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This week: “I’m a 30 year-old project officer in the Civil Service living and working in Manchester. I moved here for university and have never looked back. Last year, I got a promotion which enabled me to move into a one-bed flat by myself, which has been a long-held goal after many years of house-shares. This move has been so good for my mental health as I’m a true introvert and I love having my own space. I’m still figuring out my budgeting and how much I can comfortably spend each month since the move, especially as my rent has more than doubled! Z is my long-term boyfriend of six years, but we have never lived together as it was very important to me to have the opportunity to live by myself and manage my own space and finances before settling down. I’m naturally more of a saver than a spender and when I do spend it tends to be on experiences, such as holidays or meals out, rather than clothes or objects. At the moment I’m building up my holiday funds again after a big trip last year.”
Occupation: Project officer
Industry: Civil service
Age: 30
Location: Manchester
Salary: £36,550
Paycheque Amount: £2,200
Number of housemates: 0
Pronouns: She/her
Monthly Expenses
Housing costs: £800 rent.
Loan payments: £77 postgraduate loan, £69 student loan.
Savings?: £19,300 in a LISA (I add £330 to this each month), £2,100 in an easy access account, £6,100 in ISA and bonds, and £500 holiday fund. I also have a round-up pot in Monzo that is currently at £128.
Pension?: Yes, I contribute 5.45% and my employer contributes 27.1%. I also have some old pensions floating about from previous jobs that I need to track down at some point.
Utilities: £24 internet, £20 water, £102 electricity, £111 council tax.
All other monthly payments: £21.28 union membership, £7 phone, £5 Cats Protection lottery. Subscriptions: £7.50 Spotify.
Did you participate in any form of higher education? If yes, how did you pay for it? Yes, I did an undergraduate and postgraduate degree. For my undergraduate, I was only entitled to the minimum loan amount which I used to pay my fees and rent. My parents kindly sent me money to cover food etc, I think this was approx. £100 a month in my first year and less in subsequent years. From my second year onwards, I had part-time jobs to fund my nights out and holidays. For my postgraduate degree, I got another student loan which I somewhat regret as the loan repayments are much higher. I paid for my accommodation and living costs during this degree by working at a call centre over the summer and bar work.
Growing up, what kind of conversations did you have about money?
My family were comfortably middle class I would say. We often went on holidays abroad and there was never any worry about affording things we needed. However, there were also plenty of things that felt out of reach. My dad was made redundant during the recession so there were a few years when things felt tighter but my parents mostly shielded us from this. I think they did a good job of educating me and my brother about finances, my dad in particular always talked about the importance of saving and taught me about different kinds of saving accounts and the benefits of each.
If you have, when did you move out of your parents/guardians house?
I moved out to go to uni at 18. However, for a few years after this I went home regularly for a few months at a time during summer holidays. I fully moved out when I started my master’s degree at 23.
At what age did you become financially responsible for yourself? Does anyone else cover any aspects of your financial life?
I have been covering all of my rent and bills since I started working full-time at 24.
What was your first job and why did you get it?
A waitress and kitchen help in a local cricket club aged 16. A big motivation for getting the job was having money that was completely mine and that I could spend however I wanted. I think I saved most of it to buy my first laptop.
Do you worry about money now?
Yes and no. My rent is a large proportion of my monthly wage and I’m very aware that if I lost my job it would quickly eat into my savings, which is why I try to keep a decent amount in an easy access account. However, I’m also conscious that I have savings and in general I’m very sensible with my money. I would like to buy a house in the not too distant future so I do sometimes worry about the affordability of that, especially as house prices just keep going up in Manchester.
Do you or have you ever received passive or inherited income?
I have not, aside from the money my parents sent me for food during my degree.
8:10 a.m. — Wake naturally which is annoying as I like to have a lie-in on a Sunday. Stay in bed scrolling all the usual suspects (Instagram, email, The Guardian).
8:43 a.m. — Finally get out of bed. I check the weather outside, it’s looking noticeably less snowy and frosty than it has been which is welcomed as my flat has been freezing recently. I make breakfast which is porridge, the only breakfast I’ve found that actually fills me up. I normally have a banana with it but I forgot to stock up. I then get dressed in my hiking gear as I’m heading into the Peak District for a walk.
9:40 a.m. — Leave the house and walk over to the tram stop. It’s much icier than I expect so it takes me ages to slip and slide my way there. I pay by tapping in, my total fare for the day will be calculated overnight.
10:40 a.m. — Meet my boyfriend Z at the train station. We’re headed to a town in the Peak District for a walk to make the most of the snow. We’re both into walking and being so close to the hills is definitely one of the benefits to living in Manchester, £9.55 for my return ticket with my railcard. Pick up a meal deal for lunch from the Saino’s in the station, £3.75.
11:45 a.m. — Arrive in the Peaks. It’s much snowier here but also foggy so it’s very atmospheric. Set off on our walk, we’re aiming to do around 10km.
2:30 p.m. — Finish at the pub! I get a pint of Guinness, Z gets an ale and we share a pack of crisps, £6.62 for my half.
3:30 p.m. — We walk over to the station to catch our train back to Manchester. It is, of course, delayed. We love you, Northern Rail.
3:45 p.m. — Still delayed…it’s freezing on the platform.
4:05 p.m. — The train finally arrives and we’re on our way. During the journey we decide we’d like a roast for tea but nothing too fancy as we’re feeling lazy.
5 p.m. — Arrive back into Manchester and go straight to Saino’s for roast ingredients (potatoes, broccoli, cabbage, vegan sausages and vegan millionaire squares, bananas). My half comes to £4.71.
5:30 p.m. — Tram back to Z’s. We crank the heating up and then Z cracks on with the roast while I do some washing up. Z tends to cook more than me as he enjoys it, so I contribute by keeping on top of the washing up.
6:30 p.m. — We put on Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers and eat our roast in front of it. We’re slowly doing a rewatch of the extended editions, perfect Sunday evening viewing.
10:30 p.m. — The film eventually finishes, always forget how long the extended versions actually are! Quick skincare, brush my teeth and then it’s bedtime. I’m too tired for any reading tonight so it’s lights out and I fall asleep almost instantly.
Total: £24.63
7:30 a.m. — Shocked awake by our alarms. Z gets up and makes breakfast while I snooze for a bit longer and do some scrolling. See that TGFM have taken £3.50 for yesterday’s journeys.
8 a.m. — I drag myself up. Breakfast is porridge and coffee. Z kindly offers to drive me home as I don’t have my bike with me and it’s only a 10-minute drive.
8:40 a.m. — I arrive home and do a quick change into comfy clothes as well as my morning skincare (wash with water, barrier boosting serum, moisturiser). I’m working from home so log on.
10 a.m. — We’re at a really critical part of the project I’m working on at the moment and I’m really busy. The task we’re currently doing is very tedious and involves lots of proofreading of documents and marking up for accuracy checks. It’s time consuming, boring and we’re on a tight deadline — everyone’s favourite combination!
1:15 p.m. — I take a quick 15-minute break for lunch which is homemade cavolo nero pesto from the fridge with linguine and roasted broccoli.
1:30 p.m. — Straight back online and into meetings. Z messages to say he’s booked a cinema and dinner deal for tomorrow night, I send him £16.50 for my half.
2:30 p.m. — Today is turning into a bit of a nightmare day work-wise as we’re behind on marking up documents and everything is taking longer than expected.
3:30 p.m. — At some point in the afternoon half a bar of Cadbury plant chocolate gets devoured. I need anything I can get to keep me motivated.
4 p.m. — Message Z to say I’m going to have to work late. We were supposed to be having tea at mine this evening before the pub quiz. Thankfully, he offers to come over and cook instead – lifesaver!
5:30 p.m. — Z arrives and starts cooking tea while I continue to slave over my docs.
6:30 p.m. — Break to eat some delicious pasta bake.
7:15 p.m. — Finally log off for the day because it’s pub quiz time! Z says he has a feeling we’re going to win this week.
7:45 p.m. — Cycle over to the pub, dropping off a Vinted parcel on the way. Meet up with the rest of our pub quiz team. There are six of us and it’s such a nice way to see my friends regularly when everyone is so busy. I pay mine and Z’s entry, £2.
10 p.m. — Not our finest week, we come in at last place, although only just! We cycle home via Tesco for a sweet treat (Candy Kittens and some bourbon biscuits), £3.55.
10:10 p.m. — Back at mine, we put on an episode of Friday Night Dinner to decompress from the quiz, it still slaps.
11 p.m. — Skincare (cleanser, retinol, moisturiser), brush teeth and then we head to bed. I read a few pages of my book (Outline by Rachel Cusk) and then fall asleep. It was a long day!
Total: £25.55
7:45 a.m. — Another day of being brutally woken by my alarm. It’s my turn to make breakfast so I get up and make the usual porridge and banana for me, plain porridge for Z and coffee for us both.
8:15 a.m. — Z heads home and I log on for more fun and games with Microsoft Word.
9 a.m. — We have a team catch-up about how everything’s going (spoiler: not well). The managers acknowledge how hard everyone is working at the moment, although they also acknowledge there’s not much we can do until we’ve got through these tasks and reached our project milestone. I chat to my line manager after the meeting and she reminds me to record any extra hours I work so that I can claim them back when it’s quieter.
11 a.m. — It’s 11 a.m. snack time. Today’s is Aldi salt and vinegar crisps.
12:45 p.m. — Pull myself away from the documents for a quick mental health run in the rain. I only do 4km as I’m tight on time but feel so much better for getting away from my desk and moving my body.
1:15 p.m. — Speedy shower and blow dry and then back to it!
2 p.m. — Eat my lunch (yesterday’s pasta bake) during a camera-off meeting.
5:10 p.m. — I log off for the day as I’m going to the cinema tonight. I’ve done as much as I possibly could have in the time today and feel like I’m slowly getting there.
5:30 p.m. — After a quick outfit change to patterned pleated trousers, black T-shirt and black Uniqlo cardigan I head into town to meet Z at the cinema to see A Real Pain. I tap in for the tram.
7:30 p.m. — The film is finished so we go downstairs to the restaurant where we’ve booked dinner as part of our ticket deal. We each get artichoke and wild mushroom pizza and a glass of house red. As we eat, we discuss the film. It was enjoyable but we’re not sure it’s going to stay with us.
8:30 p.m. — We decide to have one more drink before we go home at a nearby pub. I get a medium glass of red wine, Z gets a Guinness, £5.70 for my half.
9 p.m. — A man sitting next to us has accosted us and started telling us his life story about his successful career in IT. He seems like a lovely man but it’s not really the vibe we’re looking for this evening, so we finish our drinks and say goodbye.
9:30 p.m. — We take the tram back to mine. Once we’re home we do some reading in bed, I’m really enjoying my book and it’s making me want to book a city break to Athens.
10 p.m. — Skincare (cleanser, barrier boosting serum, moisturiser), brush teeth and bed time. It takes me a while to fall asleep as I’m worrying about work.
12 a.m. — TGFM takes £3.50.
Total: £9.20
7:30 a.m. — I’m up with my alarm and make Z and I the usual breakfast. We do NYT Connections while we eat, it’s a tricky one this morning.
8:15 a.m. — I’m going into the office today so Z heads home while I change into my cycling gear and pack my bag for the day.
8:30 a.m. — Cycle into work. I don’t love my route. Even though the cycle lanes in Manchester have improved a lot recently, it can still feel sketchy at times, particularly in the centre. However, in my new flat it’s so much quicker to cycle than get the tram, so I try to do this unless it’s raining.
8:55 a.m. — Arrive at the office, quickly change into my work outfit and head upstairs to log on.
9:15 a.m. — The document hell continues.
12:30 p.m. — I break for lunch (another portion of the pasta bake from Monday, thank you Z!). A colleague sits with me and it’s nice to be able to do a shared moan in person, especially as most of our team work in offices across the UK.
3:30 p.m. — Still marking up my documents. My eyes are starting to feel quite sore from having to constantly stare at the screen.
5 p.m. — I decide to log off the day, I’m feeling tired and I know I’ll probably make mistakes if I try to keep going today.
5:30 p.m. — Safely home. I dislike my cycle home even more than the journey in as I find drivers really dial up the aggression a notch in the dark.
6 p.m. — I’ve got quite a lot of random veg in my fridge that could do with using up, so I make a sort of bean and cavolo nero stew. I’m loosely following a recipe I’ve found online, but I also add in a carrot and a leek. The end result is okay, not the best thing I’ve ever made but it’s tasty and healthy! I’ve also got two portions left for lunches this week.
7:30 p.m. — Call my mum and dad for a chat and we tell each other about our weekends. I’m planning a girls’ holiday with mum later in the spring so I check what dates would work well for her.
8 p.m. — I catch-up on TV while I do some cross-stitch. I got given an incredibly detailed set last Christmas and I’m slowly working my way through it, although it’s taking me a while! I find cross-stitching soothing as you can just follow the pattern and it’s nice to see it gradually taking shape. It’s also nice to do something that doesn’t involve a screen for once.
9:30 p.m. — Everything shower, skincare, brush teeth and then get into bed for some reading. This week has really worn me out so I only manage a chapter before calling it a day.
10:30 p.m. — Set my alarms for tomorrow and then turn off the light. It takes me ages to get to sleep as my brain is whirling with thoughts about work.
Total: £0
7:40 a.m. — Drag myself out of bed as the third snoozed alarm goes off. I have my usual breakfast of porridge and banana and do Connections. I get it straight away today. It’s another office day so get dressed into my cycling gear and pack my bag.
8:20 a.m. — It’s a lovely sunny day but a cold cycle in. Rides like this really lift my mood and make me glad I’m not stuck on a sweaty tram!
9 a.m. — You guessed it, more document hell. It does feel as though we’re finally making progress however, and we’re hopeful we may be able to move onto the next stage of our QA processes later today.
12:30 p.m. — Lunchtime. I head to the shop around the corner from the office and pick up a bread roll to go with my bean stew. I also buy hummus, spaghetti and a tin of chopped tomatoes, £3.17.
4:30 p.m. — The afternoon flies by as we move onto another stage in our quality assurance process. It’s a relief to be doing a slightly different task. We’re on a really tight deadline. I get my head down and crack on with as much as I can.
6:30 p.m. — Time to head home. I am very much a 9-5 girl so even these small amounts of extra hours are killing me! It’s another chaotic cycle thanks to all the Manchester United traffic.
7 p.m. — As soon as I’m back I into my PJs and start making a red lentil bolognese (recipe from Good Food). Snack on some cucumber sticks and hummus while I cook.
7:45 p.m. — The bol is bubbling away so I light a candle, put on a face mask and read my book while I wait. I am determined to relax.
8:45 p.m. — The bolognese is tasty which is good news as I’ve made loads of it — I’m trying to restock my freezer meals as I used them all up when I was ill recently.
9:30 p.m. — Relocate from my sofa to my bed and keep reading.
10:30 p.m. — Skincare, brush teeth and sleep! Fall asleep immediately and dream of Microsoft Word.
Total: £3.17
7:45 a.m. — I wake with my alarm. I like to give myself a mini lie-in on Fridays so I snooze it a few times while scrolling in bed.
8:30 a.m. — Get up and make my porridge. I’m having it plain today as I once again forgot to pick up bananas. I do Connections, I solve it quickly but don’t guess the final group – it’s a sneaky one!
8:55 a.m. — Log on. I’m feeling very depleted today and it’s not helped by the gloomy weather outside.
11 a.m. — It’s another super busy morning. We’re making progress but everything just seems to take so much longer than anticipated, so our deadline is looking very unachievable.
1:45 p.m. — I have lunch al desko, RIP my dreams of fitting a 5km run in. Today’s lunch is the final portion of my bean stew with some Laoganma Chili Crisp to perk it up.
2:50 p.m. — Really running out of steam. I inhale about nine bourbon biscuits in a row and take a quick break from work to catch up on Money Diaries.
5:40 p.m. — Log off for the week — it’s been a mad one and I’m feeling exhausted but try to put that behind me as it’s Friday night!
6 p.m. — Z’s friend is having an ‘intention-setting’ evening tonight so I get changed for that. I wear barrel leg jeans, T-shirt and green Uniqlo cardigan. This week has left me looking a little dead, so I also put on some colour correcting cream, brow gel and mascara. I pack some cans of lager that have been kicking around my fridge for months into my bag and cycle over to Z’s.
6:30 p.m. — Z has made us ramen for tea, which is delicious. We quickly catch-up on our lives since we last saw each other and then cycle over to his friend D’s house.
9 p.m. — Everyone has arrived and it’s time to set our intentions! This involves writing down on slips of paper things we’d like to leave behind and things we’d like to manifest more of, we then burn the slips in a fire pit and toast some marshmallows – very wholesome!
11 p.m. — It’s been really nice to see everyone but my big week of work has caught up with me, so Z and I cycle back to his. We go straight to bed when we get in and I’m asleep as soon as my head hits the pillow!
Total: £0
6:20 a.m. — Rudely awoken by Z’s neighbours making a racket in their kitchen which backs onto his bedroom. Thankfully, I get back to sleep.
8:30 a.m. — I get up, Z is already up and is making us sausage sarnies for breakfast.
9:20 a.m. — We head over to my house so that I can get changed into walking gear as we’re going on a walk with a group of Z’s friends today.
10:30 a.m. — Tram into the station and then pick up a meal deal (VLT, Lucozade and vegan sausage roll) plus a vegan KitKat as I’ve got to have my sweet treat, £4.90.
10:45 a.m. — Accessorize in the station has got a big sale on. I’ve been after some clips for a while so I look in and find some nice ones which are 70% off. That seems too good a bargain to miss, £3.
10:50 a.m. — We’re doing a point-to-point walk today between stations on different lines so I just buy a single train ticket, £3.65.
11 a.m. — Arrive at the starting point and meet up with Z’s friends. There’s about eight of us on the walk today and it’s a nice group of people so it should be good even though the weather is cold and very grey!
12:10 p.m. — Stop for lunch in a country park. We sit by a lake where some men are operating model boats, one of them entertains us with facts while we eat – did you know some model boats can go up to 100mph?!
3 p.m. — Finish the walk at a really cute pub. We did eight miles so pints are well deserved. Z and I have two pints each, £8.60. We drink these while we play games and pass the cryptic crossword around.
4:49 p.m. — Half of us decide it’s time to leave so we head to the station to catch the next train back to Manchester, £3.65 for my ticket.
5:30 p.m. — Z and I pop into Lidl on the way back to see if they’ve got any Veganuary goodies left. Sadly they don’t have much in, so we just pick up bits for tea instead, including: onions, black beans, borlotti beans, an avocado, two sugar cronuts and some squash, £4.44 for my half.
5:45 p.m. — Tram back to Z’s, stopping off at Morrisons to get some bits we couldn’t get in Lidl. We get: tofu, a loaf of bread, oat milk, and coriander, £3.
6:30 p.m. — Back at Z’s, we make tea of spicy rice and beans and catch-up on this week’s episodes of The Traitors. I’m enjoying it but this group is so toxic compared to other series, which is a real shame!
7:10 p.m. — I get a notification that the money has come through for the Vinted parcel I dropped off earlier I the week. That’s £13 to add to my holiday fund!
7:30 p.m. — Z and I had a pound bet on over whether something would happen in The Traitors. I’ve been proved right so he sends me over a pound.
10 p.m. — We’re both shattered from the walk and I still haven’t recovered from my manic week at work, so we go to bed.
10:20 p.m. — Skincare, brush teeth and lights out. We both fall asleep straight away.
12 a.m. — TGFM takes £3.50 for the day’s journeys.
Total: £23.19
Food & Drink: £50.54
Clothes & Beauty: £3
Home & Health: £0
Entertainment: £16.50
Travel: £27.35
Other: £0
Total: £97.29
Conclusion
“This is probably a fairly average week for me. I didn’t do a big food shop but then I don’t often go to the cinema or eat out so that balances it. Work was abnormally busy but I don’t think that changed my spending too much. It’s not a surprise that most of my spending was on food and travel, I don’t buy clothes or beauty products very often, maybe every other month or so. I really enjoyed filling in my money diary, it was rewarding to see that in an average week I am sticking to my budget. It’s also made me reflect on my spending, I can often feel guilty about spending money even when it’s on necessities like food, so I think I need to work on accepting that it’s impossible to live without spending money and that as long as I’m keeping within my means there’s no need to be hard on myself.”
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