Community Money Advice’s Budget Coaching Training

Objectives  Understand the basic principles of budgeting  Help a family to draw up a budget  Recognise when it is necessary to engage in support  Ensure the budget accurately reflects the client’s lifestyle  Understand the importance of sustainability  Know what information will be needed to draw up a budget  Know how to maximise income & minimise expenditure

 Appreciate the difficulties of living on a tight budget  Know what tools are available to assist budgeting  Be able to explain the benefits of budgeting  Understand when it is necessary to revise a budget  Know about Basic bank accounts & how to obtain them  Be able to draw up a budget!!!!

Why Budget?  Helps them stay in control  Helps anticipate future problems  Helps plan for regular areas of expenditure  Helps reduce stress  Protects family relationships  Prevents future debt issues 33% of the population of Britain don’t have any savings at all

How does budgeting help? When should a budget be revisited or revised? 70% of family breakdowns are due to problems/conflicts in the area of money

Some answers to why it is necessary to budget & when should a budget be revisited It helps them to stay in control It gives an accurate picture of where the money goes Potential problems can be identified early Priority expenditure can be highlighted and met It reduces the build up of debt Impulse buying is reduced The issues of giving & saving can be discussed A change in family circumstances Change in working hours Illness/bereavement Large purchases need to be made Older children leaving home New children coming along Moving home Regular review such as annually

How do you budget? Exercise 1 Document Checklist List what documents might be necessary and relevant to assist your client in producing an accurate budget

Exercise 2 Working Through a Calendar Think of your own household and use the Calendar sheet to fill in the important financial dates. Allocate amounts for these based on what you think you may spend then total them up for the year and divide by 12 to give a monthly amount Exercise 3 Income & expenditure streams List regular streams of income and expenditure and their frequency based on your household including those already identified in Exercise 2

Maximising income & minimising expenditure  Think of ways that could be looked at to increase a household’s income  Think of areas that could be looked at to reduce expenditure

Giving, Savings, Christmas & Birthdays  How much would you allocate towards each category?  How would you discuss each of these categories with someone who has a completely different idea to you  What tips can you give to those who haven’t saved before? Most UK families will spend between £530 and £682 on gifts, decorations, food and drink at Christmas this year

Exercise 4 Drawing up the final budget Use your current financial situation and the information from Exercises 2 and 3 to fill in the CMA budget sheet Exercise 5 Deficit budget Your client may be have deficit where expenditure exceeds the income Using your own budget sheet look at ways in which your family’s items of expenditure can be reduced, where savings can be made and your income increased, if possible

Ongoing support when helping clients to budget  Agree a regular review period  Be there to listen and help when difficulties arise  Have a directory of support services you can refer to  Encourage communication within the couple/family  Discourage further borrowing especially from family members  Support them to keep going  Continually encourage honesty & realism in expenditure levels

Resources & websites There are a wide variety of resources available that can be downloaded from CMA’s website that complement the training and used as aids when assisting your clients with budgeting There are also a number of useful website links at the back of your manual that are worth looking at