Bedford Credit Union (BCU) is encouraging people to start saving as part of UK Savings Week.
According to a recent report from the Personal Finance Research Centre (PFRC) at the University of Bristol, saving regularly helps improve your well-being by removing the need to borrow money, preventing hardship by having a pot of money to draw on and building financial resilience and positive money management behaviour.
Not currently a Saver? One in seven people in the UK have nothing in their savings. You can start by making savings on your day-to-day spending, then stash that extra cash in a Bedford Credit Union PrizeSaver Account.
To get you started, here are 5 ways to save money in Bedfordshire:
- Visit one of Bedfordshire’s free museums: There are three museums in Bedford’s Castle Quarter with free entry- The Higgins Bedford, The Panacea Museum and the John Bunyan Museum.
Plus there’s Moot Hall in Elstow, Woburn Heritage Museum, Ridgemont Station Heritage Centre and Stotfold Watermill. Or travel a little further to Stockwood Discovery Centre and Wardown House in Luton. - Download apps to help make saving money easier: Olio and Too Good to Go are apps connecting you to local people and businesses who have surplus food, while the 50 things to do app has a lots of free activity suggestions for kids in Bedfordshire.
- Get stuff fixed at a repair café: Bedford Repair Café currently operating at Project 229 in Kempston, while Share: Flitwick and Ampthill not only run a repair café, but also a Library of Things where you can borrow ladders, tents and all sorts of household items for a very small fee.
So, there’s no need to go and buy expensive kit for a camping trip or a bit of DIY! - Find some pre-loved gems: Whether you’re looking to save money or sell your stuff to make some extra cash, car boot sales and jumble trails are an excellent source of second-hand goods.
BCU car boot recommendations are Milton Ernest Garden Centre car boot sale for free entry and the massive G&M Growers car boot sale in Biggleswade.
You can also follow the excellent Bedfordshire Jumble Trails or Yard/ Garage Sales on Facebook to find out where the local sale trails are happening. - Open a PrizeSaver Account with Bedford Credit Union: Bedford Credit Union offers savings accounts for anyone living or working in Bedfordshire and is marking UK Savings Week with a special £100 prize draw for PrizeSaver Account holders.
Anyone with £1 or more in their Bedford Credit Union PrizeSaver Account by the end of UK Savings Week on 15th September will be entered to win, so there’s never been a better time to start saving.
Plus, every £1 saved in a PrizeSaver Account (up to a maximum of £200) is automatically entered into a national draw every month to win 1 prize of £5000, 10 prizes of £50 or 10 prizes of £20, so the more you save the more chances you have to win.
You can apply online for a Bedford Credit Union savings account. Anyone living or working within the BCU area of common bond can apply. Apply online at bedfordcreditunion.org.uk
Read more about the national PrizeSaver scheme: prizesaver.co.uk/
Read more about UK Savings Week: uksavingsweek.co.uk/
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