Back to school: 5 great ways to save money
Back to school: 5 great ways to save money
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After nearly six months of entertaining the kids at home during this lockdown, you may find money is a bit tight when it comes to getting ready to go back to school. With parents being asked to contribute more to classroom supplies thanks to budget cuts, the mountain of things you’ll need to supply for your kids just gets bigger, so how do you ensure you’re not spending money unnecessarily.
1. Make a list
To avoid 'spend creep' make sure you know what you're heading out to get and be firm about buying additional items if you take your kids with you. Little people often make terrible shoppers, so don't give in to their stationary and uniform whims. Better still, to teach your children the value of money, give them a strict budget to show them if they want more expensive items, they'll have to save on other things on their list.
2. Have a clear out (and do an inventory)
You probably already have some of the things you need tucked away in drawers and cupboards around the house. So rather than waste money buying things you already have, make some time to have a good look around your home for pencils, pens, paper and notebooks that you may have forgotten you have, and don't forget to tick them off that list you created, it could save you a lot of money on back to school supplies.
3. Save on uniform costs
Uniforms can be expensive, particularly when you have to buy for more than one child. Supermarkets provide a great range of uniform items, with offers on multi buys which can help minimise cost throughout the year. You may even find your school has a uniform second-hand or exchange programme, or that parents have created groups on social media to swap or sell items of uniform they no longer need. As a bonus, giving your old items of uniform to your school for them to sell to new pupils benefits the school’s finances, so you’re also giving back…
4. Wait it out…
Don’t rush to be the first to grab everything on your list for the new school year the first week of the summer holidays. Often, items will go on sale at the tail end of the summer holidays, so it may pay off to be a last minute shopper if you can save a few pounds.
5. Follow brands on social media
Stationary and clothing brands will often use social media to host giveaways and give out discount codes. Following relevant brands on social media will put you in a good position to spot some bargains.
If you're a Cabot customer, why not use our Budget Planner to help you get on top of your finances?
Get in touch
We know dealing with back to school expenses can be difficult, especially when also facing debt. If you feel keeping up with your payments during this time will be a struggle get in touch with us, we can support you with lower payment plan amounts, or a temporary payment break.
If you're worried about talking to us, remember that we're here to help you reach financial recovery and that we'll never ask you to pay more than you can afford.
Find out more about how flexible we can be, by getting in touch today.
