Money Saving Tips for Summer

Money Saving Tips for Summer

Summers can be expensive! If you have children, you probably need and want to take some time off work to look after them during the summer holidays and naturally we all want to enjoy this beautiful season to the fullest.

For many of us, it’s not easy though and new research shows that more and more workers at UK councils are applying for emergency loans. British employees are struggling and May figures from CashLady reveals which councils are the worst and which top employers have workers who can’t make ends meet and apply for emergency finance even though they’re in a steady job. Among these are some of Britain’s largest organisations — the NHS, Tesco and Sainsbury’s. Cash Lady has made an interactive map showing the details which you can see by clicking the link above.

A post shared by A Mum Reviews – Parenting Blog (@amumreviews) on Apr 10, 2018 at 5:25am PDT

How can you enjoy summer without spending lots of money?

• It all adds up.
  

Small but frequent outlays add up quickly and there are many temptations in the summer — an iced coffee from the coffee shop at lunch-time, an ice cream in the park or a beer or two in the pub garden after work. Think about these things if they are things you usually buy and save money by making your coffee at home and buying treats like beer and ice cream in bigger packs from the supermarket. The savings you’ll make will be huge! Also, don’t be afraid to try supermarkets’ own brands. My favourite ice creams are the Fruity Moments Tropical Ice Creams from ASDA which cost £1 for 3 and they taste even better than Soleros!

• Ask around!

When money is tight, there will probably not be any summer holidays abroad and more local ones can be expensive too. One good trick is to ask friends and family if they know anyone who has a caravan or holiday house somewhere that they rent out. If they do, they’re usually happy to offer a lower price for someone they know or who is a friend of a friend. We once went on a lovely holiday to an apartment in Portugal and it was the parents of some old classmates of my husband’s who owned it. If all else fails, day trips to the seaside are always a hit with kids and adults and can be done very cheaply if you take a packed lunch.

• Summer fun at home.

Going out for drinks and meals with friends is a lot of fun but costs a lot. Instead, why not arrange a BBQ at home or at a friend’s house and ask everyone to bring their own drinks and make a dish or brings some food for the BBQ. You can still enjoy good food, drinks and company but at a fraction of the cost of socialising in bars and restaurants.

• Enjoy the little things.

Some parents worry about not taking their children on exciting holidays but this is really not something that you should worry about if you have kids. Your kids just want to spend time with you so make the most of any days off with your children and spend time and play with them and those are the days they’ll remember and treasure forever. My kids love free fun like splashing around in the garden in a paddling pool or playing football with us parents. I often ask my daughters what the best thing of each day was and they rarely mention the bigger more expensive activities. It’s usually things like “playing in the garden” or “eating a biscuit”. Kids are simple and like simple fun — being at home with their parents’ full attention is one of their favourite things.

Collaborative Article.