Summer holiday costs just part of parenting
Parents spend £500 on holiday entertainment
Thursday, 16 Aug 2007 09:28
With the summer holidays well under way, parents are finding the costs of keeping children entertained quickly mount up.
UK parents are planning to spend £507.80 each during the summer break, adding up to a collective £5.29 billion, according to the latest research.
Travelling, either abroad or to visit family and attractions within the UK, takes up the biggest chunk of the average family's budget, costing £158.30 per household.
And with children clamouring to see summer blockbusters such as
The Simpson's Movie and latest
Harry Potter film, the cost of special days out quickly adds up.
Families spend an average of £76.40 on cinema trips and visits to zoos and theme parks, a collective spend of £813 million.
Shopping trips emerged as a significant cost, amounting to £90.60 per family, while eating out costs a collective £538 million at £50.30 per household.
Parents also spend £59.50 each supporting their children's hobbies, adding up to £634 million across the UK. Keeping the children's pocket money topped up costs a further £34.20 each or £379 million in total.
Sainsbury's Bank, which conducted the research, said it was easy for parents to underestimate the expense of raising a family.
With summer holiday spending just a small portion of the cost of bringing up children, Sainsbury's Bank recommends all parents take out life insurance to provide for their family.
Claire Moyles, life insurance manager at Sainsbury's said: "It's so easy to underestimate how expensive it is to look after a child.
"Kids depend on Mum and Dad for everything, not just during the holidays, but throughout their whole childhood. Parents need to consider how their families would cope financially should something happen to them.
"Life insurance can help provide peace of mind knowing that your dependants could receive a cash lump sum if you were to die during the term of the plan."