do this as third of the price.
Mark talked about the store's humble beginning.
“It started off as a small shop that had a side room where you could get a coffee. We didn’t have the room to display much of our stock so customers would have to come in and ask if we had something.”
And it’s not just baby essentials that Merry-Go-Round offers, they also have a range of different groups for parents. Groups for dads or mums with new-born babies are just a couple of groups they have. Having a community like this is vital for parents. A 2024 article from The Guardian revealed that 80-90% of new mothers reported feeling lonely.
Mark went to discuss the store's growth.
“We got offered a bigger place with multiple floors. So, we finally managed to start putting everything that we had out on the display instead of having people ask. Now we've got groups on Monday, Friday, and some on Saturdays as well. And we're really, really, busy.”
Mark agrees that it has become very expensive to be a parent. He spoke about the importance of having an affordable place like Merry-Go-Round.
“A lot of customers will come in and they're like, ‘Oh my God, how is this only £20 I've got so much stuff here. That would have cost me over £100 if I was in a regular retail shop.’ If you go to the supermarket and buy vest tops, we’re talking £5-6 for a pack of five. That's not cheap. We also have what we call our presale section and that's clothing that's 50p an item.”
Mark shared some stories that highlight the wonderful work of Merry-Go-Round.
“I've had customers who have bought products elsewhere but who I still managed to help. During COVID, there was a customer who knocked and asked for help folding a pram that they’d bought six months ago. I showed them how it worked, and they were so grateful.
“We also had someone who came to the store at the end of COVID to drop off some donations. They said ‘I just want to let you know that without your help and online groups during lockdown, I would have been so isolated. I wouldn't have had anyone to talk to,’ and they were actually starting to tear up. And that's something that we have quite a lot of as a community. It’s somewhere where you can go and meet other parents, somewhere you can go and relax or somewhere you can let your little one play.”
Mark also talked about the Carousel program run by Merry-Go-Round. Through their partnered agencies, Merry-Go-Round are able to deliver entirety donated baby clothes and essential packs, nappy packs and literacy and toy packs to families on low income, refugees, asylum seekers and families in crisis.
Working at a place like Merry-Go-Round is very rewarding for Mark. He explained why he is so passionate about his job.
“I definitely find the sense of being the best part of someone's day, that people would come in and actually say thank you, they’ll come in and tell you the difference it's made for them. It’s just nice having a sense of community. It makes a difference to me to know I’m making a difference to someone's life.”
For anyone with children who seem to be growing at a rapid rate, donations to Merry-Go-Round would be much appreciated.
“At the moment we do get less clothing in the bigger sizes,” Mark explained. “So, it's always handy to get clothing from 12 months and over.”
Another hard part of being a working-class parent can be finding fun things to do that won’t break the bank. Below is a short video of just a few things you can do with your children without spending a pound:
Although there may be struggles that come with being a working-class parent and the government could do more to help with lower-income families, it’s safe to say that with parents like Jenna and with charities like Merry-Go-Round, these children will grow up feeling loved and fulfilled.
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