AFTER working as a blacksmith for more than 70 years, Fred Harriss knows all about earning a living by the sweat of his brow.

Sadly, when he finally laid down his tools and left the forge, he found he was less qualified to nail down the intricacies of the pension and benefits system.

Mr Harriss, is now at home at Charlbury working on his autobiography, charting a career that began at the age of ten, when he arrived at a forge in Langford in west Oxfordshire, to work 12 hours every Saturday for 6d (two-and-a-half pence).

At one point, it had looked like Mr Harriss’s book was set to have the saddest of endings.

For at the age of 82, only months after a long overdue retirement, Mr Harriss found himself in serious financial difficulty.

“I got to the point where I had no money in the bank. Things got so bad I was preparing to sell my home and move in with my son.”

He says he was even having to rely on his children and grandchildren for food.

When he retired at the end of 2009, the great-grandfather of eight was receiving a basic £97-a-week pension. But he was forced to spend a quarter of that on council tax, mortgage repayments and bills.

“I was always too generous for my own good when it came to business. I suffered from people not paying their bills,” he said.

“I would have a Rolls-Royce outside if I added up all the work I did that I was never paid for. It still disgusts me that small businesses are often never paid. I also went through two divorces.”

Mr Harriss also found himself faced with a battle with bowel cancer and having to look after his partner, who was suffering from Parkinson’s disease.

She has since been admitted into a care home.

Thankfully, he was put in touch with Age UK Oxfordshire by West Oxfordshire District Council staff, who happened to be fitting a shower at his bungalow.

The charity, which is running the Give An Hour Campaign with The Oxford Times, helped him to apply for benefit entitlements.

It was found he should have been receiving pension credits, housing and council tax relief.

Mr Harriss, who celebrated his 83rd birthday on Sunday, recalls: “The lady who came was related to someone who knew all about steam engines. So we got on famously. At the time I was just about to go into hospital for a cancer operation. I was grateful that she was able to take over.”

Jessica Brown, of Age UK Oxfordshire, readily recalls the case.

“What it showed for me is that some elderly people do need extra help when it comes to the benefit system, even if it is a person who knows how to apply and can fill in the form.

“There are complications and the pension system can get it wrong. Many people do not realise that. We pick up on errors all the time because we are aware of what people are entitled to.

“We provide extra advice and information about the different benefits that may be available, including advice on community care rights and the social care system.

“The pension service send out one person to help pensioners. But if they don’t have all the forms then and there, they don’t get a second visit.”

Mr Harriss even received an apology from the Department for Work and Pensions and received backdated payments and compensation for £86. The financial worry had an impact on his health, and last week Mr Harriss was heading back to hospital for a hernia operation.

But already he is looking forward to getting back home to continue work on his book about his life in a dirty, back-breaking job that he nevertheless loved.

He also looks in at the forge at Sturt Farm, near Burford, where the blacksmith business F.C. Harrris & Sons is based, to see how his son Martin is performing.

That’s what he really enjoys.

The old blacksmith was, after all, never one for mere paperwork.

  • Our Give an Hour campaign is aiming to get Oxfordshire residents to give 10,000 hours of their time to help the elderly.

Anyone interested in volunteering should contact Age UK Oxfordshire on 01235 849407 or giveanhour@ ageukoxfordshire.org. uk Oxfordshire residents can also donate to Age UK Oxfordshire by joining the Supporters Scheme and pledging £3 a month. For more details contact Stacey Bowden on 01235 849404.