What does tax-free childcare actually mean?

The new scheme, which will come into force next month for the youngest children, will mean that the Government will pay 20 per cent of annual childcare costs (for every 80p you pay in the Government will pay 20p – ie the basic tax rate) if you are eligible.

Who is eligible?

The scheme is available to parent/s of children up to 12 years of age (for children with disabilities this is increased to 17). In order to qualify, the parent or parents have to be working a minimum of 16 hours a week and earning at least £115 a week. If either parent earns more than £100,000 a year they won’t qualify. If you’re already on any employer childcare voucher scheme, you wont’t be able to apply for both (you can choose one or the other). It’s good news for the self-employed as they too can apply. The scheme is also available to those on paid or unpaid maternity, paternity or adoption leave. The scheme is only available in England. In the USA kids can attend children’s academy for preschoolers that is quite affordable. Hopefully, there will be similar institutions in England soon. By the way, those who live in Highlands Ranch, CO, USA, contact OVCA for details.

What do you need to do?

Firstly, if eligible, you’d have to open an online account through NS&I and this will be via the Government website. Exact details seem to be a bit vague at present and there don’t appear to be any links just yet.

Once open, you pay whatever you want into this account up to a maximum of £8,000 and this is topped up by the government. If you paid in the full £8k, this would entitle you to the maximum government contribution of £2,000 (for disabled children it’d be £4000). You can open one account per child, with the £8000 cap for each. You don’t have to pay in a set amount each month, so you can pay in more for the times that you need to pay for more childcare. The even better news… anyone can pay into the account, so get the relatives on the case

• Savings Accounts for Children

The post Childcare That’s Tax-free – Budget 2017 appeared first on The Parent Social.

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Studies over the years have shown varying numbers on the average costs of raising a child, but the one thing that is evident across the board is that having children is an expensive exercise. In the US, one child on average costs $245,000, while the Telegraph reports a whopping £230,000 per child. From electricity bills to groceries and clothes, having a kid can do some major damage to your bank account. However, it is possible to reduce family expenditure. 

Here are a few ways that you can maximise your family budget:

Buy clothes for quality and versatility

More often than not, parents will wait for clothing sales during back-to-school seasons in hopes of saving themselves some money, only for the clothes to get worn out and tossed in the bin because they aren’t good enough to be sent to charity. Don’t fall into the trap of sales, which can make you spend more than you anticipated; rather, you want to shop smart. As Tootsa describes, you should be aiming for clothes “ideal for layering to suit temperature and changes in weather,” as well as durable enough to last wash after wash, so that once your child grows out of those garments, they can be passed down on to the next one (if you go that route!) or even sold on.

Plan your weekly meals

Cooking on a daily basis can get tiring and influences you to eat out or order in more. However, it’s common sense that your money will go a lot further on a trip to the grocery store than it will at your local takeaway restaurants. To minimise the time consumed by brainstorming what could be made with the leftovers in your fridge, a simple meal plan is all you need. Money Crashers recommend a weekly meal plan, as it will help you figure out exactly what you need and enable you to shop well within your budget. Removing the stress, helps remove the temptation of too many takeaways and meals out!

Throw the occasional “give and take” party

Have friends who also have families? American mother Julie Knoll has a mom’s club that often hosts a “give and take” table, an item swap that lets friends trade pre-loved toys, clothes and houseware that are still in great condition, all for free. The more exciting version of a garage sale, this is a great way to help out friends, neighbors, and of course yourself without dropping a fortune at different boutiques and department stores. Another benefit of this give and take party is that it helps in decluttering your house.

If you have any other tips, please feel free to share them below!

Also read:

Making Money From Home (and de-cluttering) 
I've Changed... I've Created a Meal Planner 

The post Three Ways to Save on Your Household Budget appeared first on The Parent Social.