The couple who struggle to get by on £190k a year! Disbelief as wealthy pair ask agony aunt: How will we ever afford school fees?

  • Adam and Megan Brownson, from south west London, earn £190,000
  • They sought advice about how to fund daughters Emme and Belle's private education while maintaining their current standard of living
  • But social media users said their plight was insulting to struggling families
  • A spoof GoFundMe campaign was also launched, poking fun at the couple 

By Mario Ledwith for the Daily Mail

Published: 03:07 EST, 23 November 2015 | Updated: 09:52 EST, 23 November 2015

With prestigious careers, sizeable salaries and two properties in the capital, Adam and Megan Brownson enjoy a lifestyle many could only dream of.

But the couple, who together earn £190,000, have become an internet laughing stock – after claiming they face being ‘financially broken’.

The ridicule came after they publicly sought advice about managing their cash flow, with concerns about how to fund their daughters’ private education while maintaining their current standard of living.

Megan (left) and Adam Brownson (right), who together earn £190,000, have become an internet laughing stock and inspired a tongue-in-cheek GoFundMe page (pictured) – after claiming they face being 'financially broken' 

Furious social media users described their plight as insulting to hard-pressed families, while a spoof fund-raising campaign was also launched.

The Brownsons’ daughters Emme, two, and Belle, nine months, have been enrolled in separate schools close to their £725,000 home in South-West London – which will cost a combined £24,000 a year once fees kick in. However Mrs Brownson, a lawyer, and her management consultant husband, both 36, say the financial pressure of raising young children has already left them with credit card debts of £8,000.

This is despite also having rental income of £915 a month from a buy-to-let flat in the south-east of the city, which goes towards the mortgage on the £315,000 property.

The personal finance section of the Telegraph described how the couple are in a ‘dilemma’ – claiming that they are reluctant to sell the flat to fund school fees as they see it as a ‘nest egg’.

Megan (pictured) and Adam Brownson, who together earn £190,000, have become an internet laughing stock – after claiming they face being 'financially broken'
The ridicule came after Mr Brownson (pictured) and his wife publicly sought advice about managing their cash flow, with concerns about how to fund their daughters' private education while maintaining their current standard of living

The ridicule came after Mrs Brownson (left) and her husband (right) publicly sought advice about managing their cash flow, with concerns about how to fund their daughters’ private education while maintaining their current standard of living

The Brownsons, who say they only have several hundred pounds in savings, also fear missing out on an increased purchase price for the flat if the London property market continues to boom.

However shortly after the column offering advice to the couple was published last week, it had become the subject of a spoof news article.

Social media users also described being left ‘heartbroken’ after reading about the family’s situation, while some advised the couple to take advantage of the free education provided by state schools.

With the average salary in the UK being just £27,600, one Twitter user wrote: ‘Hey everyone – time to break out the tiny violins again.’

Darren Johnson added: ‘Luckily, the state ensures school places are also available free of charge! Contact your local council for details.’

Another wrote: ‘Heartbreaking. With Christmas around the corner too. Come on, guys... let’s dig deep.’

The fundraising campaign launched on the GoFundMe website was also shared thousands of times by people poking fun at the couple. The description said the story was ‘heart-wrenching’.

Mrs Brownson, who is currently on maternity leave, works four days a week as an injury lawyer at Stewarts Law, where she is also a senior associate. In one online profile she describes her love of playing golf and running marathons.

Her husband is a management consultant, specialising in transport and aviation issues, for one of the industry’s leading firms.

The role has seen him advising the European Commission on airport security issues, as well as working with airports across the world to improve their operations.

The Brownsons could not be reached for comment last night.

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