friend wants to borrow £1k

No way. She can get an interest free credit card and put her day-to-day spending on that until she gets paid at end of Feb. If she’s wiped out all her cash buying the car then she can take out a small loan as well as or instead of credit card - interest on loan won’t be much if she pays it back quickly (and if she can’t pay it back quickly then how quickly do you really want to lend it cos you may not see money for some time if she says she can’t pay back a small bank loan!)

Really if the car used all her cash for living expenses then she should have taken a small loan out for the car instead. And if she says she can’t get a loan / credit card then definitely don’t lend her money - you will never see it again.

Lend it to her, but be prepared to lose the friendship. Think about having to remind her about it. The excuses she will possibly have not to. The awkwardness.
Now imagine just saying "sorry, I don't have it spare, January is such a tough month".

When did you last have a holiday or a new car, OP? I'm guessing not for a while since you are saving hard for a house.

Wish I had a nice holiday booked.

Only lend what you’re willing to lose.
There is a reason she doesn’t have a credit card which is perfect for this type of short term spending. She could use it to fund her daily living costs & the bill won’t come in until after she’s been paid. Or, she could organise a bank loan to see her through the next month or so. There’s a reason she’s not considering any of these perfectly viable options. Whether that’s because her credit score isn’t good enough, or her debt is already maxed out, I guess you probably won’t ever find out.

You do have it to give, but could you (would you) afford to give it away to her for free? If not then don’t lend it.

Nope. Don't lend her a penny. You won't see it again.

The fact she's switching jobs at the end of the month but hasn't worked this month because she's ill (what's all that about? Does she not get sick pay?) and at the same time buys a new car and goes on holiday shows she is very poor at money management and won't be able to pay 1K back.
Now I know she can't help being ill but surely there's sick pay. And maybe the car died and she needed a new one and probably the holiday was booked last year or something, and that sometimes it all comes at the wrong time, but still, it just shows she's reckless with money.

Sounds like a recipe for disaster. I’d suggest sending her a link to a quick credit card provider. All your money is earmarked for the house.

I don’t see how doing a food shop for her helps and I fear offering to do that might offend her even more than a straight no.

First two paragraphs of this.

Absolutely not, not unless you genuinely wouldn’t mind never getting it back.
cheek of her to ask if she’s just been on holiday!

Lie. Say all your savings are in an account that you can't access and that you don't have the funds in your current account.
If she pressures you - then she is not your friend.

I wouldn't in the OP's position,

but I don't think it's true that it never ends well

My friend lent me £500 a few years ago, I paid her back when I said I would and we still spend time together weekly to this day 😅

Absolutely not. She just bought a new car and is going on holiday? shows her priorities doesn't it?

Your "friend" is taking the absolute piss and she knows it. You would be an absolute mug to take money from your savings which is to buy a house to give to her to cover a holiday and a car.

I can't even believe you're considering this. I can guarantee you if you do lend her money it wont be the last of it, every month there will be requests for more whilst you notice her out shopping for stuff she doesn't need.

But if you are both saving hard to buy a house, how can you possibly give her 1k. You don’t have it to give her. Every spare penny goes to your house budget and has to work hard for interest.

Tell her that you can spare her two hundred from your current account providing she promises to pay it back straight from her next pay check. But you can’t touch your savings account.

No doubt she wants 1k spends for her holiday. She is a reckless spender OP, if that’s the case.
You would be crazy to lend her money from your hard earned savings.

I have bailed out friends in the past and no doubt will do so again but in this case it would be a no.

A new car may have been a necessity but not the holiday

£1000 is a significant sum to many people.
Will she realistically be able to pay it back any time soon?
I’d assume that if she’s going to be short of money until she gets paid at the end of February she’s going to have other debts which need also need to be paid then.
I wouldn’t lend that sort of amount.

She doesn't need a holiday or a new car. What she does need is money to actually live on until payday. Surely she's entitled to sick pay this month and if she isn't she should have applied for universal credit for the month she's earned nothing. Clearly you're uncomfortable lending her this money shes asked for otherwise you'd not have posted on here seeking validation for not lending it to her. You're allowed to say no you're not obliged to subsidise her inability to budget properly

I only ever lend money I am prepared never to get back. So I have only done it once in my life.

Why can't your friend ask her bank or get a credit card?

Absolutely not. No.

You would never see that money again, and she would probably end up asking you for even more before too long.

Don’t do it!
esp if your spidey senses are saying not to.
I was one of the suckers who lent a best friend money (use of a 0% credit card) for her wedding, where I was her bridesmaid - less than 2 months after getting married, and during the days she supported me through a crown court case where I was the victim, she maxed out the card for £7500, cut all communication and never gave the funds back.

Her family all found out - her mum said she’d done this before, her husband left her for it and yet she still works with children as pastoral care 🤯

How she lives with herself I have no idea. But all I’ll say is please don’t do it!

Don't lend.say if she's struggling she's always welcome to pop in for a meal.

I'd offer £100 and say the rest is in an ISA or tied up somehow. That way you are not dismissing her plea, but are looking out for yourself and YOUR family.

She could always cancel the cheque Holiday couldn't she?

No. Realistically she almost certainly won't pay it back quickly and so you'll end up resenting her and possibly create conflict between you and your husband. She is an adult and has chosen a car and holiday over creating a financial buffer for herself.

I wouldn’t, maybe a couple of hundred, but no way a grand, unlikely you would get it back and if she can afford a car and holiday by choice then that’s her problem if she is now skint.

I think, with friends, you need to be prepared in your mind, to give the money & never see it again.

And with this friend in particular, she seems rather financially disorganised. She buys a car, goes on holiday and has only worked half the month? I doubt you'd ever see it again. Going on holiday & buying a new car are discretionary spends, not essential. That's an indication of her priorities.

Lending money to friends is the fastest way to lose them.
Say you don't have it, but you could offer £100 if that helps, but you would need it back straight after Feb pay day - if you really feel sorry for her.

Where is her family? I have been very skint before. But never thought to borrow from family let alone friends. Her isuye is not money, it's lack of planning.