Fran Ryan (42) has five children, aged between four and 20, and a two-year-old grandson - all living with her. The widow has a weekly income of €153.82, once rent for her local authority home in Cherry Orchard is deducted from her supplementary welfare allowance of €205.10.
She smiles when asked how she feeds seven people - including three teenagers - on that income. "I'm good with money. I have to be." One of her daughters is on a Community Employment scheme and "she hands me €40 a week". Another, also on a CE scheme, has been ill and is not earning at the moment.
She does "a big shop once a week in Aldi - that costs €72. I get just the essentials - cereal, tea, frozen chips, potatoes, frozen vegetables." For meat, she buys "mostly chicken" but they do not eat meat every day.
"Not at all. We'd have egg and chips, beans and chips, the odd time burgers or sausages. My lot love chicken." She never buys lamb or beef because it's too dear, but she doesn't think her family would like it.
Fresh fruit and vegetables are treats reserved for when she gets the monthly child benefit. "And it's all gone in about three days because it is a treat," she laughs.
Budgeting is "very, very strict". Her only break from this is a small loaf of brown bread for her youngest daughter. "She likes the taste of the brown. Maybe it's a novelty. But a small brown is 75 cent where a large white sliced pan is 39 cent in Aldi."
She gets credit from the local corner shop, Tommy's. The manager there, Mr Stephen Palmer, said yesterday about 80 customers a week were given credit.
"There are very genuine people, some of them very hard up around here. The majority always pay their bill on Thursdays when the social welfare is paid."
Asked whether she is worried about the family's nutrition, Fran says they are all healthy.
"Thank God, they are full of energy. My mother used to say a spoonful of honey was good against colds, so I give that to the younger ones every day.
"I do get depressed, yes, but I just try to keep smiling."
She worked all her life until she lost her husband and had to stay at home to look after the younger children.
