With the launch of personalised cards by Hallmark, has anyone actually considered other personal gifts that you can buy to add that little touch of luxury. Personalised gifts are not as expensive as you may think and will light up that special someone’s day. Nearly everything can be personalised nowadays and with this becoming a growing trend, make something personal to the one you love today.

Buying personalised gifts
With so many different ideas and companies competing for business, it’s not hard to see why we can’t seem to decide on a present. So if you’re stuck for ideas then check out the most commonly personalised gifts easy to get hold of:
Pens – still as popular today as it was 10 years ago; buying a simple good quality pen and getting it engraved with a personal message is very inexpensive.
Watch – also another classic present; engraving a watch with a message or special date such as a birthday or anniversary.
Teddies – one for children or adults of all ages; when you order custom made bears over the internet you can also get the bears name stitched in.
Newborn gifts – items such as blankets, cutlery, muslin cloths and more are now also available to personalise at a cost of a small fee.
Clothes – t-shirts, jeans and other items of clothing can also be personalised by buying a home sewing kit that includes all the instructions.
Children’s stationary and bags – if your child is starting school and is concerned that their stationary will get stolen you can now get it personalised by Disney; this can be a great gift for young children too.
Name a star – getting even more popular as time goes on; name a star and buy for someone as a present you could even name the star after a special someone.
Cards – birthday, anniversary, mother’s day, father’s day and Valentine’s Day; buy a personalised card to show how much you love them by personalising it today.

Nearly for all gifts you can personalise in some way or the other and depending on how much you want to spend, even a simple personalised card can cost the same as when you buy a general one in the shop. As many companies compete for customers, try asking locally for any services they carry out and you could save a lot of money.

Currently the law states that a pregnant woman can have the first 6 weeks at 9% of their earnings with no upper limit and remaining 33 weeks at 90% of your weekly salary or £123.06 whichever is the lowest. Some employers have better maternity leave than others such as the NHS; you can get 6 months paid maternity and then 6 months unpaid with the guarantee of the same job when you return.

The statutory maternity pay is set to change if EU has anything to do with it. The EU would like all mothers to get 100% maternity pay and not the statutory 90% of earnings as it stands now. If this change comes into effect, the economy will lose £2bn a year just trying to cover this. Many companies and women have also stated their fears as many employers have said as a result of this they would go bankrupt. Due to this, it is feared that employers will only hire women over child bearing age and men, leading to discrimination.

The costs of raising a child is very expensive and the new law could help women to get on their feet quickly and recover from any financial woes associated with having a family. But employers will shun younger women in favour of older women even though they agree that women are the most hardworking.

Many women have also hit back saying 20 weeks maternity is just too long; some people go back to work as early as a few months but there was a head teacher who went back to work 7 hours after giving birth! This country is very lucky to even pay women when they go on maternity leave as some countries do not have such laws in place.

Other countries and their maternity rights
India – women are given 12 weeks full pay and even guaranteed 6 weeks full pay if they suffer a miscarriage
China – women are entitled to 90 days on full pay, women cannot be fired during pregnancy nor have their contract ended during maternity leave
US – women are offered 12 weeks unpaid leave with the guarantee of returning to the same job when they come back. Smaller businesses with staff count under 50 do not offer any maternity leave
Brazil – women are allowed 180 days leave and the same applies for women who adopt; the woman is entitled to full pay but cannot put their child in day care at this time

If the new maternity allowance increases, then the EU will have the best maternity pay rates in the world. Some women don’t even get paid, just the guarantee that they have work to come back to.

When you have found out you’re pregnant, the first thing to do is to visit your GP. They will then try to determine when the baby was conceived. You will then be able to discuss birthing options; you have the right to choose which hospital you would like to give birth in even if it’s not your local. If you choose private, then you will have to pay for it out of your own pocket.

Private maternity vs. NHS

• Private maternity can exceed £5,000 for the cost of a consultant, private room charges and pre-natal care whereas the NHS is free to all UK residents.
• NHS hospitals have shared wards with other babies and their mothers; getting a private room in most hospitals is nearly impossible whereas if you go private, you get a luxury suite for as long as you can pay for it.
• Should anything go wrong if you have a private labour they will transfer you to NHS services as they do not have the facilities to deal with emergencies, you would forked out over£ 5,000 for nothing.
• Private maternity care is more personal as you will see the same person but in NHS hospitals, there will be new people daily caring for you.

Other private birthing options
The NHS now has a review system in place where people can talk about their experiences when giving birth in a NHS hospital. Unfortunately all the ones in Hertfordshire have been very poor. There are other options to having a baby privately and a private hospital is just one of them.

Home birth – as most NHS trusts provide this service now anyway, you may be able to get it free but there are some trusts that are not so supporting. If this is the case and you are set on having a home birth, you can have an independent one instead at a cost of £1,200 – £4,000. Independent midwifes are all for natural births and have many years of experience; they will be there from the beginning right through to the end. NHS midwives will come as a team so you won’t be able to build a friendship with the lady that will go on to deliver your baby and it may be someone you don’t know. In any case having your baby at home is more relaxing than in a hospital and if there are any complications you will be transferred to the nearest hospital straight away.

Birthing centres – there are centres nationwide that are nurse led; you pay for the services of a midwife and can choose which birth you would like eg water birth. You will also be able to stay until you feel well enough to go home. Birth centres are mainly for women who do not have any complications but if they are thought to have a difficult pregnancy, then consultant led maternity is also an option.

With record numbers of employers making staff redundant, it’s unsure if it’s even possible to find another job in the current climate. Many people who have been laid off are competing for the same jobs and even graduates are being forced to go for lower paid jobs or jobs that they haven’t graduated in. It’s a competitive job market that is only getting worse. It has been announced today that 15,000 university posts will be lost in the next few years averaging 5,000 posts a year.

Protection from unemployment
If you own property or are the main breadwinner for a family, then it is wise to have some sort of protection in the current climate. If you are made redundant, you may not get as much money as you may think. With a mortgage and children to raise, the money will soon be non-existent. There are two ways to protect yourself should you be out of work and need to pay your mortgage. You can phone up your mortgage provider and negotiate a smaller short term repayable mortgage repayment. If you cannot afford to repay the mortgage, then you may also negotiate a small repayment break and then continue in a few months or so. When taking out a loan or mortgage you are given the choice to buy protection from unemployment or loss of earnings but banks do charge more than an insurance company specialising in this.

Job loss insurance
If you work in a job sector that is more than likely to be making redundancies such as the car industry or financial sector, then it may be worth buying an insurance policy that will cover you if you lose your job.  Unemployment insurance will cover loss of earnings if you lose your job or can’t pay bills and mortgage due to sickness. You can get as much as £1500 a month to cover bills, loans, mortgage and other household expenses tax free.

How much is unemployment insurance?
For the average 24 year old, you could pay as little as £51 for unemployment insurance and if you another pound on top of that, you could be covered for sickness and accident as well. I have found that the younger you are, the cheaper the cover and for a few extra pounds you could be covered for things other than unemployment. On average the most you can get from an insurance company is £1,500 a month; if you will need more for you to get by then you could pay a higher insurance fee.

Overall unemployment insurance is a great way of protecting your home and family from the unstable job market in the current climate. Read the policy first and check what is needed to make a claim. Fr example if you break your arm and are unable to work for a few months, is a doctor’s certificate sufficient or will you have to pay to get a private consultation with one of their own consultants? Read the small print and make sure you understand before entering an insurance policy and you will have peace of mind that your finances are protected should you not be able to pay your bills.

We’ve all heard of the government’s scrappage scheme where you can get a minimum of £2000 off the sale of a new car. Originally planned to end this month (February 2010), the scheme has now been extended until the end of March 2010.

Is the car scrappage scheme a good deal?
Well to qualify for the scrappage scheme, you must’ve owned the car for at least a year and the car itself must be 10 years old or more. The discounted vehicle only applies to a car or small van that has been bought new with no previous owners. The first thing that strikes me is that although you are getting £2000 off the vehicle as soon as you drive it off the forecourt you lose £2000. So if the vehicle you purchase is £5000 including the £2000 discount, once you drive the vehicle home the value of the car is now only £3000, but if you forget the discount the car is then worth £7000, you drive it home and it’s worth £5000.

Either way you still lose out, there are so many people with old bangers who have seen this as a good deal and dived in straight away. The chances were they didn’t need a new car anyway and with banks restricting loans, most new car owners have been forced into a credit agreement with the car manufacturer. So if you bought a £5000 car and have to arrange finance for it, you could pay back a minimum of £1500 in just interest only.

I understand the government introduced the car scrappage scheme to encourage drivers to get newer and more energy efficient cars but also encourage us to spend our way out of a recession. But the majority of people who have been bought into this deal have said they made the wrong decision. Many of these people now have a loan that they didn’t have previously and would’ve been better off with their older car that had no problems and was running efficiently.

Many forums are still debating over whether you actually save any money by scrapping your old car on the government’s scheme or if you’d be better off buying a nearly new car. As the government scrappage scheme will only be running for another month (or two including this one), it’ll soon blow over. The only thing that gets too me is all the budget cars on the road now, they seem to be taking over!

So you plan on starting a family but have you sat down and talked about all the costs involved in having a child? There many things to take into consideration like the items you will need to purchase before the baby arrives, items after and things for lifelong care. The cost of having a baby can differ depending on what you believe in but by taking a look at this essential guide, you can know about the costs of having a baby.

Clothes – babies grow out of clothes very quick so you will find that you’re always shopping for new baby clothes. Save some money by asking family and friends to donate their good baby clothes to you and you can do the same after you’re done. Cost for a year is £1,200
Milk – if you need to buy milk you can spend an average of £600 in just one year
Travel – if you have a baby born in a hospital, you will need a car seat to bring the baby home. You will also need a pram. Some people can go through 4 prams within 2 years so be practical and buy a pram that can be used for the maximum time possible. Save money by buying one second hand or borrowing one from a friend. Average cost for pram and accessories is £700.
Nappies – this is probably where the bulk of money will be spent during the first year as babies can need a nappy change up to 90 times a week. Average cost of nappies for a year £600
Sleeping - if you need to buy a moses basket, playpen, crib and cot, the prices can soon start to add up. Save some money by buying second hand or borrow from a friend. You will probably find that all you need is a crib for 6 months, then they can sleep in a bed from then on and all you will need after that is to purchase a bed guard. Average cost for sleeping options £800
Nursery furniture – if you are doing up baby’s room, you will see that children’s furniture are much smaller and expensive. Why not buy ‘normal’ adult furniture, it’ll have more room and it can be decorated with stickers and paint to make it more child friendly. This can cost up to £750

This brings the total up to £4,650 and that’s still without much of the basics such as creams, wipes, bibs and toiletries. So you’ve seen the cost for a baby what about the mum? Mother to be will also need essential items throughout pregnancy and after the birth. Here are some essential things:
Prenatal supplements and folic acid – folic acid is needed at conception and for the first three months of pregnancy. It is also ideal to take throughout pregnancy and whilst breastfeeding costing an average of £108
Creams – all women are scared of the dreaded stretch marks so be prepared to spend some money on preventative creams and moisturiser for dry skin days. Cost £60
Body pillow – as the baby bump grows, expectant mothers will feel uncomfortable. There are pillows that can be bought to promote better sleeping and ease pressure off the bump. It can also be used after pregnancy to aid breastfeeding. Cost £35
Rocking chair – although not essential but many women like rocking chairs and it also soothes the baby to sleep. Costs £150
This brings mums total cost to £503 and this does not include antenatal appointments, maternity clothes, private treatments and spa days.

As there are too many things to buy and these are just some of the examples of costs involved when having a baby. You can cut costs by buying most things second hand or borrowing; don’t be pressured to buy everything as you will find that most things aren’t needed for long term.

Every parent wants their children to go to University and get a degree to enable them to have a better and more secure future. There are many things to take into consideration if you decide to fund this yourself as you could be out of pocket by as much as £15,000 a year. We all want to help our children achieve their dreams and earn good salaries to take care of themselves and future expenditure but is it really worth all the financial turmoil?

How much does going to university actually cost?

• As of 2010/2011 a year’s university tuition costs up to £3,290 so the cost for three years will bring the total to £9,870
• Accommodation for a year can cost as much as £150 a week or as little as £65 depending on where you live so you could pay as much as £9,360 for 3 years accommodation
• Eating properly for students is last on their list and this is where a lot of money is wasted. If they learnt to cook the easiest meals, they could save money. The average cost of food for 3 years can be £2,880
• Depending on the contract of accommodation, bills may be included but things like phone and internet access may not so budget another £1,080 for three years worth
• If your child gets a place on campus, then there will be no travelling costs but if the accommodation is not within walking distance then travelling fees for 3 years could total to £2,880
• Clothes depending on how trendy you want them can cost up to £1,000 a year making is £3,000 for three years
• Toiletries such as shampoo make up, body wash, hair products and creams can reach a whopping £1,800
• Study costs – this includes books, study material, trips and stationary will vary depending on the course taken but you could spend over £800 for the course of 3 years
• Socialising – everyone knows that students like to party so going out every Friday or Saturday night will be the norm. This can add a huge unnecessary cost to the budget even if you don’t drink or smoke. Going to the cinema and restaurant also counts so budget up to £600 a year for this or £1,800 for three years

The cost for three years of university expenses totals to £33,470
To make it easier, it works out £11,156 a year or £929.72 a month to send just one child to university.

If you can convince your children to stay home, then obviously the costs will be brought down and the bulk of finances will go into yearly tuition fees.

When we go on holiday, everyone wants so save a few pounds whether it’s from the flight, hotel or accommodation. This extra saving will only go on meals out, presents and excursions and if every little helps then why not? As we know there is much competition amongst budget airlines in a bid to attract more customers, so we should use this to our advantage? Probably yes but sometimes choosing a budget airline can actually cost more than the bigger named airlines.

Are cheap flights really that cheap?
When you look at the bigger picture, then no they aren’t that cheap to put it in simple terms. We take a look at all the costs to take into account when booking a cheap flight because you think it’ll save you some money:
Fares – fares are displayed for inbound and outbound journeys, sometimes you can get it cheap both ways and other times it’s more expensive on one of the dates
Taxes – you may have found the perfect cheap flight but when you add the tax it just doubled in price
Fuel – some airline companies charge you a supplement for fuel, this can be added at the end increasing the ‘cheap flight’ value
Check in fees – more ‘no thrills’ airlines are charging for check in inbound and outbound, adding an average of £15 to the flight
Meals – depending on how long the flight is, you may not require a meal but if you have a young child or an inconvenient flight time you may have no choice but to buy one. This can cost anywhere between £5 – £15 for a single meal
Booking fee – many airlines are cheeky and whilst some will charge you 2 – 2.5% of the amount payable, some will charge you £10 just to use your credit card. This is also unfair because they don’t let you use another form of payment that would be free on other airlines
Checked in baggage – you will most probably be charged for checking in a suitcase at the average cost of £35 and even then the weight restriction is a mere 25kg and if you go over the limit, you will be charged up to £35 a kilo
Musical instruments – most budget airlines will charge you around £40 to carry on an instrument on board or in the cargo hold
Prams – if you have a young child you may be lucky enough to be able to bring a pram on board for free but there are some airlines who will charge you a fee for storing it in the cargo hold

These are the hidden charges that are associated with cheap or bargain flights. If you think there is a catch, you’re probably right. Bigger named airlines such as Virgin, British Airways, Thomson, Thomas Cook, First Choice and Monarch clearly state what is included and define their prices better. Beware if you think you have found a good deal because the chances are you’ll pay over the odds.

With mobiles phones going out of fashion quickly, it’s not hard to see why most of us are always upgrading our phones for the latest models. Regularly changing mobile phones doesn’t have to be expensive, you can even trade in your old phone or sell it for cash.

Recycling mobile phone for cash
There are many companies that are happy to buy your phone off you; just make sure you know the current value of the phone before getting the money. You can find out the current market value for your mobile phone free on many websites. As competition for mobile recycling companies are rife, check them out individually as you may be better off going with some companies but not others. Remember they also pay for the postage costs of your mobile.

There are a few trade shops that have opened where you can trade in your mobile and the value of it is taken off whatever else you would like to purchase in the shop. You don’t necessarily need to buy a new mobile phone so if you have a new one, you can use your old mobile to bargain a trade.

There are other shops on the high street that buy and sell mobile phones. I would be wary as many of these shops will only sell your mobile on to recycling companies. If you think you are getting a good deal on the high street, double check the market value of the mobile before handing it over.

Mobile phone recycling for charity
There are so many charities fighting for the chance to recycle your old mobile phone. This is how charity mobile recycling works – you send in your old mobile and they recycle it for you and any profit made is handed over to the charity instead of going back into your own pocket. This is a great way of helping others as it won’t cost you anything and you will have made someone’s day by the little contribution/donation you have made.

Recycle old mobile phone for domestic abuse
This scheme is still fairly new – the pilot is running in only a handful of catchment areas at the moment but with more support and more mobiles this can be extended. By sending in your old mobile to a listed charity, it will then be turned into a personal alarm. By pressing any button on the phone the local police will be alerted to come to the aid of the domestic abuse victim. Help save a life today by donating to a domestic abuse victim.