Looking for ways to make your 16-19 year old’s studies pay?
Posted inChildren & Relationships Family life Money - how to keep it and how to make it

Looking for ways to make your 16-19 year old’s studies pay?

By the end of June, when GCSE season has finally been put to bed, parents around the country will start to bemoan the cost of keeping a teenage bloomer in the style (they think) they deserve.

If you can get through the summer holidays, the good news is that if your child stays in full-time education, there is help at hand.

EMAs

Known as the Education Maintenance Allowance, EMAs come in the form of £30 paid every week into your child’s account to help them afford to stay on at school. Children in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland cane apply directly from Student Finance Wales.

If your child doesn’t have one already, they will need a bank account for the payments to be made into – they’ll need these details for the application form.

The 16-19 Bursary Fund

For students in England, the new bursary scheme will help with the cost of equipment for school, travel and lunch. It replaces the EMA for England (only), which was scrapped in 2012.

The bursary amounts to £1,200 and is discretionary, so schools and colleges can decide which students need it most to help them continue their studies.

How to save £700 on your food bill by freezing your eggs (no, this is not IVF)
Posted inFamily life Foodie Fridays

How to save £700 on your food bill by freezing your eggs (no, this is not IVF)

That’s £58.33 a month to spend on other essentials around the house…and it won’t cost you anything to make the saving.

According to the iFreeze, iSave initiative Brits waste hundreds of pounds wasting food every year, when it could be put into the freezer. Instead, we’re storing the strangest things in the freezer instead – do any of these items have a home in your freezer?

Posted inChildren & Relationships Family life

Advice for single parent’s from the experts

We all know about Mother’s Day and Father’s Day, but what about Single Parent’s Day? Single Parent’s Day takes place each year on March 21, but like many others you may not have even know that they day existed.

Looking for some fun (free or cheap) activities for the holidays? Go back to your childhood
Posted inFamily life Things to do with the kids

Looking for some fun (free or cheap) activities for the holidays? Go back to your childhood

It’s not uncommon that parents and grandparents bemoan the generational change in activities. These days, many children spend endless on gadgets of some sort and they just don’t have the same experiences of yesteryear.

8 must-haves for every busy parent’s car boot
Posted inFamily life Get organised

8 must-haves for every busy parent’s car boot

Look into the back of the boots of a busy um’s car and there are usually two distinct types: the super tidy and the fashionably disorganised.

Whichever type you are, here are some tips on what should be in your car boot, so you don’t have to feel guilty if yours looks bare, and to give you the comfort to declutter if yours has one of everything in it.

Is your home dirty? Here are 7 tips to make sure you don’t
Posted inFamily life Staying sane

Is your home dirty? Here are 7 tips to make sure you don’t

Morning rush. Commute. Work. Commute again. Afternoon rush. Children. Housework…or just about. Little sleep.

This is the way that the day starts for many working mums – even those who are self employed. How we keep the many balls we juggle in the air is a mystery to many bystanders. But little do they know what gets left undone or pushed into a hiding cupboard of box away from prying visitor eyes.

How to get organised and stop losing things
Posted inFamily life Staying sane

How to get organised and stop losing things

You know how this story goes…you’re in a rush to get the children and yourself out of the door, then you realise you can’t find your keys, or your mobile phone, or your purse. You spin around for a while like a dog chasing its tail, while everyone asks you where you put if last (very helpful question, that one!).

The four relationship New Year’s resolutions you should be making for 2015
Posted inA mix Family life What's in the news?

The four relationship New Year’s resolutions you should be making for 2015

As the year draws to a close and we all start to reflect on the past twelve months, resolutions to transform or improve your life within the following year are hot on your mind. However, many of us forget about the other areas in our lives that could also use some work and attention.

Posted inFamily life What's in the news?

How to deal with the stress of family this Christmas

Christmas the time of year that everyone above the age of fourteen becomes stressed, tired and skint. So when the big day finally comes around and the house is full of friends, relatives and those family members you spend all year trying to avoid, things can quickly become chaos.

Three things you can do to make the morning run a lot less stressful
Posted inChildren & Relationships Family life Staying sane

Three things you can do to make the morning run a lot less stressful

Mornings don’t need to be stressful – seriously. Even if you have a family of 10, there are some measures you can put in place to make sure everything runs smoothly from the alarm clock going off in the morning to when you’ve finished the morning school or childcare run.

Here they are:

Time to get organised: how to make button fridge magnets
Posted inChildren & Relationships Family life

Time to get organised: how to make button fridge magnets

Eeek! It’s that time again…the children are back at school and military operation and organisation that’s required of you has just kicked off.

There’s nothing like a fridge full of reminders to keep everything rocking like clockwork. Here’s a video on how to make button fridge magnets – you can customise them with creative crafts from the children:

Get the school year off to a good start with – tips on building a good relationship with teachers
Posted inChildren & Relationships Family life

Get the school year off to a good start with – tips on building a good relationship with teachers

Pushy parent syndrome irritates other parents, and leave teachers wanting to give detentions…and not to the children, but their parents. But you also want to keep on top of what your child is doing (or isn’t) at school before it’s too late…

So just how do you get the balance right? Here are some tips:

Thinking Outside the Box: Spectacular solutions for your downsizing dilemma
Posted inFamily life

Thinking Outside the Box: Spectacular solutions for your downsizing dilemma

It’s time to start downsizing. You’ve had this home for a while now, and it suited you well when you had children. But, now, it’s just too much. What do you do? Well, downsizing is a process. You’ll need a step-by-step plan and ideas for furniture. In a sense, you’re adopting an entirely new life. 

Four things you can do with the trusty old kitchen timer
Posted inFamily life Staying sane Work from home tips and advice

Four things you can do with the trusty old kitchen timer

There’s a lot of motivation to be gained when you’re up against the clock. It creates a buzz, a surge of adrenaline to do anything but fail.

That’s why we love the trusty old kitchen timer. Use it for maximum success in getting things done and staying on top of work and home chores.

How to save money on food during the summer holidays
Posted inChildren & Relationships Family life Foodie Fridays

How to save money on food during the summer holidays

According to the Office of National Statistics, UK families spend between £43.10 and £56.80 on the food shop every week.

That’s quite a big part of the monthly outgoings, but that cost soon multiplies when the kids are home for the school holidays – especially the summer holidays.

So just how can we budget during the school holidays? Here are some tips to help you save:

Travelling this summer? Holiday tips for mums to stay sane
Posted inChildren & Relationships Family life Staying sane

Travelling this summer? Holiday tips for mums to stay sane

The holidays can be stressful – especially the summer holidays. The longest on the school calendar, there’s a lot of pressure to keep boredom at bay, and to stay on top of your finances, too.

After the first few weeks, you and your children may well wish school was open, but you still have t battle it out until the first week of September. Going away somewhere can lessen the stress (a bit), but you still have – here are a few ideas to help you keep your sanity this holiday season:

Four domestic goddess tips for the half term…
Posted inFamily life

Four domestic goddess tips for the half term…

Eeek…are you still finding the odd biscuit tucked away in a corner somewhere, or toys in sofa after the Easter break? Just when you thought you were on top of it all, here comes another half term break, which means one more thing…more mess.

Children will be children, but it doesn’t mean that you can’t out something in place to stop (or reduce) the mess they create. Here are some tips:

Top five professional cleaning tips
Posted inFamily life

Top five professional cleaning tips

Vacuum cleaners are one of those investment buys that can be a hit or miss sometimes – especially if you don’t do your research before parting with your cash.

If you’ve bought a vacuum cleaner and can’t seem to get the best out of it, here are five tips that could help change your vacuuming experience:

What’s your most valuable possession?
Posted inFamily life

What’s your most valuable possession?

Is it your favourite childhood toy, or irreplaceable photos of the kids? If it’s the later then you’re not on your own because  family albums have been revealed as the nation’s most treasured possession, according to a recent poll.