Cash point TOP MONEY-SAVING TIPS FOR PARENTS

HELPING YOU SPEND WISELY, SAVE MORE AND EARN BETTER Vicki Psarias, mum of two, founder of blog Honestmum.com and author of MUMBOSS, shares her best advice on how to cut back when you have little ones cinema bargains credit watch Emmerdale actress Sandra M

GET APPY TO KEEP FINANCES IN ORDER

I find the Money Dashboard app brilliant. It securely connects to your bank account (or multiple accounts if you want to link with your partner’s) and helps you to track exactly where you’re spending and how you can save. It produces easyto-read graphs showing how much you spend on childcare, shopping, travel and food (takeaways, for example, are easily forgotten but add up). It demystifies your forgotten spending and helps you learn where to cut back and save.

BUY CHILDREN’S ITEMS SECOND HAND

Clothes, furniture and bedding can all rack up when you have children, but don’t think you have to buy everything brand new. Check out ebay and Amazon for new and secondhand items for less. I also love TK Maxx for bargain kids’ clothes, and charity shops can be brilliant for furniture and toys. Equally, to make some extra cash, sell items the kids no longer need on ebay or local Facebook selling sites. It can be easier to sell items if they are in “bundles” like “boys’ clothes, age 8-9”. Sift through your kids’ wardrobe seasonally as children grow out of clothes quickly and buy bigger sizes to get more wear out of them.

MAKE FOOD SHOPS LESS MEATY

Meat is expensive, so as a family you don’t need to eat it every day. I’ve noticed a big difference in my food shop bills by cutting back on meat and eating veggie some of the time. Swap for protein, like pulses and grains. My kids love Quorn mince spag Bolognese with diced carrots, onions and sweetcorn, or veggie fish fingers with sweet potato chips and peas. They also take less time to cook, but still keep the kids full and healthy.

BUY OLDER KIDS REFURBISHED TECH

Check out manufacturers’ sites like Apple or Dell to buy refurbished items (which are undamaged and fully working). It’s a great way to get laptops, tablets and phones at reduced fees. My son Oliver, eight, saved his pocket money and Christmas cash over two years to buy a reduced ipad and saved over £100. Save your old phones, too, to hand down to your teens. My eldest son “borrows” my old iphone to play Pokémon, so I don’t need to fork out for a phone for him.

ENTERTAIN FOR LESS

You don’t need to constantly take the kids out on expensive day trips. Head outdoors whatever the weather (just wrap up warm) and check out seasonal free events at your local parks, museums or galleries, which can provide hours of free fun for all the family. When it comes to paid outdoor activities, we love RHS Gardens and National Trust Parks. We’ve invested in family memberships, which offer great value and give you unlimited access to sites all over the UK.

On a sparkly jumpsuit from Next to wear over the party season.

A new cutlery tray to go inside one of my kitchen drawers from John Lewis.

On a set of fairy lights from John Lewis – they make your house feel so cosy in the evenings. For the complete

box set from Amazon.

On lipsticks from MAC. They were actually free because I took my empties into the store and used their Back To Mac recycling scheme.

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