Desperate mothers are having to turn to online sex work and prostitution to fend off the cost of living crisis, according to some health and welfare charities.
According to a shocking report in The Mirror online, many women who find themselves in financial difficulty are turning to sex work, fitting it in around the school run. Some who even have jobs are turning to the practice to subsidise the spiralling costs of childcare.
A spokeswoman for a charity called the English Collective of Prostitutes, Laura Watson, said: “We are hearing from some women who have never done sex work before, also women who managed to get a different job and are now going back into sex work because of the cost of living.”
Calls to her support group are said to have shot up by a third in six months – with seven in 10 callers being mothers. Some of them are said to be feeding their children but going without food themselves. Ms Watson said sex work appeared to be “one of the only jobs where the hours are flexible and there’s potential to earn more than other jobs more quickly”.
Rising inflation is also forcing some of the mums to take even bigger risks when it comes to sex work, data from the Collective showed. “There are fewer clients, so they do longer hours, possibly accepting clients they wouldn’t have before,” Ms Watson told The Mirror.
“They are having to be less picky to cover their expenses The increased risk is very worrying.” One single working mother says she sees “no way out” of webcam sex work due to “crippling” childcare costs of up to £700 a month. Anna, a trainee solicitor with a five-year-old son, said the work made her feel "dirty, violated and sick".
She said: “You have to have a thick skin as there will be those who go to webcam sites to hurl abuse, or ask you to role-play sick scenarios.”
Mounting bills forced Anna to add physical escort work to her online activities. She said: “I was arriving at grotty hotels booked by creepy men twice my age. Cash upfront.”
She added that she quit after just two session because she felt so “violated and worthless” but had to continue with the webcam work. “As it stands, I fear I will have to return to escorting again,” she said.
In desperation, she turned to the maternity charity Pregnant Then Screwed, whose boss Joeli Brearley is demanding more social infrastructure spending from the Government. Ms Brearley told the i news website: “Women should not be forced to enter this industry due to financial issues.”
“Women’s economic empowerment hinges on a system that works for us and the Government needs to start taking this seriously. We are calling for an end to the shambolic support system that is failing mothers and families everywhere.”
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