Helping you keep your finances healthy!

A few weeks into the New Year and many of us have already given up on our overambitious resolutions. We only went to the gym twice and survived just two booze-free weeks. But rather than concentrating on the goals we haven’t achieved, let’s think about what we can effectively improve at the start of 2012. [...]

You might just be decorating the nursery and tripping over baby toys, but now is the time to start thinking about your child’s future.

Would you throw take £100 out of the cashpoint and throw it down the drain? Of course not! But that’s exactly what many of us are doing when it comes to our utility bills.

We all know summer holidays can prove costly. The kids spend money like it’s going out of fashion, and us ladies always need a new wardrobe before we head off on our jollies. There’s travel and accommodation to fork out for and empty stomachs to feed. Even if you’re not planning to go abroad this year, you’ll probably still find yourself paying over the odds for family days out.

I have become a bit obsessive compulsive about using my Boots loyalty card. It is arguably the most generous loyalty card around and it’s amazing how quickly the points mount up.

According to David Hynam, Chief Executive of Friends Life, recent research shows that the “coping classes”, those earning between £20 and £50,000 , feel disproportionately affected by public sector job cuts and have adopted a new attitude to debt.