My rent has gone up £300 a month’: Pain of soaring costs and zero hours contracts
Urwah Chaudhary is one of millions of Britons struggling with the cost of living and record-breaking rent price increases.
The full-time student, who works as a call centre agent on a minimum wage and on a zero-hours contract, has faced a monthly rent increase from £900 to £1,200 in the space of a year.
Inflation, the increase in prices in the rental market in her local area, and a struggle to afford the mortgage after successive Bank of England interest rate hikes, were the reasons given by her landlord for the hefty additional monthly outlay.
The increased cost of basic items, such as food and energy, and the precarious nature of her work, have left her with a serious shortfall at the end of every month.
She said: “The situation is frustrating and stressful. At the end of
