English family claims £20,000 a year of benefits

Discussion in 'General Chat' started by InsaneNutter, May 5, 2010.

  1. InsaneNutter

    InsaneNutter Resident Nutter Staff Member

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    Their loud and drunken behaviour makes the lives of their neighbours a misery - and it is all being funded by state handouts of £20,000 a year.

    Residents are petitioning to have Jane and Lee Houghton, their five youngest children and a grandson evicted.

    But with a new bathroom and kitchen on its way, paid for by the council, and a house filled with numerous games consoles, computers and TVs they have no intention of moving.

    And Mr Houghton yesterday insisted they need more money.

    The 42-year-old is paid £150 a month disability allowance because he has a 'personality disorder' which makes him 'kick off in crowds'. He has not worked since 1999 and says drinking alcohol helps him cope with his condition.

    He has been threatened with an Asbo for violent behaviour as well as being drunk and disorderly and has 24 previous convictions.

    The comfortable lifestyle of the Houghton family is funded by benefits including £640 income support, £212 carer's allowance a month as well as Mr Houghton's £150 disability allowance.

    Their four-bedroom semi- detached house in Crawley, West Sussex, is paid for by housing benefit.

    The full feature appears in this week's Closer magazine, on sale now The Houghtons boast about spending £1,000 on each of their children at Christmas. They have seven children and their eldest daughter, Emma, has her own council home.

    Mrs Houghton told Closer magazine: 'I only get carer's allowance because my 16-year- old daughter Chelsea has ADHD.

    'We get disability allowance for Lee too because of his personality disorder, but we should get more.

    'They've even stopped giving me child benefit for Chelsea because she's a mum now - yet they won't give her a council house until she's 18 - it's so unfair!'

    She added: 'We only get £150 a month disability allowance for Lee, which isn't enough. His personality disorder makes him really moody so he should get more.'

    The couple have been together since Mr Houghton was 17 and his wife was 14. They had their first child Lee, now aged 23, a year later, followed by Emma, 20,

    James, 18, Chelsea Ann Stamford Bridge, 16 - named after Mr Houghton's favourite football team and their home ground - Joanne, 14, Jack, ten, and Summer, two.

    They share their home with their five youngest children and Chelsea's son Dion, ten months.

    Emma lives with three-year- old daughter Chanelle in her own council home. Their only child with a job is eldest son Lee, who works as a cleaner.

    'We use our money to spoil our kids - they've got everything,' said Mrs Houghton. 'We've got a computer and a laptop, four TVs, two Xboxes, three DVD players and we've all got mobile phones.'

    The Houghtons moved to their current home in 2001 after being evicted from their previous house for failing to pay the rent, despite receiving housing benefit which covered it.

    They freely admit they 'did it on purpose' as they wanted a new home.

    Mrs Houghton said: 'We made up some b******t about Lee chucking me out as we knew if we played the game I'd get another house.' Since

    moving in, the family has made the lives of their neighbours hell, blasting out loud music from their home, while Mr Houghton drunkenly falls over in the street and rides his motorbike on the pavement.

    His previous convictions are mainly for drink-related offences, such as swearing at police officers and shouting abuse at people in the street.

    But he insists it is his family who are being picked on.

    'We've had enough of being branded thugs. We're a good family,' said Mr Houghton.

    'The old woman opposite us was always watching my kids out of her window and moaning about them being loud. About ten of our neighbours signed her petition.'

    He added: 'Drinking helps me cope with my personality disorder. I start with a bottle of Jack Daniels then have a few cans of cider. By the afternoon I can hardly walk.'

    'If people want to work, good for them. I would if I could, but I'm too ill.'

    A former neighbour described Mr Houghton as a 'nasty bully'.

    Source
     
  2. MunkyMagikUK

    MunkyMagikUK Digiex Blogger

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    Its things like this that truely sicken me.
     
  3. P.KID

    P.KID Addict

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    wow fings lyk these are just sad why should they take benfits wen they've comited so many offences. :(
     
  4. BonezOz

    BonezOz Addict

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    I'm not really surprised. I live near a lot of Dept. of Housing units and you see similar behaviour all the time. Every Fri and Sat night around here the cops are busy. I also did pizza delivery for a few months and delivered to a lot of these homes, the amount of kit they own because they don't have to pay a lot in rent is amazing; 50" LCD's, PS3's, XBoxes, etc.... Cars too

    There's one guy down the street looks like a serious gangland mobster who drives a $80k car, but lives in gov housing. Sick. Where as my base salary puts us $100 per week over the minimum for government assistance/housing. We pay $650/wk rent, they pay $0 all because of $100.
     
  5. Dark Scyth

    Dark Scyth Moderator

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    Its people like them that screw the rest of us over.
     

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