Money Diary: An Emergency Services Trainer On £38,719

This week: "I’m a 27-year-old (or 28 by the end of this diary!) living in the South East of England with my partner B. When I wrote my Money Diary two years ago, I was about to move out of a house share and live with B for the first time. We’ve now been living together for over two years and I can’t remember what it was like before we saw each other every day! I’ve been working in the emergency services since I graduated six years ago and have held a couple of different roles. I started a secondment at the beginning of the year and it’s taken me a couple of months to find my feet. I’m a process trainer, so I deliver training to new starters to get them ready for their roles in the service. I love how social training is as I’m in the classroom most days and I tend to be with the same students for several weeks, but it can also be draining as I got very comfortable working from home. I’m lucky that B has always been interested in finances, so I’ve learnt a lot from him and my own research and I’m working to get myself into a position where I feel confident managing my money. I spent most of my early 20s not really checking my bank account and hoping for the best and then spent a while tracking all of my spending on a spreadsheet and feeling guilty about any ‘unnecessary’ purchases. I’m trying to find a happy medium where I’m aware of where my paycheque is going, but am also prioritising seeing friends and planning things to look forward to."

Occupation: Trainer
Industry: Emergency Services
Age: 27
Location: South East England
Salary: £38,719
Paycheque Amount: This varies a little bit depending on mileage claims, but last month this was £2,284.
Number of housemates: One, my partner B.
Pronouns: She/her

Housing costs: I transfer B £500 a month as my contribution to our housing costs. B owned the flat before I moved in, so we looked at the numbers and agreed this was a fair amount towards the mortgage and bills. B earns more than me (around £48,000 plus income from a second job) and the mortgage is in his name, so he does contribute more than I do. I’m conscious that this is a fortunate position to be in, as lower living costs allow me to save a lot more than I was able to before we lived together. We’ll hopefully buy somewhere together in the future, which will likely raise these costs by quite a bit.
Loan payments: My student loan comes straight out of my paycheque — at the moment, this is £88 for my postgraduate loan and £76 for my undergraduate loan.
Pension? I pay in 6.5% (usually around £200) and my employer contributes 18.5% — one of the few perks of the public sector.
Savings?: Around £32,000 split between a LISA, Stocks & Shares ISA and easy access savings accounts. A majority of this is in my LISA to make the most of the government bonus, but I’ve been building up an accessible emergency fund to make sure that I could support myself for a few months if I weren’t able to work for whatever reason.
Utilities: These are included in the amount that I transfer B above. I also transfer £250 into our joint account to cover food shopping and miscellaneous bits for the flat.
All other monthly payments: £25.38 dental insurance, £6 SIM only plan with Smarty, £400 annual gym membership, £40 for a wellness membership at a local centre, which gets me one session in a flotation tank each month (100% worth it).
Subscriptions: £12.99 Netflix, £11.99 Spotify, £3 for Disney+.

Did you participate in any form of higher education? If yes, how did you pay for it?
I did an undergraduate degree and then a one-year master’s degree straight after. I was the first person in my family to go to university, so the student finance system was a mystery to me when I was 18 (and still is really). I took out maintenance loans, worked during the summer holidays and did student tours during the week for extra money (or, more often, the promise of free food). My mum would stock me up with shampoo and washing-up liquid at the beginning of every term, but apart from that, I learnt to budget pretty quickly.

Growing up, what kind of conversations did you have about money?
I was very lucky to grow up without money being a memorable topic of conversation. My parents were self-employed and ran their own business, and we always had everything that we needed and went abroad on holiday every summer. I knew when I was younger that my dad wasn’t great with money and was always taking up expensive hobbies, but it wasn’t until my parents divorced a few years ago that we discovered that he was in quite a bit of debt. Money was, I understand now, a big source of tension in their relationship, so it’s really important to me that my partner and I talk openly about our finances as a couple.

If you have, when did you move out of your parents/guardians house?
I moved out in 2015 when I went to university and moved into student accommodation. I stayed at home during the university holidays and I moved home for four months during the first lockdown when my housemates all went home to their families and I was able to work remotely.

At what age did you become financially responsible for yourself? Does anyone else cover any aspects of your financial life?
I became responsible for all my day-to-day spending when I moved out at 18. My parents would occasionally transfer me £50 towards the end of term, which was always much appreciated. They continued to pay for my phone contract and my car insurance when I had my first job and was earning £20k and spending over half of that on rent (eek). I consider myself to be financially independent now, but appreciate that my partner earning more than I do means that we don’t split our housing expenses 50:50. I struggle with feeling like I’m relying on other people in general, so financial independence is something that is really important to me.

What was your first job and why did you get it?
My first job was teaching toddlers how to dance, which I started doing when I turned 14. If I remember rightly, I got paid £20 cash in a little brown envelope every Saturday, which worked out at £4 an hour. My mum showed me how to pay the cash into my bank account, so some of it was saved and some of it was used to buy sparkly things from Claire’s Accessories. 

Do you worry about money now?
I still worry about money, but not half as much as I used to. I know that I’m fortunate to be in a relatively stable financial situation and I’ve really prioritised saving over the last few years. I’m an anxious person in general, but having an emergency fund and knowing that I could cover my expenses for a couple of months if I lost my income really helps. I do worry about trying to buy a house in our area, as everything feels so expensive, and also about big long-term things like what will be happening by the time I’m at retirement age.

Do you or have you ever received passive or inherited income?
I received about £1,500 when my grandad passed away when I was a teenager, which I used to pay for driving lessons when I turned 17. My mum very kindly gave my sister and I £5,000 when she sold her business earlier this year. This was completely unexpected and caused a bit of an argument at the time because I want to make sure that she’s financially secure now that she’s semi-retired. I put £4,000 of it straight into my LISA and the rest went between my savings and some bookings for a big trip that we’re taking for B’s 30^th later this year.

2:30 a.m. — A (thankfully) very irregular alarm for me! I do occasional night shifts at a charity I volunteer with and tonight is the night (or is this morning the morning?). I slept at the centre last night so I inhale a coffee, change into linen trousers and a jumper, aka daytime pyjamas, and start.

4:45 a.m. — A sort-of breakfast of a protein bar, a cup of tea and a bag of Maltesers that my shift mate left on my desk. I met a friend at the pub last night, so transfer her for my pizza before I forget later, £11.

7:30 a.m. — Done! I hand over to the next shift and eat half an almond croissant from the kitchen for breakfast 2.0.

8 a.m. — Swing by Tesco on the way home to pick up our click & collect food shop (paid for from the joint account last week). I try and do a meal plan to avoid any food waste, so this is a bunch of our usuals: bananas, green veggies, tofu, eggs, vegan bacon and dark chocolate biscuits. Also pick up my prescription from the in-store pharmacy, £9.90.

11 a.m. — Manage an extra hour’s sleep on the sofa before B makes me a decaf coffee and we get started on lunch. The sun is shining and the French doors are open, so the only option is Caesar salads and a crispy Diet Coke.

1 p.m. — Wander into town to make the most of the sunshine. Find two more spice jars from a set I’m collecting in the charity shop, £5.98. We grab gelato for the walk back and I go for an elite combination of pistachio and Kinder Bueno, £4.50 for my half.

3 p.m. — Pop into the pub on the way home and run into B’s colleague who kindly buys a round. The local Morris dancers are dancing in the car park (incredibly English) and I am alarmingly out of breath when they get everyone involved. Stay and chat for a while and watch some more dancing, but the early alarm is starting to catch up with me so I convince B to head home.

5:30 p.m. — B’s brother comes over when we get back and brings us cheese scones and chutney — would highly recommend befriending a trainee chef because this is the second time he’s dropped food around this week.

7 p.m. — We make vegan smash burgers and I play Stardew Valley until I admit defeat and crawl into bed at 10 p.m.

7 a.m. — A bold alarm for a Sunday but I’m going into London to see my friend C. We met nine years ago and lived together for years until she moved (rude) so we try and see each other every couple of weeks. Buy my train ticket while I make a coffee, £23.95 for a return.

8:45 a.m. — Scoff two cheese scones and say goodbye to B before driving to the station, £4.40 for parking when I get there.

10 a.m. — Read my book on the train and jump on the Tube (TfL charge will come out tomorrow). I get very reflective on trains — I struggled with terrible anxiety for years and had months of exposure therapy before I could get on a train to London on my own. Being on the Tube used to be unthinkable, so being able to hop on and off now with minimal stress is still wild to me.

10:30 a.m. — I'm running early, so get a blueberry matcha and read another chapter in the sun, £3.90.

11 a.m. — C arrives so give her a big squeeze before going for brunch. Have an iced americano and pancakes with almond butter, S pays because I booked our class this afternoon.

12 p.m. — Class time! We go to a jewellery workshop and make beaded necklaces, which is SO fun and therapeutic. I paid when I booked a couple of weeks ago.

4:30 p.m. — Have a quick wander around the shops and pick up a bag I’ve had my eye on for a while, £24.80.

6:30 p.m. — Hug C goodbye and travel home. The journey goes quickly because my sister R calls for a chat, which lasts until I get back to the car.

8 p.m. — B has started on dinner so we finish making nduja pasta and I collapse on the sofa in front of Drive to Survive. I have never watched the F1 but for some reason I find the series really addictive?

10 p.m. — Got stuck in an Instagram reel wormhole but drag myself upstairs to do my skincare. I’m quite non-committal with my routine, but the Clinique Moisture Surge Auto-Replenishing Hydrator is the only thing that I’m evangelical about and I will enter a period of mourning if it ever gets discontinued.

10:15 p.m. — Bedtime. 

5:50 a.m. — I am awake before my alarm for once, so I jump straight into the shower before I nod off again. Notice that the TfL charge has come out for yesterday, £5.60.

6:30 a.m. — B and I tag team the morning routine: we unload the dishwasher, throw together sandwiches and snacks for lunch, then make breakfast and coffee. B bought me a coffee grinder for Christmas a few years ago and I have unfortunately become a princess about having freshly ground coffee and steaming my milk with our machine.

7:30 a.m. — Breakfast eaten, bags packed and a sensible work outfit involving a cat T-shirt is on. Leave for work a bit earlier than usual because I’ve got a new course starting today so need to set up the classroom.

7:45 a.m. — Made myself a matcha for the journey but forgot that the cup doesn’t fit in the cup holders in my car… cue a very cautious drive with the matcha seat-belted into the passenger seat.

8:15 a.m. — Arrive at work and get everything set up before the students arrive. Drink my matcha (she made it!) while we run through all their admin. I mainly train people who are new to the organisation, so there’s always a lot of admin to do.

1 p.m. — Eat a BLT and finish writing up some notes, then drag myself out for a very sunny walk.

1:45 p.m. — I have 1-2-1 meetings with the new students and everything is running ahead of schedule so I sneak out at 4:30 p.m. to avoid the worst of the traffic.

5:40 p.m. — B is heading out to a meeting for his other job so we have a very early dinner of prawn stir fry before he shoots off. I didn’t get to do my usual Sunday reset yesterday so I set a timer for an hour and clean up the flat (I am weirdly motivated by timers?).

7:30 p.m. — My mum FaceTimes so we have a catch-up while she’s cooking dinner. I love where we live, but I do miss my family a lot (they live about four hours away) so I chat to them whenever I can.

8:30 p.m. — Catch up on some YouTube and snack on apple slices and peanut butter.

9:30 p.m. — No sign of B so I turn all of the lights off and fall asleep diagonally across the bed as a treat.

5:30 a.m. — We really need to get some better curtains because the sun is up and now so am I. I fall asleep with an eye mask on but seem to mysteriously remove it during the night as it’s always on the floor in the morning.

6:45 a.m. — Eat some toast, make a strong coffee and sneak in 10 minutes of my book before getting ready. Leave the house in trainers, remember that my boss is in today, run back upstairs and change into loafers (boo).

8:30 a.m. — Forget to pause my music when I arrive at the security barrier, so the car park is treated to an unintentional blast of Pitbull (don’t judge, I have to gather the energy to herd a classroom of students somehow).

11 a.m. — I haven’t taught these lessons in a while and I forgot how wordy they are. Make up for it by getting the rainbow whiteboard pens out and relying on stick figures to explain some very dry bits of legislation.

12:45 a.m. — Drive to the supermarket to pick up some bits we’ve run out of — bleach, dishwasher salts and grapes (plus some chocolate for the afternoon), £2.59 for my half.

4:30 p.m. — Afternoon is done, a mixture of procrastinating, replying to emails and doing some research for a new lesson I’m covering next week.

5:30 p.m. — Arrive at the gym for a spin class. It is HOT and the sprint tracks feel like a personal attack, but I feel a lot better afterwards, having sat still all day.

7 p.m. — Home for a speedy dinner of fried rice because I am starving and getting irritable. Make some wraps for lunches tomorrow while we’re in the kitchen and fold some laundry. Eat said fried rice and fall asleep 10 minutes into the documentary B put on despite insisting that I’m not tired (my signature move).

10 p.m. — Brush my teeth, floss (because I’m a teacher's pet and want to impress my dentist) and take off my makeup before starting sleep round two: bed edition.

6:15 p.m. — Spend a good 10 minutes staring at the ceiling trying to find the will to get up before eventually admitting defeat and resorting to a blast of cold water in the shower.

7:30 a.m. — Coffee, banana on toast and away we go. 

8:20 a.m. — Stop by Starbucks for a mid-week treat. I downloaded the TopCashback extension a while ago and converted my cash back into a Starbucks gift card, so girl maths means coffees here are free. Even better because I discovered I have enough loyalty points for a free iced americano anyway.

8:40 a.m. — Arrive at work and set up my desk. I’m teaching this afternoon so crack on with some work for a qualification I’m taking (which work are kindly paying for). This set of students are great at asking wacky hypothetical questions, so have a few breaks to find some answers for them. 

10:30 a.m. — It’s only after I finish the coffee that I turn the cup around and realise that there are four shots of espresso in a large. Pros: I’ve had a very productive morning. Cons: I feel like I’m levitating.

12:30 a.m. — Call my dad on my lunch break. He’s been struggling with his health for a while and was admitted into hospital again this week. We chat before he goes into surgery and I make an excuse about needing the photocopier so I can have a little overwhelmed cry before setting up for the lesson.

4:30 p.m. — Lessons are done, so tidy up the classroom and fix a couple of issues with the computers.

5 p.m. — I’m doing another volunteering shift this evening and was planning to go home beforehand, but the traffic is bad so I might as well hang around. Open the Too Good to Go app and spot a surprise bag for the Starbucks from earlier, £2.99. Pick that up and grab some dinner bits from the supermarket. Pay part of the balance points on my Nectar card so the total is £2.79. 

6:15 p.m. — Read my book while eating some salad and a bread roll. I love chatting with the other volunteers, but if I’m coming from work I need some solo time to recharge before signing in. 

6:45 p.m. — Let’s go girls. 

9 p.m. — Make a cup of tea and eat a cake pop from the surprise bag. We’ve got a new volunteer in today so check in with them and show them one of the most important tasks: restocking the biscuit jars.

10:45 p.m. — Done! Handover to the next shift, listen to an old episode of My Dad Wrote a Porno in the car to decompress and catch up with B when I get in.

11:40 p.m. — Will definitely regret this bedtime, but I have a rare day of working from home tomorrow, so I can postpone the alarm for a while. 

6:40 a.m. — My body clock is a creature of habit (clearly), so read the news in bed before B pulls the duvet off me at 7 a.m. 

7 a.m. — Make an iced matcha and some toast and reply to some messages. I find social media quite overwhelming and find group chats hard to keep up with, so I have times like this where I reply to everything all at once. My lovely friends are very patient and are used to me reappearing every couple of days.

7:40 a.m. — Start work now so I can log off an hour earlier as we’re going out later. Sit on the sofa with a crime documentary in the background and write up some more work for my qualification. 

10:50 a.m. — Quick break for a coffee and a muffin from the bag yesterday. Listen to a voicenote from my friend C and send her a podcast about the last couple of days for her to listen to in the car later. 

1:40 p.m. — Finally making some progress with writing! Take advantage of being at home and put a wash on while I cook some orzo and throw in the leftover vegetables lurking in the fridge. Read through my lesson notes for tomorrow while I eat.  

4 p.m. — Have a quick shower and get ready to meet some friends for an early birthday dinner.

5:15 p.m. — Meet B in town to catch the bus, £6 for a return.

6:45 p.m. — Arrive at the restaurant and see my lovely friends/old housemates. I have an Aperol spritz and a pizza and we do some planning for a weekend away that we have booked next month. Someone kindly pays the bill to avoid any mental maths and I’ll transfer her later, my portion was about £26 after tip.

9 p.m. — Say our goodbyes and catch the bus home. I'm tucked up in bed and asleep within 15 minutes of us getting back: the dream.

6:20 a.m. — It’s my birthday! I’m not really a birthday person and I hate any fuss, but I open some lovely cards while B makes us both a coffee. 

7:45 a.m. — I thought I’d booked a day of annual leave, but realised a few weeks ago that I was scheduled onto a course, so I must have done it in my head. I have a week of annual leave coming up and I’m going on holiday with my sister R, so I’m treating that as a belated birthday celebration instead.

9 a.m. — I’m teaching the morning lessons today, so I battle with my arch nemesis (the wonky projector) and play my favourite game: where have I left my PowerPoint clicker?

12:45 p.m. — Pop out to get myself some lunch, a birthday treat of a sushi roll, some strawberries and a bar of Dairy Milk, £9.90.

2 p.m. — Do some role-play with the students which they hate, but I see it as an opportunity to refine my acting skills by being as difficult with them as possible. They’ve been learning about dealing with aggressive members of the public, so I spend a while shouting at them (in a professional and constructive way, obviously) before sending them home for the weekend.

4 p.m. — We have an early finish on a Friday, so I pick B up on my way home. I have a Waitrose voucher, so we grab a couple of curries and some vegan chicken samosas for dinner. We also pick up some fun bits for the weekend: my favourite olives, a sourdough baguette and some dolmades for a tapas dinner tomorrow. The total comes to £43.76, but we have £50 on the gift card so nothing out of the joint account.

5:30 p.m. — Open some more cards, put some lovely flowers that arrived in some water and unwrap some Lego from B. B makes me an Aperol spritz and we pop the curries in the oven.

7 p.m. — I am now 80% curry and don’t plan on getting up any time soon. I scroll through ASOS and put a few things in my basket, but decide against it when I see the total. I try and buy second-hand where I can, but I’ve not been having much luck with Vinted recently. 

8:30 p.m. — We sit and build some Lego together. There are over 1,000 pieces with this one so we’ll be chipping through it in the evenings for the foreseeable. One of my friends gave me some of my favourite cookies at dinner last night so I snack on one with another Aperol even though I’m still stuffed from earlier.

9:30 p.m. — Fall asleep under a blanket on the sofa, which tbh is my ideal way of celebrating after a busy week.

"I’d say this was a pretty average week in terms of spending. I’m not surprised that food and drink are the largest category, as this is how I tend to socialise and I’m a bit of a coffee and sweet treat fiend at work. I usually only go out for dinner once or twice a month, but I ate out twice this week around my birthday, which I wouldn’t do normally. This week didn’t include a food shop though, so that probably evens things out. We try and spend around £60 a week on our food shop (so £30 each), so about the same cost as the dinner out (which is probably why we don’t eat out that often!). It’s definitely more expensive seeing my friends now that we don’t all live together, especially because some of them have moved further away, but I put money aside for any weekend trips or big plans and it’s definitely worth it to spend time with them!"