Be informed - everyday money

Managing Your Money

A great starting point when looking at managing your money is to get thinking about the best way to track your money so you know how much you can spend and how to avoid going into the red. Moneyhelper have a useful guide on where to start when managing your money, giving great tips on budgeting and even things you can do once you're back in control like paying off any borrowing and even looking ahead to saving. 

Creating a budget gives you a snapshot of the money you have coming and money going out and puts you in control. Budgeting also helps you plan things into your spending that might not happen every week or month like family birthdays or buying school uniform every summer. When it comes to creating a budget, why not make things easy by Budget planner? 

Maximising Your Money

Now that you know more about budgeting and what your essential payments are, it's worth thinking about how you can maximise your money. 

Switching suppliers for things like phone, TV, broadband, bank account and insurance can save you £100s every year.  

Money Saving Expert has 60+ suggestions of how you can boost your income, and Clearscore have some suggestions of how you can make your money go further. 

Increasing your income might seem like an impossible task when you're balancing work with childcare and other commitments but you can get support from advice providers in Sunderland.  

Bank Accounts Explained

A lot of people probably have a standard bank account that they might have opened when starting their first job, but have you thought about looking into a bank account that suits you? 

It's worth thinking about whether it's important to you to have a local branch that you can visit or if you'd prefer the convenience of online and telephone banking. 

A lot of banks, building societies and credit unions offer financial services that help you stay in control of your money and there are different types of accounts to suit different needs.  

The Moneyhelper website has a range of tools you can access for support, including: 

• A guide to the right account for you
• Bank account comparison tool
• How to manage your bank account
• ID issues when opening a bank account
• Choosing a bank account for your benefit payments 

How to keep on top of your bills

The best way to keep on top of your bills is by arranging for payments to be taken automatically by direct debit. Some companies even give you a discount for paying in this way. Paying by direct debit puts you back in control of your money as you'll know which bills are being paid and when which can help you budget for the rest of the month. You also won't need to think about when bills need paying or worrying over missing a payment that could affect your credit file. All you need to do is make sure you have enough money in your account to pay the bills that are due.  

If you're struggling with bills and payments, you might be finding it hard to decide which ones to prioritise. There are some bills, known as priority debts, that can have serious consequences if you miss payments, so it's important to make sure you know what to tackle first. Once you understand which of your bills should take priority, Moneyhelper have a Bill Prioritiser Tool that can help you focus on how to deal with them and different options that could help.