A Greater Manchester firefighter who is a single parent with teenage twins said he feels compelled to strike despite losing eight days' pay.

As firefighters across the UK walked out on to the picket lines for an expected eight days, Austin Spencer admitted he was worried about coping financially.

Mr Spencer, from Northenden, Manchester, said trying to juggle home and work life in recent weeks had been hard.

He told BBC GMR however, that it has also been rewarding.

'Struggling financially'

He said: "I have to pay all the bills, plus feed my two children and get to work as well, to get money and things like that.

"It's been hard work, but it's also been rewarding, but I am struggling financially with the wages I'm on.

"The prospect of doing without money over the strike scares me a bit.

"But striking is something I feel I have to do so we can perhaps get a rise in wages that we deserve, and would certainly be very welcome."