Christmas can be a very expensive time of the year, but no one wants to be a Scrooge, do they? So, rather than simply buying your children and grandchildren less and having a miserable time, try and spend less rather than buying less.

It’s a question of getting organised.

Christmas discounts usually come early or for spending a lot at one time.

Therefore the best idea is to get organised early. Make lists of what people want and what you need to buy for the house (food, decorations, wrapping etc) nice and early. That will mean that you can confidently go along to the shop with the best discount and spend £50 (or whatever) to get the 10 per cent discount (or whatever), knowing that you’re not overspending, but spending wisely and getting it cheaper.

It’s a question of discipline.

Look out for the Christmas cut-price offers, but avoid impulse buying. If it’s on your list, buy it and get the discount; if it’s not on your list, ignore it because to buy it (however attractive the deal might appear) would only be a false economy.

Although you might like to have every kind of nut, date, fig, Yule log and mince pie around the house when your visitors arrive over the Christmas period, do they really need all those extras? Think back to last year. Was all that extra food eaten? What were you still finishing off in mid-January? Leave those on the supermarket shelf!

It’s a question of how you buy.

Be careful about piling all your Christmas purchases onto your credit card! You could be left with a huge credit card bill to pay at the end of January. It’s a good time of year to use any loyalty points you may have built up over the year, so check out what you’ve got.

Spend wisely and enjoy Christmas!