Christmas? We're Not Going Crackers ; the Worst of the Recession May Be Over, but Many Families Are Still Struggling and Want Festive Fun On a Budget

Summary

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WITH parties, presents, new outfits and a feast of food and drink, the Christmas week is the most expensive seven days of the year for most families. But after 12 months of redundancies, pay freezes and tumbling income from savings, millions of shoppers are looking for a value Christmas in 2009.

Each person is expecting to spend an average Pounds 468 on Christmas this year, according to American Express - down from Pounds 550 a head in 2008. The spending breaks down into Pounds 260 on presents, Pounds 141 on food and drink and Pounds 67 on decorations and cards.

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Extract

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Christmas? We're Not Going Crackers ; the Worst of the Recession May Be Over, but Many Families Are Still Struggling and Want Festive Fun On a Budget

Joss Harwood, director of Eldon Financial Planning in Bishop Auckland, County Durham, says: 'A lot of people are stressed by Christmas. In the past, there has been pressure for each year to be bigger and better than the previous one.

'But I sense from conversations with clients this year that people are willing to scale back and to have a frank discussion with family and friends about what they really can afford.

'It is essential to set a budget and ...

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