I wrote five 'days' for Little Cumbria again recently and went in to record them for Radio Cumbria last week. Later on that day I had to sign on, and also sometime that week I had a letter from the Tax Credits people. The 3 things combined in my mind and made me think that I should suggest that Radio Cumbria runs a 'Pet Hates' 5 days for Little Cumbria: the 5 pet hates could become discussion topics for the days they were aired.
The Tax Credits office must be a top contender. The Inland Revenue used to be really good, and if you wished you could just drop into your local office to talk to someone. Nowadays you get some drongo at the end of the phone - if you can get through at all - and they seem unable to read as I was actually told that I shouldn't send them letters with their forms. This apparently applies even if the forms don't ask for the information which you know they'll need and just have to come back to you for.
I know I'm not the only person who has had problems with the Tax Credits office and who finds them a pain in the proverbial: or rather, just completely useless. One of the women at choir had her monthly sum drastically reduced with no warning because they assumed her son had left school at 16 (he's still there); and she was telling me the story of someone else who had been overpaid and then received lower amounts for 2 years because of that, despite the fact that it was the Tax Credits office's fault. I hope in the latter case she kicked up a fuss and got it in writing from them that it was their error: we did and they've still tried to reduce our payments, but at least we have something written down.
I know there's an ombudsman for local government, British Waterways, and things like that: is there one for the Tax Credits Office?
Another pet hate of mine is pay and display parking machines, especially when associated with the system whereby you can phone up and pay over the phone instead of using coins. For a start I rarely have the right change, and will therefore tend to either try to get a disc parking place in Carlisle, if I'm going to be quick, or will go into the Lanes car park which I know will at least take notes and give change, and I think possibly even debit and credit cards. The station car park used to have a system whereby you could phone up if you didn't have £8 or £12 or whatever you needed to hand: one day I got a ticket, because the parking warden had got the date wrong, and goodness did I have a battle on my hand. They only gave in by the time I'd written to several local MPs, Virgin Trains, Network Rail, and also pointed out to them that if they checked their CCTV they would see that I was in the right. I did also ask why on earth anybody in their right mind would try to get away with parking their car there for an entire day without paying.
The other day in Newcastle I tried to use the pay by phone option: only to find that I couldn't because there was no way I could update my switch card number. They hung up on me because I couldn't type in a number they recognised (let alone the fact that I needed to change the car registration as well). So I put in only 2 hours' worth, and when I met up with a friend later fortunately she had some cash and I was able to go to feed the meter, as it were: I'm sure if the traffic warden had been on his rounds I would have got done for that despite the fact that I would have paid £5 for the entire day if I'd been able to.
And why are the machines so measly as to not give you change? The ones in the Lanes, again, do: I guess they have to if you're using notes to pay. But many, many local authority ones state 'no change given' and then don't even add on a bit of extra time because you've paid 10 or 20 pence more than you needed to because you didn't have the right coins and the machines don't take 5 pence pieces.
A third pet hate is the Job Centre, although I have to say that there have been times when I have gone in and been pleasantly surprised by the staff. But generally all they are interested in is getting you off the unemployment statistics: they don't even look at what your skills and experience are. Apparently they get some bonus for every person they get back into work. Well, when someone comes up with a surveying job which is senior and part-time then fine: I'll apply. Meanwhile I look at jobs (for example a Business Development Manager job for a construction company in Newcastle) and think "well, is it worth wasting time applying? a) it's advertised as full-time and the property and construction sector is still notoriously conservative (and whilst I could take a full-time job and ask to go part-time later, now is not really the time to do that) b) I'm pregnant and whatever the legislation might say..... (etc.) c) I don't have any business development experience anyway, so whilst in good times I might talk myself into something like that, is it worth the effort at the moment, especially when 2 months after starting I'd be going off on maternity leave....".
I could almost think it's a pain that I got pregnant, but on the other hand I feel that it was almost meant to be: and in addition I'm enjoying exploring 'media and creative' type possibilities which seem to be opening up for me without my trying. Some of the staff at the Job Centre, of course, do not see that by writing and doing stuff on Radio Cumbria and singing I may be opening up new avenues for myself: in fact I'm sure if they knew that I've volunteered to speak to Brampton Community Centre about their swimming pool plans and that I'm on two committees and one Board they probably wouldn't see the benefit of those either and I'd just have to fill in lots of forms. I guess the main thing is that none of these things are ones which detract from my applying for 'real' jobs and also I'm still available for interviews and work: though as I get more and more pregnant that is, if I'm honest, having less and less appeal and the thought of freelancing appeals far more. The University of Northumbria needs some temp. admin. people and whilst I could do it, I'm really not sure I want to traipse over to Newcastle each day (and presumably incur parking costs as well as fuel costs). I guess that the Job Centre probably wouldn't expect me to do so for a job which only pays £9 per hour.
I do have at least 2 more pet hates (to bring it up to 5) but I'm not going to go on about them here and now as I shall sound not only like a grumpy old woman (which I am) but a VERY grumpy old woman (which I'm not, I don't think). And anyway it's nearly 10 p.m. and I should go and speak to my Husband before I turn out the light and fall asleep. Good night!
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