Only £10-15 a month for shopping :(

ILikeChocolateMilk

My boyfriend is currently out of work and after paying for bills and the rent housing benefits doesn't cover, he's usually left with 10-15 quid to buy food for the month (ah, such "generous" benefits... he's totally got all these posh tvs and smartphones some people seem to think all people on benefits have... lol.)

Sometimes he has a little more. Sometimes less. If I can I usually try and contribute a little to make up for what I eat when I stay with him (only seems fair) but I can't afford much myself - I still live at home but I pay rent to my mother and give her money for food costs at ours, so I don't have much left after that.

Anyway, I know this amount is never going to go far even for one person - but I would appreciate any tips or ideas anyone has to help it go even a tiny bit further. I've already bookmarked a few topics I've found on here to read tomorrow, but it never hurts to ask.

I've been having him come to mine for dinner as much as I can to save on what little he has, but as I still live at home I can only do this a couple times a week or my mother gets a bit annoyed. Or maybe she doesn't... it's hard to tell with her. Anyway, I feel bad if I bring him round too often.

So let's say... dinner for 5 days. And things to have for breakfast and lunch for the full week. I'm not after any meal plans or anything, just a few ideas I can add to my own list and see how I can get on.
He's also currently on a course to get qualified in construction and I found out today he's been going all day the past week with no food until dinner, as he had no food for breakfast, and no food to take for lunch and obviously can't afford to buy a sandwich while he's out, so he needs some things he can take with him (he's doing all the physical work atm like bricklaying and hefting things around, he can't do that all day with no food to fuel him... I've noticed he looks ill recently.)

So, yes. Good cheap staples to get in. I've already told him i'm taking charge of his food shop (because even with the amount he has he's absolutely useless - you can't spend it ALL on beans and fish fingers!) I know I can at least get SOME decent stuff for him.

I like to cook, too, so I've already decided I'm going to do what I can with what he can get to make proper meals that will have a lot of leftovers, instead of endless fish fingers, beans and the odd ready meal (and they'll be healthier, too). I did find one recipe for chicken tikka masala that apparently makes 10 servings, and once you've got all the storecupboard ingredients (which i'm slowly accumulating) it'd probably only cost about £2 to buy the chicken for it, which isn't bad at all.

I'll appreciate any and all ideas.

OH, btw - he doesn't have a freezer Only a tiny little ice box in his fridge that can fit a few things, but not very much at all. If he had a proper freezer this would probably be easier he's going to ask his mother, who lives nearby, if he can use a drawer in her big one, but it still wouldn't be much extra space, but hopefully enough to store leftovers at least. I could probably keep a few things for him in one of the freezers we have at home, too, but we def can't get much frozen stuff in.

Anyway, hopefully this year will be the year he can finally get a job and tell the JobCentre where they can stick it (with this course I'm hopeful for him), so we won't have to worry about this so much. And then we can start focusing on the future more - what we really want is to save to get a place together, get married, and start a family, but right now that's impossible.

(sorry for the essay :P)

nonnatus

I don't normally dive into these threads but you sound lovely and your post is really easy to read!

The "Old Style Board" will be your friend, they are all LEGENDS about assisting people with little or no money.

What DID stand out is that you're correct about him needing energy levels UP whilst effectively starving himself. Hope fully he likes porridge? Coz that would be a great start to the day...

You see, not a lot to contribute but will be following with interest in an encouraging way,

Luck be with you xx

nuttyp

Hi has he contacted the local foodbank, he will need to be refered by his doctor or job centre. They give food for 3 days, but if carful this can last longer. t mite help to get him sorted for a few days.

Fresh veg is a must along with fruit. The local market or somewhere like @ldi are cheap. Have you been to the supermarket late to get the yellow stickered items?

Chris25

If he has space for a freezer in the kitchen, Freecycle/Freegle, Streetbank or Gumtree might be worth persuing. At this time of year, many people have bought new appliances in the sales & then put their old ones on those websites.

alfsmum

Could you make a big batch of flapjacks - not expensive and if you can get hold of any cheap dried fruit/nuts/seeds you can throw those in as well. Could use as emergency breakfast if no time to make porridge and good as snack to take for training course.

alfsmum

Also, if you like cooking what about a batch of pasties? Don't have to include meat, just whatever veg you can buy cheaply. Potatoes, carrots, onions, swede, whatever. Very filling and also easy to take for lunch or eat with b/beans for hot meal.

Big_Alf

Obviously with this sort of budget every little helps, so are there other areas where money could be saved - Internet, phone bill, cigarettes, alcohol etc...?

I'm not sure how working part time effects benefits but he could maybe approach the local hospital and ask for a morning shift on a volunteer basis claiming he is looking to get into catering and needs some experience, so he is sure to get a big breakfast each day! Or if there are any local drop in centers/food kitchens where he could help I am sure he would be allowed to eat too.

When I was a starving student I specifically asked for part time jobs at food production/packaging factories because there is always free stuff available on a daily basis, or at worst a staff shop selling damaged produce at next to nothing. The ice cream, pizza and Walkers crisp factories were probably the best for me, but not the healthiest

I once had a job in a hospital canteen preparing meals for staff and patients and was given carte blanche to the buffet for breakfast/lunch/supper depending on shift time.



Does he like kids? If so get him an advanced CRB check and get him to help out at the local school as a TA or PE teacher where lunch would be provided.

In addition to solving his food problem these would also have the added bonus of getting him valuable work experience which will look very good to prospective employers.

Edit: Sorry missed the part about him being on a course, trying to balance baby and laptop at same time

From a food at home point of view I would recommend investing in a bread machine so he can take sandwiches on his course!

babyshoes

Oats are probably the cheapest and most filling way to eat breakfast if you buy the value type. Porridge and flapjacks have already been suggested, but some people eat them raw either in muesli or after soaking overnight in milk or oj, sometimes with added dried fruit, yoghurt etc. I don't fancy that myself, I like hot porridge, but it may appeal to him, especially as you prepare it all the night before and just take it out of the fridge it in the morning.

Baked beans are healthier than you might think with a high level of protein, vitamins and fibre, though they are quite high in sugar and salt so shouldn't be eaten every day. They make a good cheap meat substitute a few times a week though. A jacket and beans is a cheaper and more balanced meal than fish fingers and beans, tbh. Probably more filling too! If you can add some veg on the side such as a big handful of frozen mixed veg steamed or cooked in the microwave, it is actually quite healthy.

In general, veggie based meals will be cheaper than meat. As a society, we tend to eat more meat than we really need, so you can cut right down on meat/fish and use veg protein sources instead. Beans (of all types), lentils, eggs and dairy are all good non-meat protein sources. Bear in mind that if you are not eating any meat at all you need a variety of veg protein sources to get all the amino acids you need, but if you are eating meat or fish a couple of times a week and some other protein sources the rest of the week you should be fine. You don't need protein at every meal either, though it is filling so dieters are often advised to add protein to breakfast. A high-carb lunch won't hurt him at all, something like a pasta or cous cous salad with just a few veggies chopped into it - things like raw peppers and mushrooms finely chopped, with a basic oil & vinegar dressing can be made quite tasty and filling. Pasta with pesto is also an easy cheap meal which can be eaten as is, but is also quite versatile as you can add anything you like from cheese to veggies or leftover scraps of meat.

When batch cooking, most things will last at least 3 days in the fridge (which is the officially advised limit for eating left-overs) but I often find things are ok up to a week later. Use common sense to decide, and make sure that you heat it up thoroughly before eating it. If he is like a lot of blokes I know, he won't mind eating the same 1 or 2 meals over a week! If you cooked 2 meals at the weekend and left a few meals in the fridge, that should last him most of the week if he has some dinners at yours too.

If freezer space is an issue, don't freeze the bulky parts of the meal like pasta or rice which are easy to store uncooked. Pasta sauce / bolognese etc are a good meal component which you can freeze in zip lock bags to save on space, and just cook the pasta while the sauce is heating. Try soya mince to either bulk out or replace the beef mince in bolognese - use cheap beef stock instead of water when cooking to give it a beefy flavour. Tinned tomato can be very cheap and needs only a very little bit of bacon plus onions, herbs, other veg and seasoning to taste to make a good pasta sauce.

Does his college have a canteen? Is there any support such as meal vouchers for students who are struggling financially? It doesn't hurt to ask at the student support centre!

Buying food which will last well without fridge or freezer is almost always cheaper in the long run if you have the money up front - things like pasta, rice, potatoes and onions will last a long time and are cheap as chips in big bags. Perhaps he can afford one big bag of something every month or so? The same principle applies to things like toilet paper.

Finally, for an occasional treat so he doesn't feel the need to blow his budget on sweet junk food, the t*sco value (don't like sains ones, haven't tried other brands) instant custard powder sachets are very cheap, hot and quite filling as a pud after a slightly small supper. They are nicest with a little milk added, but still jolly good made with just boiling water.

Butterfly_Brain

There is a £7 a week thread that might help
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/4084527

It has some cheap recipes that maybe BF can use and the menus are for two people so he could just halve the ingredients so that would be £3.50 pwk I know it is £14 a month, so I will have a go at a single person for £10 a month and see what I can come up with.

tuttifruiti20

I would definitely say to try and stop past the supermarket in the evening at about 6-7pm as this is when I find the best reduced offers. There are usually some random items but in the past week I've got lots of vegetables for under 10p each, at the least he will be getting some extra nutrients in him, very important when working as hard as he is at the moment.

Hope that you get some more useful tips too.

RAS

Hi

When you get to this point, as well as the £7 per week thread and the five days for a fiver, it is worth thinking outside the box.

Does he have a Sikh temple anywhere near work or home? If so, he could go there once or twice a week to eat. Feeding the hungry is part of their ethical framework. He needs to remove his shoes on arrival and to speak to someone. They expect to be offered some work in exchange for the food, so offering to help clean up or wash up etc would be a good idea.