Young Mum

That is a hard one....my personal view is that if you choose to have a baby you should be able to support it. And before people jump on me I mean in anyway possible...if this means claiming benefit and being at home to raise your child do it and don't feel guilty about it.....our children need our love and support to thrive, what I don't feel they need is to be put into childcare 8 hrs a day at 9 months old, but thats just my opinion, people do what they have to do to survive. Remeber too, you don't need to go spending massive amounts on travel systems or baby toys....I've just sold my mamas & papas gorgeous travel system on ebay for £150, it cost over £600 and it was hardly used...also a beautiful baby swing for £25 it cost £80 new and again it was A1 condition. My daughter is 19 months now and I'm starting an evening job and a few hours Sat to get extra cash, my husband and I have seriously been struggling but I still stand by the fact that I didn't have a baby to hand her care over to someone else....and she's still very confident and outgoing...to be honest I'd rather sell our house and live in a council flat than go to work full time.....just from my personal experience as a child! x x x

When i fell pregnant at 19 withmy 1st i was worried financially, but i dnt knw, just did it, things arent really that expensive, i was worried most for when i went on maternity leave and you only get half of your wage but then i applied for working tax, and child tax credit and i was basically getting what i would full wage, they top up what your missing. Now im nearly 21 my daughter is 1 and im expecting my 2nd child in March, and again i was worried finanacially but i have everything for him and all i need now is my pram, its not as expensive as you think, and you will et help if your struggling

there are lots of ways of receiving practical and financial support-if your fiance works but you have a low income then you will get working family tax credit, you will also get family allowance (which is always more for your first child than with subsequent children)it currently stands at about £19 a week but increases every April by a few pence! you can get help with baby equipment from family and friends and your local sure start centre- plus ask them about other help you can get as well as ante-natal classes where you could meet other parents and baby groups to take your new one to they offer help with finding child care if you go back to work but if you are thinking of staying at home then the baby groups are a god send as you will get bored at home.sure start also do courses on weaning etc try looking on internet for your local centre and see what they have to offer. some shops have a system where you can make small payments over a period of time to buy equipment like a cot/pushchair etc travel systems are a good idea as you get the car seat too but don't be too proud to ask for help and take what is offered maybe get one set of parents to buy the cot and the other the pushchair or to share the cost of one?! hope this helps and good luck x

I dont think you can ever be financially ready for a baby. If in every other way you and your hubby feel the time is right for you and its something you want you will just find a way to manage financially. Me and my husband are not well off at all and have been through some very rough financial times, which are prob still not entirely over yet. I am overdue with our second and will have to prob return to work by spring, otherwise we could not manage. Our daughter went to nursery full time from 2 years old, before that she was with her nanny. I returned to work when she was six months old, I had no choice. Its good that you wanna be independant and do it just you and your husband but there is no shame in getting a bit of help from relatives if you need it, I am not talking so much money here but help with childcare, gifts etc. You will prob find most will offer some help anyway. And childcare is fine, although I would love to stay at home with the kids I do think it has done my daughter the world of good to mix with other children early on, she is much more outgoing now. Good luck with whatever you decide, hope it works for you.

I am 21 i have a 19month old little girl she is a total princess,
I am a stay at home mum apart from i go clean people's house, when i do that my hubby looks after our little girl, we dont agree with childcare but for some people they have no choice. When i feel pregnant neither of us were working we had no care and no savings but we managed beleave me you dont need money to keep on going as long as use have each other that is all that matters. we did fine our little girl has everything even though sometimes money is tight..
Take care if you would like to chat please feel free to.

Im a stay at home mum apart from one day a week where my son goes to nursery but this is mostly for him not me, I like him to spend time with other kids so he can learn tp play nice and share things also he has a wee hearing problem so I hope this helps his speech, we struggle to pay the bills on one wage but I only have a part time job even before he was born i was only contracted to do 16 and a half hours.

I was only 19 when i had my son and 20 when i had my daughter and i love it. I wouldnt change them, they are the best things i ever did. It changes your life completely but only for the better. They make me laugh everyday and i love watching them grow and learn new things. I cant wait to have another lol xx

Yes - there are only a lucky few who can afford to be stay at home mums. However, I also feel that childcare is good for kids, like you say it helps their development and independence. The benefit system is set up to help families and no one should feel bad about claiming what they are entitled to just as no one should feel bad by choosing to be a stay at home mum. We've all had jobs at some point and paid in and so it's there to claim back during times of need. No one should judge anyone else for the way they decided to finance their family - situations change and we never know when we may need to depend on the system. Good luck to everyone in these hard financial times x