Money saving and budgeting tips

Introductions first.  I am Debs, an almost 50 year old mum of 3.  I run a busy blog and reviewer community called What's Good To Do.  As a busy parent, I am often on the look out for money saving/budgeting ideas and today I am going to share some tips with you.

Money saving tips... 

1. Family Friends Railcard - If you plan to travel by train on days out over the summer, I recommend buying a Family and Friends Railcard.  I have saved so much money using mine and you can have a 2nd cardholder on it too so they can save too.  According to the Railcard website, they cost £30.00 for one year.  
   
   
2. Buy one get one free deals - When food shopping, why not stock up on items which have a best before date at least a few months away, while they are on a buy one get one free deal?  
   
   
3. Annual passes - If you are planning any days out this summer, you may find that for the price of a few visits to an attraction you can actually buy an annual pass.   With some of them you may even find that your annual pass will get you certain discounts at the attraction.
4. Consider becoming a WGTD Reviewer - The WGTD Reviewer Community has grown mostly via word of mouth over the years.  Several reviewers have been with WGTD for 5 or more years.  You would be welcome to join our FB group for reviewers and see what goes on.  So here is where you can potentially save money.  Once the annual admin fee is paid (£39.99 individual/£41.99 joint - but do check whether a discount code is running to save you money) whatever a reviewer reviews is gifted to them by the client for the purposes of writing a 500+ word review.  With experiences they tend to be gifted to at least one guest too. We are tending to do a good number of theatre reviews at the moment which is great as a lot of reviewers seem to enjoy doing them. 

Budgeting tips... 

1. Make a budget spreadsheet - I have created a spreadsheet which helps me figure out my finances.  It starts with my current bank balance and then lists any outgoings and income by date for the coming months.  I find this really helpful.  For example, I allow myself a certain amount for household expenses.  
   
   
2. Use envelopes - one idea I plan to put in place myself is to withdraw the amount I have set aside for household expenses at the start of the month and then split that amount out into separate weeks.  I then plan to label each envelope with the appropriate week's details.   That way, I know what money I have available to spend on household expenses during that particular week.
   
   
3. Be realistic - the cost of living seems to have gone up a lot when it comes to buying a food shop.  I would recommend setting realistic budgets that you can stick to. 

I hope you find these tips useful.