How to keep family costs down

Having a family isn’t cheap! Parents tend to think that the early years are the worst when it comes to costs but from my experience, it’s the teenage years where the money really mounts up and being able to keep family costs down can become tricker than ever.

From school trips and clothes they always grow out of to hobbies and family holidays where anyone over the age of 5 gets charged adult prices the costs just mount up endlessly.

So what are some simple things you can you do as a family to help keep the costs down elsewhere?

Food Costs

The bigger your family, the more you will end up spending on food and since this is one of life’s necessities the more you can do to get the costs down the better. This may mean shopping at a different supermarket when it comes to doing your big weekly shop or even looking into things like meal planning so that you only buy what you need.

Batch cooking is another great idea to help keep the costs down and can be especially useful during the colder months when it’s more ‘weather appropriate’ to serve casseroles and chillis. Even using an Air Fryer can be a great way to help keep those costs down.

Of course, always keep an eye out for vouchers you can use to keep the cost down when it comes to your shop. National newspapers typically offer Aldi or Lidl discount vouchers and if online shopping is your thing then taking advantage of cashback offers from the likes of TopCashBack or Quidco for new supermarket customers can make a real difference.

Keep those leisure costs down

Pester power is a very strong force when it comes to parenting and just saying ‘YES’ to everything for a quiet life can sometimes feel like the easy option. A lot of people will think that doing leisure activities can end up costing an arm and a leg but that doesn’t have to be the case. Take advantage of your local leisure centre, book onto some swimming lessons with Seriously Fun or if the weather is nice to make the most of your local parks.

Take advantage of the second-hand market

Being able to buy second-hand items has never been easier. I remember in the mid-90s the only way you were going to find some second-hand furniture was if it was listed at the back of your local newspaper. Now things couldn’t be easier with people listing things on eBay, Facebook Marketplace and Gumtree. Over the years we’ve been able to get some amazing bargains such as a nearly new double-sized bed for only £60 which was being sold at such a low price because the existed owners needed to move house urgently.

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