A guide to Christmas on a budget

The reality is that Christmas has become a commercial and expensive affair.

It can feel overwhelming as we wonder how we are going to afford it all on top of rising bills, with no spare money to spend on anything extra. Limited finances can feel like a hurdle we need to overcome, and for some a crushing burden, that at times can make the Christmas season feel more anxious than joyful.

Firstly, it’s important to combat any guilt we may be feeling. For many families who are struggling to make ends meet, the Christmas that we see in TV adverts just isn’t the reality – families gathering around a large Christmas tree in an extravagant home, unwrapping the gifts they always wanted and an abundance of luxury food and drink. Advertising will tell us that we must have X, Y and Z to have a happy, perfect Christmas – but that simply isn’t so. This kind of spending just isn’t possible for many of us, and seeing this picture-perfect Christmas can make us feel disappointed and sad that we can’t do this for our children. We may feel guilty, or even like a failure. We can fall into debt as we try to create the ideal Christmas for our family.

Don’t fall for the lie! Parents on low incomes don’t love their children any less, and money or gifts don’t buy happiness. It’s important to remember that Christmas is about family, love, showing how much we care, and spending quality time with loved ones. Instead of putting lots of money into Christmas, let’s put in time with our children. Create happy memories with them – that is what they will remember – not the presents that are eventually discarded. Our presence in their life is far more important than any present will ever be. Memories last a lifetime. And remember, many a parent has said that in the end, children preferred playing with the boxes anyway!

To help ourselves have the best start to the New Year, here are some tips to help us manage our money better throughout the festive season.

• Make a list of individuals you would like to purchase presents for. You could also think about trimming the number of people you buy gifts for this year. If you have a lot of extended family, consider doing a Secret Santa instead or consider purchasing one gift for each family unit, such as a board game or chocolates to share. Focus on smaller, thoughtful gifts. Make sure to budget for additional items that need to be purchased, such as wrapping paper and cards.
• Create a budget. Set a maximum amount that you will spend on each person, on food, decorations, etc. and do your best to stick to it. Try not to be tempted by last minute extra gifts, even when they’re on sale!
• Join forces. If your child has asked for an item that’s out of your budget, consider talking to family members or your co-parent about the possibility of chipping in for one big gift from you all.
• Don’t invite lots of extended family for Christmas dinner if you can’t afford it. If this is something you love to do and want to continue, ask each family member to bring part of the meal. Delegate tasks when cooking to help relieve any stress in the process.
• If you can’t afford to, don’t send cards. Instead, wish people a Merry Christmas via text, online messages or email. Many are now opting to go paperless with their Christmas well-wishes, with some even putting up a Facebook post to wish everyone a Merry Christmas.
• Re-use. Put up an artificial tree each year instead of purchasing a real one – even better if you can find one second hand for free or at a fraction of the cost! You could also create homemade decorations, such as white paper chains and paper snowflakes. These are fun activities that can be done with children using items you already have at home. Another activity you could do with children is to re-use Christmas cards and turn them into decorations or cut off the back page and use them as Christmas postcards or gift labels.
• Have a clear-out. You could try selling some of your own items that you don’t need or no longer use, putting any proceeds into your Christmas savings. Facebook Marketplace, Gumtree, Vinted and eBay are all great options for selling second hand goods.
• Purchase second hand. Often children will play with a toy for a short period of time and then it sits around collecting dust. If you’re struggling to afford gifts, have a look on second hand sites for some quality, good-as-new bargains.
• Shop online when you can. This can lessen the temptation to make impulse purchases that can often happen when shopping in person. Before ordering, create a shopping list and only purchase the items on the list. When it comes to food deliveries or click & collect, the cost of using the service is often less than you would normally spend on extra items you come across while browsing in the shops!
• Make it from scratch. Many people love handmade gifts – especially from children. Things such as baking cookies for family and friends, creating handmade Christmas cards or baubles, knitting them a hat, or painting a picture and framing it are all great gift ideas.
• Be creative. An idea one single parent had was to make a family video. The children interviewed the adults in the family about their life and memories, made it into a video and gave it to everyone in the family as a gift.
• Find fun things to do together that don’t cost a lot of money, or any money at all. Things like going for a walk in your local area to look at the Christmas lights or staying in to watch a film with hot chocolate and popcorn.
• Alternative food. Who says we must have turkey at Christmas? If you and your family don’t like turkey and only eat it for the sake of it, or if it has become too expensive to do a Christmas dinner, find an alternative that works for you. You could substitute for a cheaper meat, or if your children’s favourite meal is spaghetti bolognese then they may even be happy with that for Christmas dinner!
• Don’t be tempted to get into debt to afford a ‘better’ Christmas. If we don’t have the money now, will we have it in January when the credit card bill comes with interest? Is what we’re buying worth getting into debt for?
• Purchasing gifts throughout the year would not only help to decrease the stress of cramming it all into December, but also relieve the financial pressure of buying everything all at once. You may also be able to save money by purchasing items when they’re on sale.
• Plan ahead. Going into the New Year, you could put small amounts of money aside for Christmas all year round and cut back on spending in other areas in the weeks or even months leading up to Christmas. For example, you could make cheaper meals when you can, and add any money saved to your Christmas pot.