Middle-earners ‘struggling’ over Jersey schools bonus cap

Middle income families who are struggling with the cost of living are being “failed” by the government, a Jersey parent has said.

It comes as families have shared frustration that a means-tested benefit to help buy school supplies has not been made available island-wide.

Mum of two Lisa McCabe said not being able to access the back to school bonus was a “kick in the teeth” for working parents just above the income threshold.

The social security minister said she would review the back to school bonus ahead of next year and that the government was looking at ways to make life more affordable for parents in Jersey.

McCabe runs a private health screening clinic in Jersey.

She said “every day” she was seeing parents struggling with the cost of raising a family in Jersey: “There’s the level of stress and burnout from people who are on what would have been considered very good wages a few years ago that just aren’t making ends meet.”

She said many middle-earners in the island had been squeezed by an increase in interest rates and the end of mortgage interest tax relief for homeowners.

For many working parents, she said, this was made worse by expensive nursery fees and the cost of covering children’s hot lunches and after school clubs.

“There are some really difficult decisions to be made,” she said.