Costly holidays to test budget

Two in five hard-pressed parents in the UK are already trying to cut back on spending as they prepare to entertain their children over the summer holidays, research shows.

Some 39% of mothers and fathers of schoolchildren rein in their spending in June to boost their budgets during costly months of July and August, deals website Groupon found, putting aside an average of £220 during the month.

Nearly one in 10 (9%) parents claim they start planning and saving for the summer holidays as far as six months in advance.

Meanwhile, more than a third (35%) of parents find themselves having to make cutbacks at the end of the summer holidays after blowing the budget.

Parents typically estimate they spend £251 on activities keeping their child or children occupied while they are off school during the summer.

On top of this, they spend an added £138 more than the usual household outgoings during term time, bringing total extra spending over the summer break to an estimated £389 per family on average.

Nearly two-thirds (61%) of parents try to plan activities for their children before the summer holidays start but 45% admit they end up struggling for new ideas.

The average parent estimates they make 13 suggestions to their child every week during the summer break to help keep their child or children entertained and the average child starts to get bored just after 1.30pm on a typical day during the summer break.

“The average child starts to get bored just after 1.30pm”