The first three months of the year can be hectic. What with recovering from the Christmas period, followed by Valentine’s Day, half term, and maybe a rush to make use of the final days of the last tax year. Spring is a great time to step back and review what’s going on with your money. Especially as National Insurance Contributions for employees are down to 8% from 10% starting April 2024. (Which means more money in your paycheck at the end of the month!)

 1. Spring clean your spending

Start by looking at your latest bank statement and grouping spending into three buckets; Needs, Wants and Indulgences. If you see too much in the last bucket, now’s the time to make some changes. 

 2. Review your pension contributions

Log in to your workplace pension and check how much you’re paying into your pension. This is usually a percent of your income, by both you and your employer. Find out the total contribution amount, and then find out the maximum percentage that your employer will match. This is free money so worth doing asap! 

3. Review your emergency fund

Look at how much you currently hold in cash savings. Does this amount equal at least 3 months of your outgoings? If not, it can make a lot of sense to try and build up this amount, as a bit of a safety net. 

4. Make sure your money is working for you

Take note of how much interest you’re earning in your savings accounts, whether they’re easy access or instant access savings accounts or fixed-term savings accounts where you lock your cash away for a certain period of time in order to get a guaranteed interest rate. Interest rates are much higher now than they were a couple of years ago, so don’t miss out on free money. 

5. Talk to someone about your goals

Make this the year you look back on when you retire, and congratulate yourself for taking control of your finances and goals. This often starts with a conversation with somebody. This could be a friend, family member, random person in the pub, or a financial coach. Speaking with somebody is often the first step needed to turn intentions into reality. And having someone to speak to regularly helps keep you accountable and helps make sure you reach your goals.