Summer Finances: Ice Creams & Empty Wallets

The summer holidays……

That time of year that every child of school age looks forward to and most parents dread & as usual in Scotland, there is never a stitch of Mr Sunshine in sight! As depressing as it is for us adults to have to drag ourselves out of bed while the rain batters off the windows, kids feel it too – albeit in different ways. If they can’t get out on their bikes to do ‘skiddies’ up and down the street then their universal war cry can be heard for miles……”Mum, I’m bored”.

Summer Finances: The Stats

It’s no wonder that the average household with children spend an extra £25.18 per week on groceries, during the summer holidays. We all know that the first thing you do when your bored is casually saunter to the fridge and gawp aimlessly, hoping that a tasty snack will pirouette & catch your attention – I hear you never ever grow out of it! That, coupled with days out here & there quickly increases to £126.95 extra, according to a survey conducted by Morrison’s supermarket chain. They also report that 8% of us (the last of the big spenders) fork out an extra £250 – £500 in the summer holidays!! That said, you don’t have to be taking your kids to Seaworld each day to rack up such costs, simply taking the kids for a day at your local leisure centre & then for a bucket of chicken at KFC once a week would still make a dent in your purse.

The Dreaded Conclusion

With this in mind, is there really any wonder why people get into debt over the summer, even if they aren’t sticking a fortnight in Benidorm on their plastic pall?! I’d be surprised if the masses over at the Park of Payday Loans aren’t basking in the sun, rolling themselves in 3,000% APR sun cream when after a fortnight of being stuck in-doors watching Shrek for the umpteenth time with her 2 whiney kids, chanting that universal war cry, mother dear admits defeat and picks up the phone and surrenders to a “Wonga Week”.

Stay at home parents seem to wish they weren’t quite so much, in the summer break although the grass is always greener eh? It is by no means cheaper working, the fiver a day for a couple of hours after school care quickly becomes a fiver an hour for the duration of your working week! Ever feel like your simply going to work to pay for the child care you need while you’re at work?? We always want what her across the road has got, but if you can’t afford it, is it really worth the next 12 months of minimum payments, hefty interest and sleepless nights just to try keep the kids quiet?

Is the backlash of overspending really worth it?

Take a walk, bake a cake – get out the paddling pool -weather dependant of course, although no one is going to melt!

Perhaps we need to remember that it’s not what you spend on them, it’s more about the time you spend with them.