The reality of walking around the infamous Gurnos estate in Merthyr Tydfil on a regular Thursday morning is a far cry from its notorious reputation. Although the sky is grey, there's a sense of warmth as friendly locals stop for a pleasant chat or simply smile and say hello as they go about their day.
But ask them about the cost of living crisis and their smiles soon start to fade - and it's no wonder. In April, gas and electricity bills went up by a whopping £693, around 54%. Many of us have also seen our council tax and national insurance rise as well as food and fuel.
Although chancellor Rishi Sunak announced a raft of measures to help households - including a cut to fuel duty, changes to National Insurance thresholds and a promise on income tax - many argue the support doesn't go far enough. Inevitably, many will still see a significant loss in their income, and people living in the historically deprived Gurnos estate said they're really feeling the pinch.
"It makes me sick, absolutely sick", said Gurnos resident Darrell Wells when we told him his bills would likely rise yet again in October. "People are going to start committing crimes to keep themselves warm, it's terrible. People will be breaking into houses now for money to put in their meter."
The 57-year-old has lived on the estate for 13 years and said he is already suffering as a result of the price rises in April. However, said because of his household income, he misses out on certain benefits which would help his quality of life.
"I've got PTSD and I've got epilepsy. The heating is the main issue for me. I'm freezing and it affects my mental health. I put my snood on and my dog cwtches up to me," he said. "We've got to cut down on a lot to be able to afford money for the electric and gas. We've also got to cut back on food and speaking to other people around here, everyone is struggling."
A few streets away lives 47-year-old Samantha Howells who has also lived on the estate for the last 13 years. She said she's had to introduce many sacrifices in her day-to-day life over the last month to help make ends meet.
"I was putting in £40 a fortnight on [my gas and electricity meter] and now I'm having to put £60 to £70 in which is a lot. It means all the nice things are going bit by bit. There's no pop for the kids anymore, not even the cheap stuff. There's no crisps - stuff like that - they just have to make do.
"It's getting a bit warmer now so it's not as bad, but I'm putting in the same amount of money now for my gas, rather than tapering it down like many people do. It's so come the winter, I've got some [extra money for gas] as the credit builds up. It's the only thing I can think of doing now ahead of them going up again in October. It's frightening."
The disabled mum-of-two said she's even had to stop seeing loved ones as it means using expensive gas in her car and mobility scooter. "If you can't see your friends or family, you're stuck. It's like being forced into lockdown all over again," she said. "I'm just staying in the house and just using my car for shopping or taking my boy to work or my girl to college - that's it. I can't go anywhere else, I don't see anyone else because I can't afford to."
Samantha said her daughter would be celebrating her 18th birthday on the weekend, but that it wouldn't be the big day they had always envisaged because of the price hikes. She said: "I've had to do it on a budget. She's got four or five presents, whereas usually I'd have done around 10 because I can't afford it. Turning 18 is a big birthday, but I'm having to do a little tea party rather than a big party because I just can't afford it."
She said she worries about the future in terms of herself, her family and others who are struggling to cope with the cost of living. "It's ridiculous, how do they expect us to live?," she said. "I can't get a job, and if I could get a job I would get a job. I've got arthritis in my knees and my spine and I've also got fibromyalgia, so I don't know from one day to the next whether I'm going to be able to get out of bed. It's depressing and it's worrying - it's really, really worrying."
Tracy Gray has lived on the estate for the last 25 years. She said this is the first time in her life she's ever feared putting her radiator on to keep warm.
The 56-year-old said: "I'm on the old meter and put £50 in each before the bills went up, but when that runs out I'll notice it going up [in price]. I'm petrified of using what I've got now. I've never felt fear to put my heating on before now. I will hardly be able to put my heating on, and then the food has gone up too. It's going to cripple me financially. The prices going up again in October is degrading, how are people with kids on income support going to manage? They can barely manage now."
But it's not just the heating that keeps Tracy up at night. She said: "I hardly buy anything for myself, but that will have to stop - I'm afraid to spend. I can't imagine what the future will be like for everyone. I don't use my tumble dryer much anymore now and I don't do as much washing in the washing machine - I try to put more clothes in."
Next we popped into the Premier shop on Chestnut Way to find out if staff had noticed a drop in sales as Gurnos locals are left with less disposable income. Shop worker Jodie told us she'd noticed exactly that and said it was upsetting to see her customers and their children struggle. To get the latest news from Merthyr Tydfil straight into your inbox, click here to subscribe to our newsletter.
The 30-year-old, who has lived on the estate for two years, said: "The drinks have all gone up and you'll see them come in, pick them up and put them back down. I have seen a big difference. Where some items have been two for £2.20, it'll be £1.35 for one now. It's stuff like that. It makes me sad to see it.
"It's mainly because of the gas and electricity [prices]. Even with myself, you do have to cut back. I'm lucky with gas and electric, because I've got family and we all help each other, but some people don't have that. Some people have little babies and nobody else around them to help with gas - that makes me sad. I talk to people who come in and they say they've knocked their gas off, that they're paying £9 for gas a day, that they've got to keep their dressing gowns on. I also had a kid come in here who said they're freezing because they can't afford to put the gas on because the gas bill has gone up, it's so sad."
As we walk back into the estate, we bump into friends and flatmates 37-year-old Dafydd Rees and 29-year-old Luke Cotter who have both lived in the Gurnos their whole lives. They said living together helped them share the cost of their bills, but that recently they've still had to rely on foodbanks to get by.
Dafydd said: "It's the shopping, the gas and electric. A food shop would come to around £40 a few months ago, but more recently it came to around £60 despite spending on the same things. I had a text yesterday saying my rent is going up as well as service charges. My rent has gone up £9.45 per month and the service charge has gone up £2 odd. It all adds up."
Luke said he had noticed the price of everyday items go up dramatically. "Fags and alcohol have gone up and for a lot of people living around here, that's their escape," he said. "Food, petrol and diesel have gone up as well. I notice it with petrol because of my nan and grandpa as they have to get from hospital to hospital - they have to go to Morriston in Swansea and places like that so I have to put petrol in my nan's car for her and it's dear, it's skyrocketed.
"Me and Daf manage our bills together. We're doing alright at the moment, but we are struggling a bit. Before, we would have a couple of quid left over, but now we don't. We get food from food banks delivered as well - it's something we've had to start doing recently. There's not much we can do about it, we're just having to grin and bear it. It's shocking that bills will be going up again in October.
"This is the Gurnos at the end of the day, it's quite a notorious area. If people need to make ends meet, they will."
