A COUPLE are calling for more help for working families to encourage them to stay off benefits.

Charlotte Gill and Jai Boyce are both working to bring home a total of around £25,000 per year and say by the time they pay their £800 rent, £120 council tax and other bills and outgoings there “isn’t a penny left” each month.

The pair, who live in Parkstone, spoke out after Bournemouth couple Natalie Cann and Lee Miller revealed they receive £31,668 per year in benefits and are calling for a bigger council house as they have nine children and one more on the way.

Charlotte has two jobs, spending 22 hours cleaning and nine hours doing bar work, organised around looking after her daughter Lola, 4.

And Lola’s stepdad Jai, 35, is a self-employed scaffolder.

Charlotte added: “If the Government reduced the amount of money paid out in benefits we would be able to pay less tax.

“That would encourage more people to work and that would help the economy.

“Why would people choose to do what we are doing to get less money than they get on benefits?”

Charlotte said they cannot afford another child and believes more benefits should be paid in vouchers for food, clothes and heating.

“There should be more of a distinction between people living on low incomes and those receiving benefits,” she added Tobias Elwood, MP for Bournemouth East, said the “absolute focus of this government is to support hard working families”.

“The day of living off welfare as a lifestyle choice is now behind us,” he added.

“Any family that wants to work hard and get on in life will have the support of this government.”