The average UK household is spending nearly £119 per week on food shopping, amounting to more than £6,000 per year. For families with children, the cost can increase to £170 weekly. Rising costs mean that 61 per cent of the people in the UK claim they’ve had to cut back.
In a new series, The i Paper asks families how they manage their weekly budget. This week, we hear from marketing professional Elen Notley, 34, about how she and her husband, a teacher, budget their outgoings for a family of three. Their daughter is almost three.
Two years ago we moved back to Cardiff, my home city, from the countryside to be close to my family, but it means our housing costs have increased. Our mortgage is £1,700, which is £400 more than it used to be in the countryside, and for less space. We have Sky, which is a big cost, council tax, car insurance on two cars and utilities.
We have tried to reduce our bills in any way that we can. We recently changed our life insurance as we felt we were paying too much but utilities alone have increased a lot. Our water bill used to be £30 per month and it’s more than doubled now. We have no savings at the end of the month even with two full-time incomes. Both our incomes just cover our outgoings.
