Monthly budget

[Laksaf]

I'll be starting maternity leave soon and don't get maternity pay as I'm self employed. I've tried to save but haven't managed to save as much as I'd hoped to, and so my monthly income will drop a lot.

DH pays the household bills but doesn't have loads left over so my money will need to cover:
Phone (£58 a month)
Day to day living including some household food
Day to day buys for the baby (nappies etc)
Any socialising
Clothes
Travel/ transport costs

We live in central London. I've been used to quite a nice lifestyle and I'm suddenly realising that I'm not going to be able to spend money like I normally would. How much do you think I would need to live on per month to cover the above?

You might be entitled to Maternity Allowance, if you've paid the correct NI I think - have you looked into this? Don't forget about child benefit (unless your DH earns £50-60k+).

£58 a month for a mobile phone is massive, if you're out of contract, look into reducing this. Have you also looked into reducing your other bills so you have more money left to spend?

The other things are 'piece of string' expenditures and can vary enormously, so you'll have to manage with what you have, or else get into debt. You need to work out what you have left after the essentials and try to manage on that.

If you can't and will be going back to earning plenty, you might be able to use 0% credit cards and pay it back when you are back at work, but that's a risky strategy, especially if childcare costs will mean you are still on a tight budget so won't be able to afford to repay debt.

Obvious things to watch the cost of would be any food and drink bought out of the house. If you get into a routine of going out for coffee/lunch, you could end up spending loads on this. Also make sure you make the most of free stuff, which people always say is available in abundence in London.

I pay £10 a month for my phone on giffgaff, something like that might be worth looking into. Nappies and food - depends how much food but you'll probably need around 5 nappies a day (more in the first few weeks). If you're buying your baby's clothes then they'll need a full set roughly every 3 months although you'll possibly get lots of clothes as gifts. Do you have enough clothes from before maternity leave to see you through the year or will you need some clothes for yourself? Do check what you're entitled to though. Also you should claim child benefit even if DH earns over 60k because it gives you NI credits.

Your phone is expensive..I pay less than £10 a month.

You will be entitled to Maternity Allowance if you are self employed. You can claim on an MA1 Form, from 26 weeks. One you have made the claim, you will automatically be put on the DWP lower rate of £27 per week. A notification will then be sent to HMRC who will send you a bill for £37.05 (which is the 13 weeks class 4 NI you will need to pay to qualify for the higher rate of Maternity Allowance). Once you have paid this, you will qualify for the higher rate which is £145.18 per week for 39 weeks. These payments can start from any date you choose from 11 weeks before your due date.

£700 a year for a phone is a lot, I pay £120. Sorry you didnt ask about that, but can you reduce it?

Thanks for the replies, I have applied for maternity allowance and pay class 2 and 4 national insurance so should receive that.

The phone is a relatively new contract so don't think I can reduce that.