Debt charity's tips for low-cost summer

Centre manager Jane Preston said school holidays could be a difficult time for families struggling money.

She said it was important that families had a 'game plan' so they could find ways to enjoy time to together as a family without the stress of worrying about money.

"Lots of parents with tight budgets are worrying about what they can do to keep their children entertained over the long summer break," said Mrs Preston.

Here are the charity's top tips:

1. Summer reading challenge: The free annual reading challenge is held in the borough's public libraries over the summer, and is aimed at children aged four to 11. This year’s challenge celebrates the 50th anniversary of the moon landing. There are also volunteering opportunities for older children – contact your local library for further details.

2. Explore outside: Go outdoors! Have a nature walk or build a den, see what bugs you can find or make art in the woods with what you discover. The Wildlife Trust has more than 2,000 nature reserves – see if there’s one near you. The majority are completely free of charge. wildlifetrusts.org/nature-reserves

3. Meal planning: Planning meals ahead is always important to make the most of your money, but it could be an activity in itself to get the children planning what they want to eat.

Mrs Preston said: "This may result in some difficult conversations if they only want to eat what’s bad for them but it could also lead to some clever creativity in the kitchen.

"Get them to plan a menu, make a shopping list of ingredients and cook. They will also learn some great skills for life. The BBC Good Food website has a special children’s section filled with simple cheap recipes bbcgoodfood.com/howto/guide/cooking-projects-kids

4. Declutter and make cash: "Most children hate tidying their bedrooms and getting them to do so can be a real headache," said Mrs Preston. "But a financial reward could be a great incentive. Decluttering and selling their unwanted toys and books on eBay or at a car boot sale could make money for summer treats and activities. "Or how about older kids doing some supervised car washing for neighbours?"

5. Games night: Dust off the board and card games and have a themed night in with family or friends. If games are not the children's idea of fun, you could get some popcorn and DVDs in and hold a film night.

6. Create a scrapbook: Chronicle your summer together by including keepsakes or mementoes of times spent together. Alternatively, make a scrapbook about your favourite topics. Take a shoebox and start filling it with items ideal for scrapbooks, be it magazines, foil or loose bits of string. Then, when the rainy comes that disrupts your plans, the children will have a craft box to keep them entertained.

7. Gardening and planting: Watching something grow that you’ve planted can be really inspiring. Make an egg head with cress seeds, grow dried pea shoots on kitchen towel for a quick tasty salad or plant wildflowers to help bees. Low cost seeds can be found on eBay or in supermarkets.

See wildlifetrusts.org/ or friendsoftheearth.uk/bees/donate-save-britains-bees-get-your-bee-saver-kit-today

8. Indoor picnic: Don’t wait for a sunny day to have a picnic, spread out a picnic blanket indoors and have a carpet picnic. Or dress for wet weather and have your packed lunch in the car or on the bus to the park and jump in puddles afterwards.

9. Dancing: Another great activity for when the weather isn’t so good is dancing. There’s something to be said for the saying ‘Dance as if no-one is watching’. All you need is some music, some space and off you go. Smaller children love to dance and older ones will soon join in. Not only is it fun but it’s good exercise too.

10. Free places to go: You will be amazed how many places you can visit free of charge.

Check out this list of free (and low cost) museums, galleries and festivals www.moneysavingexpert.com/deals/cheap-days-out

 For CAP Debt Help call 0800 328 0006 or see the website capuk.org