To cut back on food to afford to take dd swimming and to soft play?

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All our money is allocated each month for bills, there is nothing spare. Dd is age 2 and we have always done free activities like go to the park or surestart activities. All her clothes are hand me downs from my older sisters daughters. I would live to be able to take her to swimming and soft play, I estimate it would cost me about £10 a week. We currently spend £80 a week in a mix of aldi and tesco (mostly aldi - just go to tesco for bits I can't get in aldi). If I shaved £10 a week off our food bill I could afford to take her swimming and soft play (although soon we will have a dd2 so will probably be only be able to afford swimming for both and no soft play :( ) would I be unreasonable to cut back on food so my dd can swim?

Thanks everyone for all your replies, I have read each and everyone and will be putting all the tips into practice when we go food shopping on Saturday! I am very confident we will have enough to go swimming next week!! Thank you so much everyone

What a great thread. I struggle to get our food shop on budget each week and will be using some of these tips and meal ideas when I do my next shopping list.

Nancy I used to live in a city with every shop imaginable within walking distance, now I'm in a village with a Scotmid and a Tesco and no time to drive 10 miles back into the city, so I do feel your pain!

We're very lucky that the Scotmid has a great 'family butcher' concession, where I buy all my meat. But I only ever buy what's on offer and freeze. The butchers know me know and just list out what's on half-price .

I also use less meat than before - I allow 100g per person and use more veg to bulk things up. Veg I get from Tesco (oh how I miss my greengrocer!) but I shop carefully - for eg, you can often get a huge bag of mis-shaped peppers for a quid, even Tesco prices seasonal veg more cheaply, etc. And there's the end of life bargains - snap them up, cook them quick then freeze.

The one thing I miss is fish. There's no fishmonger here and both shops fish is expensive and not very fresh, so I don't really buy it.

It is possible to cut your bills if you don't have access to the better shops, but I would say it needs more careful shopping, batch cooking and a freezer to do it.

NancyJones re washing, i have a special airer where muddy outdoor clothes get taken off and hung when entering the house. they stay here, until wanted next day, when they get worn again (still muddy).
No point washing clothes that are just going to get filthy every time.

Thanks for the tips! I think I need to invest in a chest freezer and keep that in the garage. I also need to have a chat with my boys to help curtail the washing. You are all so knowledgable and efficient so thank you.

Nancy
Like others we don't specifically batch cook but we bulk cook when we make things e.g. DH made a chicken curry using double the ingredients so half can go in the freezer. I made mixed veg fried rice on the weekend which we ate on Sunday but I cooked more than we needed so I could freeze some.

Op just wanted to say I know some people worry that if you get your shopping costs down by a lot that your not going to be eating very well.Just thought I'd share some of our meals to show that that doesn't have to be the case.

Last weeks meal planner
Chilli,rice and tortilla chips.
Fish,chips and beans.
Lamb hotpot and peas.
Chicken Chowmein(added stir fry veggies in) and egg noodles and prawn crackers.
Pizza and mixed salads.
Gammon's, small j/potatoes and baked beans.
Roast beef,roast pots,mash,Yorkshire puddings,carrots,broccoli and homemade gravy.

That's Monday to Sunday and the Lamb hotpot I put £20 worth of lamb in that,I know that's madness but it was huge and DH and all 5DC had seconds.

This weeks meal planner.
Chicken supreme,rice and garlic bread.
Fisherman's pie and peas.
Spicy wraps and Mexican salads.
Quiche and salads.
Toad in the hole,mash and veggies.
Beef burgers,wedges,coleslaw and corn on the cobs.
Roast chicken,roast potatoes,mash,roast parsnips,carrots,savoy cabbage,Yorkshire puddings and gravy.

The first week the only thing I didn't make was the batter for the fish,the Chowmein sauce and the pizzas everything else was homemade.

This week I've made everything except the Quiche's and the Burgers.

The fisherman's pie has 6 large fillets of fresh salmon and 4 large fillets of Cod in it.

We only buy really decent sausages and burgers(high meat content,no nasties in them)and we only buy high quality sliced meats like ham,turkey beef ect.We get Butchers Bacon and we buy lean mince and chicken breasts.

Once a month we have a large leg of lamb and we often buy steak and every month we buy fresh salmon,fresh smoked mackerel and cod.We have a large joint of meat every Sunday,except for one Sunday where we'll have 2 fresh chickens for the Sunday dinner.

Everyone has a huge choice of what they have for breakfast,lunch and supper.All 5DC have 4 meals a day.

There's always treats in for puddings and we always have lots of snack stuff in as well.

ohtheholidays how do you get it all so cheap?

£80 is a lot, to me... I woulnt spend that amount on food. but - different strokes different folks

I dont think OP has her priorities right, tho..real life has to be dealt with. If you're already stuck for money with a 2nd child on the way then its shave the food bill as and where you can, and do extra activities if possible - but, free ones. There is so very much available out there. Until such time as things improve financially and at the very least, relatives don't have to be depended upon to provide all clothing, which presumably they will do for DC2 also.

I spend around £100 a week for three of us although that includes household items as well like washing powder, shower gel and the like.

But about three years ago I was temporarily out of work and had to cut right back. I found planning meals in advance was the key - and cooking in bulk (I still make chili in bulk) - also helps to have something in the freezer when you're too lazy to cook. There's a good book about cooking on a budget by Kate Colquhoun - and there are others too - worth seeing if you can get them from your local library (a free form of entertainment or very cheap if you hire DVDs etc).

mistressdeecee I think she will have clothes already for dd2 from dd1. You don't have to be rich to have children, as long as you can feed and clothe them (which op can as she has 4 nieces hand me downs which must be alot!) and have alot of time and love for them that's all that matters!

According to some people, there's something wrong with hand me downs.
There isn't, it's a normal sensible thing to do, at least while the children are little.
I handed on most of my baby clothes (kept a few for memories) and other things,to people that needed them. It was lovely to think they were being used by more than one baby. I never thought 'they shouldn't have had kids because they can't afford them'.

Chicflowers,we use Asda for most of our shopping,I'd never use tesco I've always found it to be really expensive the same with most things from Sainsburys.

We buy some bits from Lidl and sometimes we get some bits from Iceland as well.

I don't buy brand name tinned tomatoes,tinned spaghetti,tomato sauce,salad cream,mayo,tinned tuna,washing up liquid,furniture polish,toilet roll,tissues,kitchen towells,rice or pasta,cheese spread,tinned soup biscuits(like bourbons,custard creams,ginger nuts,rich tea,digestives)some things I buy smartprice other's are Asda or a company's own brand .I've always found the supermarkets own brands to be just as good.
We buy our washing powder from Lidl it's called formil,we also buy our mature cheddar from there(it's a lighter one so less calories)it tastes lovely but probably costs half the price what it would cost anywhere else.We also buy coke,lemonade,cereals,cat food,dog food,fruit juice and squash from Lidl as well.

Sweets,chocolate bars (brand name one's)I buy in multipacks either from the supermarket,family bargains or a poundshop,crisps(brand name one's)If they're on offer in the supermarket I'll buy them there if not I'll get them from family bargains or a poundshop.

Some of our meals are quite expensive but then other meals work out really cheaply so it all evens itself out.The chilli dinner only came to about £7 so £1 per person.Pizza and mixed salads only came to £5 so well under £1 per person.

Shabbychicflowers my comment doesn't mention a need to be rich to have children so Im not sure where that came from.

I agree with those who've suggested shopping around to cut food bill.

Brilliant thread.

Hope it's helped the OP as much as it has me.

I must say I don't understand why you have to cut down specifically on food in order to support activities. A lot of activities are free, a lot have concessionary rates plus what about other bills? Cutting a mobile phone contract could save hundreds per year - being careful with clothes buying, car insurance, public transport can be an absolute con as well but if it goes on a pass or card it's not noticed.

If your income isn't enough you get tax credits to top it up, have you looked into that?

I don't know I think the insistence that it's activites or food smacks of an old-fashioned approach to economy which lumps children in with food and wifework. Sure economise all round and use your maths skills in the supermarket but don't make your life a misery with substandard food that makes their faces drop when it's put on the table.