When Phoebe Cross lost her job at a charity providing support for single parents at the beginning of January, she found herself in the same position as many of the women she had been helping.
The 40-year-old mother-of-two is paying £1,500 a month in rent for her home in Manchester – a cost that suddenly became unaffordable on the £950 a month housing benefit she was receiving. Without work, she was left in limbo until her Universal Credit entitlement increased at the beginning of March.
