Graduation days beautifully celebrate your hard work as a student, marking the beginning of a new chapter in your life. Then comes the post-graduation transition – which is difficult because no one really prepares you with money lessons for embracing the changes brought by adulthood.

As someone who very recently underwent this transition, I realised that we (students) know much more about quadratic equations than we know about personal finance. 

Being a business graduate, I presumed (wrongfully!) that I knew enough about money management, investments and savings. It wasn’t until I started earning and managing my own money that I realised that the most crucial personal finance aspects were never taught to us. Instead, you are expected to know it all right from the beginning of your career!

So, here are some of the many money lessons I wish I learned in school.

Read more from Richa Ved on Mouthy Money

Budgeting

While budgeting is introduced as a concept at a basic level in school, it gets far more complicated when you’re trying to spend appropriately, pay off debts, and save more – all at the same time.

And while most budgeting skills are taught for when you HAVE money, not much is taught about how it works when you don’t have a lot of it.

Budgeting at a personal level is step 1 of learning how to manage our money. We must calculate our respective disposable incomes, understand our spending patterns, and learn to prioritise our needs (rent, utilities, food, transport) over our wants (luxuries, travel, gifts, entertainment and other activities).

The 50/30/20 Budget Rule is a good thumb rule I started with – allocating 50% of my disposable income towards my needs, 30% towards my wants and 20% towards saving.

The taxation system

The taxation system was certainly an eye-opener for me in my adult years. Growing up I always understood what ‘tax’ meant but as I navigated through the entire tax system, I realised I didn’t know much about it.

From learning how to calculate my taxes and understanding the various tax bands to accounting for my personal allowance (or other benefits) and learning how to file year-end tax returns – it was a whole different world.

How to save right

Yes, savings are important and yes, we need to save some of the money we earn – But how? What’s the right amount? Where do I save? And why?

Sometimes it’s too late till we realise we should not just be saving towards our short-term pleasures (like Christmas gifts, a new gaming console, or a swanky car) but also towards long-term goals such as childcare and retirement.

A good tip is to automate your savings for your various financial goals to prevent yourself from overspending it right now.

The basics of individual investing

While saving your money is crucial, it’s most important to learn how to multiply it from the very beginning. Remember, the earlier you start investing, the larger your pot will grow.

Set a realistic timeline to achieve your financial milestones – like building your career, becoming financially independent, buying a house etc. – and find the best avenues for investing and growing your money as per your requirements.

Avoid any quick money-making scams and frauds and be sure to do your due diligence before putting your money anywhere.

The ins and outs of credit and debt

Loans and credit cards are wired into the system as common earning and spending methods. 

But the term ‘debt spiral’ isn’t heard as often. No one teaches you what it is, how to prevent it, or (god forbid!) how to deal with it. The same goes for student loans. So many students get into these without having a clear idea of the repercussions and potential impact. 

All these credit methods eventually count towards your credit score – an important indicator of your creditworthiness (ability to repay your debts) that companies use to offer you a mortgage, insurance, credit cards, or business loan.

Photo credits: Pexels

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The thought of a school half term and the costs associated with it, will be daunting for some.

Keeping the kids entertained is never easy, and it’s even harder if you’re on a budget. Luckily there are a few deals floating about.

Here’s one that gets your kids some free brekkie throughout the whole of the half term period.

What is in the deal exactly?

If you have a school age child (or multiple school age children), taking them to a supermarket cafe will get you the deal.

Asda Cafes (which you can find nationwide) are offering this freebie. You can head to a cafe between 8am and 12pm each day and ask for the offer.

You don’t need any coupon or voucher to show to get it, just speak to the staff member, and you’ll get the free breakfast.

The only thing that’s included in the breakfast is a bowl of Quaker Oats porridge, so it might not be for a fussy eater – but still a nice little freebie for those that like it.

Parents… you don’t need to buy anything or be eating alongside your kids while taking advantage of this offer – there’s no minimum spend, so you can just get the freebie.

This offer will be running over the whole week of half term (from Monday 13th to Sunday 19th), so there’s plenty of time to claim it.

There’s nothing stopping you going there more than once too, if you wanted to feed your kids on the cheap over half term.

Why should I care?

Food is expensive at the best of times, so if you were already going to do a food shop during the school holidays, you can tie it in with a free breakfast.

It’s not the biggest freebie, but it’s a great initiative – and if your son or daughter likes porridge, then it’s a win win.

What’s the catch?

You do have to have a school age child (16 or under) to get the deal.

The Asda website says that there are 50,000 bowls of porridge available around the country during the promotion, but there’s no indication of how many each store has, or what happens if they run out.

It’s probably something to do at the start of the half term week just in case, but I see it unlikely that they’d turn people away if asking for it.

What other options do I have?

During half term week, you can find a lot of deals on meals for kids. If you can’t get there for breakfast, Asda Cafe is also doing a kids meal for £1 nationwide.

Not only this, other restaurants and cafes such as Yo Sushi, Morrisons, Bella Italia, Sizzling Pubs, Angus Steakhouse, Hungry Horse and many more are offering deals. Usually kids eat for totally free with an adult meal purchase, or for £1.

Where can I find out more?

Head over to the Asda website for the full details of the deal, but head into an Asda Cafe during half term to pick it up.

Photo by Melissa Belanger on Unsplash

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Mouthy Money’s regular contributor, Shoestring Jane, offers various ways to save money on school uniforms this summer. Find out how.

I well remember the sinking feeling I had when it was time to invest in new school uniforms for my three daughters each summer holiday.

It was such a large expense and really strained our budget. When they hit secondary school it was an even bigger deal, as they suddenly required all manner of sports equipment, as well as a special tie and blazer.

Kids grow at an alarming rate. With this in mind, you may be waiting until the last minute before kitting them out for the new school year. This is all very well, but stocks will run low, so if you haven’t bought your children’s uniform yet, do it now!

I was always looking at how to save money on school uniforms. Here is some of what I learned.

Buy second hand

Buying second hand can save a lot of money on school uniform. Parent Teacher Associations often run school shops offering second hand clothing in good condition.  It is worthwhile to asking on your local Freegle and Freecycle groups too.

Where the uniform is unique to the school it tends to be from a particular supplier and is much more expensive than the generic offerings from elsewhere.

Check charity shops close to the school as well as Facebook Marketplace buying and selling groups for pre-owned items at a fraction of the price.

Improvise

At my eldest daughter’s secondary school the blazers were a standard black and the skirts a plain grey. However, the school insisted both were purchased from their supplier 10 miles away.

We managed to find a grey skirt locally for half the price. It was so similar no one ever guessed.

I also cut the logo off an old blazer and sewed it onto a standard supermarket version. The uniform police didn’t notice that either.

This obviously won’t work where the uniform is an unusual style or colour, however.

Supermarket specials

There is no doubt that supermarkets offer the cheapest uniform, particularly for primary age children. For example, you can buy a two pack of girl’s pinafore dresses at Asda for just £8 or boy’s trousers from £7 for two.

M&S school uniforms are a little more expensive, but they boast that the items on offer “are made from durable materials to help them last that bit longer.”

It is tempting to simply go for the cheapest. However, cheap isn’t always best as poor quality items will get worn out or start to look shabby more quickly.

Wherever you purchase from, always buy a size up. As I said, kids grow at an amazing rate, especially teenagers!

Shoes

Shoes can be one of the biggest expenses at the start of each school year. I learned early on that it was best to buy decent quality leather shoes. They would then last the full year.

Buy cheap and buy twice, as the saying goes. 

To save money on school shoes, it is worth checking to see if you have a Clarks outlet locally. If you are happy to fit the shoes yourself, the Clarks outlet website offers 30% off. Startrite also has an outlet page, which is worth a look.

Are you eligible for a uniform grant?

At one time anyone on benefits could get a uniform grant for their children. However, now things are quite patchy, particularly in England.

If you are in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland and on a low income, you may be entitled to a grant, which you usually apply for via your local council. 

In England some councils still offer school clothing grants, but they aren’t obliged to.

With their finances stretched, many have withdrawn from the scheme. You can input your post code to find out if you could get help from your local council here.

If you work in a supermarket or other grocery outlet, you could be entitled to a School Essentials Grant from Grocery Aid. You can apply for a one-off grant of £150 for up to three children.

Applications have closed for 2022, but keep an eye on the website and get organised in advance for next year.

Label and look after

Persuade your children to change when they get home and fold or hang their uniform. This will mean less washing, drying and ironing, which will extend the life of each piece of clothing.

Make sure you label every item of uniform, especially sports equipment, so that they are less likely to get lost forever.

Check what they really need

I remember being incensed when the ‘essential’ hockey stick and boots purchased for one of my daughters when she began secondary school was used once or twice the whole year and then hardly ever again. 

It is definitely worth asking questions about the long uniform lists you will inevitably receive, first with the school but, even better, with parents whose children are already there. They will tell you what is really essential and the items you can perhaps borrow as and when required.

If you have to buy things like hockey sticks, you will find many examples second hand at a fraction of the new price…

Photo by ROBIN WORRALL on Unsplash

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