Universal Credit claimant turned TikTok star Whitney Ainscough encouraged her followers to ‘wreck’ their phones to get a new one from the Jobcentre at the expense of the taxpayer
Universal Credit (UC) claimants can get their broken phone replaced with a brand new one from their Jobcentre if they need it to apply for work, the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) has confirmed. Popular TikTok star Whitney Ainscough, who shot to viral fame by packing gross school lunches for her kids, told her followers how her friend was given a phone by a Jobcentre.
The content creator, who goes by “bad mom” online, encouraged her followers to “wreck” their current phone to get a new one at the expense of the taxpayer.
She said: “If you are Universal Credit, did you know the Jobcentre can get you a phone for free. Seriously, if you are applying for jobs and you’ve lost your phone… just wreck it anyway… you can get a free phone to do your job searches.
“You can take it down cashies. That (her friend’s phone) might be worth £80, £100. [It is] a brand new phone from the Jobcentre.
“This is true, you can get a phone from the Jobcentre for free and then you can just sell it or give it to your kids.”
She added: “This is guaranteed and confirmed. I know someone who has done it. That is her phone I’ve got. It does really work.
“What on Earth? When did this happen? That is crazy. You have no excuses to get a job now guys.”
A DWP spokesperson told the daily Star that there is a fund available to job centres to buy products for clients. They said: “The Flexible Support Fund is managed by Jobcentres to provide additional support to people – including purchasing goods or training – to remove barriers for those trying to move into work as part of the Plan for Change.
“While it is right that we support people into work, we have strengthened and enhanced transparency in spending by requiring evidence for customer spend requests and through introducing new security measures.”
Back in 2023, Whitney revealed she had splurged £10,000 on Christmas for her kids despite receiving UC earlier that year. The mum said at the time her daughter Cora, 11, son Addison, six, and second son Adley, two, will receive around 10 “big” presents each in addition to little ones too.
For most of the year, the 30-year-old got by on benefits of just under £1,200 a month. But she isn’t worrying about saving the pennies – in fact, she’s decided not to spend her time worrying about the cost of living crisis.
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