Savings Your full budget also asks you to list costs for things you have to pay for every now and then, such as gifts and repairs. Make sure you work out an average monthly figure to cover these costs. Consider keeping this amount in a separate savings account. It will make it easier to keep to your budget. You can also include an amount towards savings in your budget. It is important to think about doing this if you can. Savings help to protect you against unexpected expenses, such as replacing a broken phone or a child’s lost sports kit. They also allow you to plan for replacing larger-value items, such as a new fridge or boiler. Most creditors will think it’s reasonable if you save a monthly amount of up to 10% of the money you have left over after paying for your essential living costs, up to a maximum of £20 per month. So, for example: • if you have £50 a month left over, you can save up to £5 a month; and • if you have £250 a month left over, you can save up to £20 a month. Box 29 Work out how much you can save See Box 29 in Your Step 1: divide the figure in Box 29 of Your full budget full budget. It shows by 10. what you have left Step 2: what you do next depends on the amount you over after paying for get from Step 1. your essential living costs. • If the amount from Step 1 is £20 or less, you can add If Box 29 is a minus all, or part, of this amount as Your savings (Box 26). figure, you do not • If the amount from Step 1 is more than £20, you can have any money add up to £20 as Your savings (Box 26). left over for savings at the moment. Example Callie has filled in her budget and Box 29 shows £65. She divides £65 by 10 = £6.50 (Step 1). As £6.50 is less than £20, Callie can choose to add this amount, or less, as her savings (Step 2). Page 22