Our top five tips to help you save money
With the increased cost of living impacting more and more households, RCN Foundation Benevolent Grants Manager, Ruth, and Benevolent Grants Officer, Kate, share their tips to help your finances.
1. Three ways to save on your childcare costs
There are now three main ways to claim back some of the cost of registered childcare - free hours, tax-free childcare and Universal Credit. It can be confusing trying to work out which, if any of these, are right for your family.
RCN Foundation Benevolent Grants Manager, Ruth, tested out the government’s new Childcare Choices web page to see how accurately it would advise on entitlements. “The checker is easy to use, it only took about five minutes to get an answer, but it left off Universal Credit regardless of how much income I selected. It will only tell you about Universal Credit if you say you’re already receiving it! If your household savings are under £16,000, then it’s worth checking your Universal Credit entitlement using a benefit calculator”, Ruth told us.
Universal Credit claimants can be working and earning quite high incomes, because Universal Credit factors in 85% of your registered childcare costs as well as rent as part of the calculation.
2. Cheap, quicker DBS check
Nurses, midwives and healthcare support workers often experience hardship because of gaps between one job and the next. Waiting for a DBS check is one of the most common reasons for a delayed start date, and it can even lead to cancelled shifts if an existing DBS used for agency work expires unexpectedly.
If you sign up to the DBS Update Service during a DBS check or within 30 days of getting your new certificate, you can avoid delays the next time you need a check. If you renew your DBS Update Service certificate every year, then you’ll only need to wait the usual period for DBS check if you need a new type of certificate or a different level (for example, you have an ‘adult workforce’ certificate and need a ‘child workforce’ certificate). Paying £13 to subscribe might save you thousands of pounds in lost wages!
3. Save money by applying for a Marriage Allowance
We all have a certain amount we can earn before any tax is taken off, known as our ‘Personal Allowance’. It’s worth knowing that married couples can use their spouse’s allowance if their partner isn’t using it. For example, Miranda’s husband Dave might have a back injury and stop working for a year. If Miranda earns less than £43,662, she can save £252 per year in tax by asking Dave to apply for Marriage Allowance, which will transfer his unused Personal Allowance to Miranda. When Dave returns to work, he can update his records with HMRC and Miranda will go back to paying the normal level of tax. You can also backdate a claim if you were previously entitled.
4. Save up to £63 a year with tax relief on work expenses
Another easy way to pay less tax is to claim tax relief based on your NMC fees and ‘approved professional bodies’. If you pay £16.40 per month to the RCN and £120 per year for NMC registration, you could be entitled to around £63 per year back in tax. You can claim for this tax year and for up to 4 previous years!
5. Grab yourself some freebies!
Freebie groups are a personal favourite of the Benevolent Grants Service Team. If you search Facebook with the words ‘Free stuff’ and the name of your local area, you’ll often find more than one group dedicated to giving away and collecting items. Furniture, children’s clothes and toys are posted regularly, usually with the expectation that the first to message or collect will get item if more than one person wants it.
For those not on social media, you can download the app Trash Nothing which offer local, free items.
What are the best things the Benevolent Grants Team have got, or given for free on Facebook?
Ruth says “I went to get a Close Caboo sling from a neighbour after she posted the photo on a local group. When I arrived, there were boxes full of other things in great condition. I felt a little ridiculous dragging home a playmat complete with dangling toys, plus the sling, some unopened packs of chia seeds and various other bits. We washed them all in time for baby’s arrival and got plenty of use out of everything.”
Grants Officer Kate has given away a buggy, a travel cot and toys on her local group. “All sorts of things get listed on there, TV's, bed frames, storage items, children’s clothing, toys, basically anything.”
Why not check out your local group?