This week: “I’m a 32-year-old secondary teacher originally from Australia. After finishing university, I moved to the UK to teach in 2013, and part of my two-year youth visa was spent working at a boarding school in the countryside. I was very much keen on staying in Europe, so I worked at an international school in Germany for the next two years. My A-level equivalent in German came in handy there! Then through a mutual friend, I met my husband, A, who’s also a teacher. We looked into him moving to Germany, or me moving back to England, and then I happened to land a job at the same school as him. After a five-year visa, I got my permanent residency. All up, it’s cost around £10,000 for the right to stay in a country I wasn’t born in. This February, we moved house, and in April, we got married in France. I’ve always been sensible with money, and I save what I can, without denying myself anything I want within reason.”
Occupation: Secondary teacher
Industry: Education
Age: 32
Location: Southwest England
Salary: £45,148 (this will increase soon as I’m moving up a pay scale)
Paycheque Amount: £2,608.04 (net)
Number of housemates: Two: husband, A, and Labrador, E
Pronouns: She/her
Monthly Expenses
Housing costs: £822 each
Loan payments: Other than our mortgage, none.
Savings?: £10,300 (across a current and easy-access saver account with one bank), £1,250 in a savings account that’s locked for a year with another bank, £1,024.12 in a LISA that can be accessed at age 60.
Pension?: My school pays £890.92/month and I pay £361.18/month. I’m going to look into if it’d be worthwhile increasing my contributions, as if I go part time at some point, it could compensate for a lower pension then, and I’d certainly like to retire earlier than the state pension age!
Utilities: My half comes to: £39 TV and internet; £6.62 TV licence; £30 energy; £12.50 water; £116 council tax.
All other monthly payments: My half comes to: £138.78, car lease; £34.50 car insurance; £15.93 pet insurance; £7.99 vet pet plan. My own payments include: £23.36 teaching union membership; £13.79 life insurance; £20 contact lenses; £20 LISA; £7 phone. Subscriptions: £5.49 Netflix; £4.49 Amazon; £3.33 yearly grocery delivery pass.
Did you participate in any form of higher education? If yes, how did you pay for it?
I did an arts/education degree which my parents very generously paid for, so that I could graduate debt free. This was as long as I didn’t fail any units! At the time, the Australian government was subsidising education and nursing degrees as there was — and still is — a shortage for those jobs. My four-year degree cost A$20,000.
Growing up, what kind of conversations did you have about money?
My parents are very open about financial management and impressed on me the importance of saving and not getting into credit card debt. As a family, we’re all risk averse. One bank ran a primary school program called Dollarmites, where we had a bank book with a pocket for money to go into, which we could bring into school each week. So I routinely saw small amounts of money being banked for me from a young age. My parents placed value on our (myself and my sister’s) education and giving us the opportunity to travel. We had a modest house and car but went to private school, which is more commonplace in Australia than the UK. By the time I was a teenager, we were going abroad most years.
If you have, when did you move out of your parents’/guardians’ house?
I left home at 22 when I moved to London. In Australia, it’s unusual to move out for university (and very expensive to!), unless you’re going to one far away. I didn’t have to contribute financially when I was at home.
At what age did you become financially responsible for yourself? Does anyone else cover any aspects of your financial life?
At 22, once I had moved to England. I saved throughout university for my move, as it had long been a goal of mine. I was quickly able to start earning in London and have been independent since.
What was your first job and why did you get it?
Before starting university, I got a job at my local newsagent, because I wanted to earn my own money and have something to put on my CV. I worked a couple of shifts a week and had a second job on Saturday mornings at a tuition college, doing some extra English with a small group of primary students.
Do you worry about money now?
I’m very privileged to be able to say no. I have a stable job and income that I can live comfortably off, and I don’t have to worry about whether I can afford things I need or want. Of course, it helps that there’s someone else to share bills with. We plan on having a kid in the future, and I’ve read that it costs around £200k to raise a child until 18, so a chunk of our finances will go towards them when that day comes.
Do you or have you ever received passive or inherited income?
A and I planned a small-ish wedding as we didn’t want to blow our savings, but my parents insisted on making a contribution, which further saved us some money, and which we are hugely appreciative of. A had some inheritance from his mum passing away a few years ago, which we put towards our house move this year.
If you’d like to submit your own Money Diary then please do send a bit of information about you and your situation to moneydiary@refinery29.uk. We pay £100 for each published diary. Apologies but we’re not able to reply to every email.
8 a.m. — Wake up but stay in bed for a bit. E runs upstairs and jumps onto the bed when A gets up to shower.
9 a.m. — A takes E out then feeds him, and I put on a load of whites, then make coffee and toast with butter and strawberry jam. E has supersonic hearing and comes down to wait for a tiny corner of it, then disappears upstairs again. My sister sends some photos of her birthday lunch. My family live in Australia but they message most days, telling me what they’re up to.
10:30 a.m. — When we moved earlier this year, we discovered a farm shop nearby. They make lots of interesting sausage flavours, the most unusual one I’ve had is pepperoni pizza sausage. On Saturday mornings, they have gourmet doughnuts and I treat myself to an apple and blackberry custard one. We also get pork and potatoes for dinner later this week and A gets some Cornish Yarg cheese, £5.91 for my half.
11 a.m. — I hang out the laundry, then finish reading some articles on my phone and watch some dog content on Instagram. I don’t have Instagram for myself, but I post on an account for E, and we follow other dogs. In this sense, social media isn’t bad for mental health at all.
1 p.m. — I have leftover Domino’s from last night for lunch. I usually get supermarket pizzas but I wasn’t feeling it this week. It has chicken, bacon, onion and peppers. A has tortellini and a slice of pizza. E gets his bit of crust. His food is carefully weighed and the morsels we give him are tiny, so he looks very fit and fine.
2 p.m. — It’s a nice afternoon so we take E to the nearby countryside. Before we leave, we put the robot hoover on to clean all of E’s hair. He doesn’t like the hoover but it needs to be done daily, so we put it on when we’re out or if he’s upstairs. E thinks he’s a sheepdog as he runs along the sheep peacefully grazing on the other side of the fence. At one point, we have to turn back as some sheep have broken out of the fence and E is too excited by them today.
4 p.m. — I do my Duolingo, I’m on a 941-day streak, but I only do a few minutes a day. For most of the days, I’ve been doing French, though it’s still at a basic level, but before that, I was randomly doing Hawaiian and Portuguese. I scroll on my phone for a bit then come back inside to shower.
6:30 p.m. — A puts the Formula 1 on. While I wouldn’t sit and watch a whole 52 laps or something, the sprints are interesting as they’re short and drama filled. After the race, I cook spaghetti bolognese with garlic bread.
8:30 p.m. — Have a strawberry yoghurt and watch Gogglebox. Then we watch some sports highlights from earlier on in the week.
11:15 p.m. — Pop my head out of the skylight window and there’s one star that’s a lot bigger and brighter than the rest. Possibly a planet? Google this and it might be Jupiter. I tell A to come and have a look, but he can’t as he’s in the middle of a game with his French friends. If it’s a night with a lot of stars, I admire them for a bit and try to get a good photo or two.
11:30 p.m. — Sleep.
Total: £5.91
8:40 a.m. — Wake up and take E out, and we come across our neighbour’s Labrador puppy, so the dogs say hi. Some chickens up the road have wandered out of their coop, which gets E’s attention…
9:30 a.m. — Back home, I feed E, make a coffee and have some Krave cookies and cream cereal. It’s not as good as I thought it would be and tastes a little strange.
10 a.m. — I put on a load of laundry and make pasta salad for later today, it has tuna, pancetta, corn and mayonnaise. E’s cleaning service arrives to clean the tuna pot before recycling. He offers this service for yoghurt pots as well.
11:30 a.m. — We collect E’s pre-paid food from Pets at Home; we get two 15kg bags at a time. We then go to Dunelm for a small faux plant. I used to have an aloe vera in the bathroom, but our ensuite doesn’t have any windows, so it probably died from lack of light. All our other plants are alive and well though. I find my little faux cheese plant, which is £4.
12 p.m. — We head to Sainsbury’s and pick up a hot roast chicken, a pack of tortellini for A and a block of Galaxy chocolate. It specifically has to be this brand as it relates to what one of my classes are studying, £4.92 for my half.
1:30 p.m. — After A has mowed the lawn, we have the chicken with a salad of mixed leaves, tomatoes, cucumber, corn and ranch dressing. I have a glass of OJ and A has Coke. E gets a baby tomato and a small bit of chicken.
4 p.m — A is a member of a nearby golf club and decides on playing nine holes. As the club is dog friendly, E and I go along to walk the course. One of our colleagues was going to join but couldn’t make it in the end. When we get back, I wash my hair and feed E.
7 p.m. — We have the tuna pasta salad for dinner and A puts the main F1 race on. After dinner, I post a shot of E at the golf on his IG and write down a good thing from this week into a notebook. Going back to the first page, I started this in January 2019, and I’ve done it every Sunday evening since.
8 p.m. — As we’re going to away soon I look for a gift for A’s friend’s new baby which we’ll be able to fit in our hand luggage. I order a personalised bunny comforter on Etsy, and for her older brother, a London taxi/bus set which has rave reviews on John Lewis, £11.04 for my half.
8:15 p.m. — See that my Amazon subscription for Dolce Gusto pods has been charged, £13.50.
10 p.m. — A takes E out and I make a chicken mayo sandwich for tomorrow, pack some snacks, get my things together for the gym and then it’s bedtime.
Total: £33.46
7:30 a.m. — A takes E out and I get dressed. My makeup routine couldn’t be simpler, just moisturiser and mascara.
8 a.m. — Make coffee and have a slice of buttered toast with blackcurrant jam. Leave a Kong puzzle for E and then we head to work.
8:25 a.m. — Staff briefing. Everyone has their place where they sit/stand, my place is by the windows with two friends, L and R. I then head to registration (my group are in year eight). This morning, I need to check how two of mine who are on behaviour report did on Friday. I also need to put a student on report for lateness, and set detentions for another three, also for lateness. A teacher who monitors this has emailed who needs what and I just have to put it in place.
9 a.m. — This morning’s lessons are year eight graphics and year eleven media. With the year eights, they finish creating their mini pop-ups. There are some cute little designs! My year elevens are given sanctions left, right and centre for disruptive behaviour.
11 a.m. — Break time. I eat my grapes and then quickly go and see my friend L in her classroom, to check I’ve correctly remembered the steps in an Art practical tomorrow.
11:30 a.m. — Next up, I have my year thirteens, who are currently planning their magazine or film marketing production for their coursework. I’m also drilling them on media theories every lesson because they find them tricky to recall. They actually asked for this and I’m more than happy to oblige.
12:30 p.m. — Second break time; I have my chicken sandwich.
1 p.m. — My last lesson is with my year twelves: We’re learning about audience theories. They’re good fun to teach. After this, I have my fortnightly meeting with my line manager/head of faculty. This only takes us 30 minutes, so I spend the remainder of the day emailing parents and staff.
3:30 p.m. — Have a Graze lemon and blueberry flapjack and walk 10 seconds to the school gym which A and I go to two or three times a week. Before this, I didn’t go to the gym and certainly wouldn’t pay for it, but I’ve gotten into the habit. I don’t do hardcore workouts, just general exercise, usually a combination of the rowing machine and bike. Today, there’s husband R, friend R and me. Bit of chat, bit of a workout is what I like!
4:30 p.m. — Head back and take E out. On our return, he always charges to the kitchen, eagerly anticipating his dental stick. I have a glass of OJ and go upstairs to shower.
6 p.m. — A cooks dinner, which is the pork and fried diced potatoes. I have applesauce with mine, this is common in Germany, though the fried potato would be in grated form (Reibekuchen). We eat earlier tonight because A is a school governor and there’s an online governors’ meeting.
7:30 p.m. — I type up a quick speech I’ll be saying about a student tomorrow night, then do all my phone things. I then finish watching Tiny Beautiful Things on Disney+. It reminds me of This Is Us, but a bit more intense. I got Disney+ on a deal for £1.99 and will cancel it next week.
10 p.m. — Make another chicken mayo sandwich for tomorrow. E is reluctant to go out because he wants chicken — he gets a small bit on his return. Then it’s bedtime.
Total: £0
7:30 a.m. — Usual morning routine. Have coffee and Krave, it tastes a bit better today.
8:40 a.m. — We do our reading programme in registration, where I read aloud most of the time, but choose students to read at certain points. We’re reading Boy 87, it’s about two teenagers making a dangerous escape from a country with a corrupt government. Following this, I have year seven art and year ten media. The year sevens have etched patterns inspired by an artist into some foam board, and roll ink over it to create a print in their books. Most of them have turned out well, so we’re chuffed!
11 a.m. — Break time. I quickly pack away the art books that were drying, grab my ginger nut biscuits and do my weekly duty in the hall.
11:30 a.m. — My next lesson is my year thirteens; they carry on with their research and planning and I go around checking in with them.
1 p.m. — Eat my sandwich, read and send some emails, print off my speech for tonight and quickly design and write a card for the student I’ll be awarding my subject prize to.
4 p.m. — I have an after-school lesson with my year twelves, so I finish teaching at 4 p.m.
5:30 p.m. — I’ve taken E out, finalised the grocery order for tomorrow, washed my hair and had a glass of OJ. Going off Australian time, it’s my dad’s birthday, so I send him a message. My parents like to travel abroad once a year so I tend to keep anything I’ve bought for them to give the next time we see them, which will be in Japan over Christmas.
7 p.m. — We’re back in school for prize giving. Afterwards, we get takeaway McDonald’s, as this is somewhat of a tradition for us after a school event. I just get a double cheeseburger and free McFlurry with the latest promotion. A gets a Big Mac meal with a banana shake, he pays.
10:30 p.m. — I use up the last of the chicken in a final chicken mayo sandwich. A would normally have eaten the leftover chicken a lot quicker, but apparently, he forgot about it. Pack my gym stuff, scroll dogs on IG then go to bed.
Total: £0
7:30 a.m. — Usual morning routine. Have coffee and toast with blackcurrant jam.
8:25 a.m. — Pop into the classroom opposite to watch the online briefing with a few colleagues. The staff meet twice a week in person and once a week online. Then in registration, we do the reading program again.
9 a.m. — I’ve shared year seven English class and we’re looking at speech writing. They craft the opening of a speech on climate change. In my free lesson after, I reply to emails, call a parent and do some preparation for upcoming lessons.
11 a.m. — General chit chat with my friend L and commiseration over our more difficult classes. I share the remainder of the leftover Galaxy. R is around at one point and gets some chocolate too.
11:30 a.m. — The last three lessons of the day are all year eight and nine graphics. The year eights work on drawing an animal in the style of an artist and the year nines work on a Photoshop task. I’m glad I teach a range of subjects and all years up to sixth form; I think I’d find it really boring if I only taught one. Variety is the spice of life and all that.
12:30 p.m. — Have my sandwich and log some detentions now that the bookings for after half term are open.
3:30 p.m. — Have a Graze honey flapjack and head to the gym. There are four of us and coincidentally, everyone’s name begins with the same letter.
5 p.m. — Soon after we get back to E, our weekly groceries from Sainsbury’s arrive, £30.31. We top this up with a trip to the farm shop each weekend and sometimes an extra supermarket visit. Lists run my life! I realise I’ve forgotten to buy fruit, though I’m also in a bit of a rut about what fruit I actually want to eat. I have a glass of OJ, go and shower, put some laundry on and feed E dinner.
6:30 p.m. — I make ragù with farfalle and we have some bread with olive oil on the side. We buy our pasta sauces from different specialist grocers online, as they taste better than what’s available in the supermarket and aren’t hugely expensive. A lived in Italy when he did his master’s and the brand we use tonight is one he used to buy there. We watch BBC news on the iPad while we eat (generally depressing but important to know about.)
8 p.m. — Have a cherry yoghurt for dessert. Afterwards, I hang up the laundry and do my usual phone things.
10:30 p.m. — Watch some TV and then head to bed.
Total: £30.31
7:30 a.m. — I just have a coffee at home as my faculty’s having a nearly-end of term breakfast in school. My head of faculty brings iced buns, donuts and pancakes.
8:40 a.m. — It’s year eight assembly, and today it’s on mental health. Following this, I have year twelve media and year seven English. The year sevens have a lesson on using adjectives effectively and are set homework on this. At the end, one student says they might like to be a teacher one day, just so they can slap their hand on a desk and say “CORRECT!” That’s as good a reason as any?
11 a.m. — A colleague tells me that A came looking for me, but I wasn’t teaching in my usual room. I head in the direction of where he might be, but can’t find him.
11:30 a.m. — My next two lessons are with the same year nine graphics class. They finish their Photoshop task and do some product analysis. I have to send one student out for behaviour. In between, I have some peanut butter toast for lunch. I’m not teaching in the last lesson, so I do some lesson prep.
3 p.m. — Go to find A, stopping by friend L’s classroom along the way. Then we stop by another friend’s office for a chat.
4 p.m. — After taking E out, I have a glass of OJ and order some black ink refills on Amazon as my most favourite pen, which is glittery rose gold and was gifted by a student some years ago, ran out earlier today. The refills would’ve cost £3.39 but are free, as it comes out of a voucher our life insurance gave us. I also transfer money for our staff Christmas party, £24.95.
5 p.m. — Make the final payment on a phone bill as I switched last month to a cheaper deal, £10.92.
6 p.m. — After washing my hair, I feed E. Then I make pizzas for dinner. We use Crosta & Mollica bases and add our own toppings. A’s has ham and mushroom and mine is Hawaiian. Pineapple definitely belongs on pizza! E dutifully supervises the pizza making and scores some tidbits.
8 p.m. — I do my Duolingo and check the dog IG and Facebook. Then I go on my laptop to watch some videos saved to my YouTube watchlist, including an en masse rendition of one of my all-time favourite songs, Torn.
10 p.m. — Unload the dishwasher, pack my gym stuff and go to bed.
Total: £35.87
6:30 a.m. — A gets up to go for a run with E. I wake up because of this but stay in bed until it’s time to get up.
8:25 a.m. — Staff briefing and then registration, where the students have student council voting. Then it’s year nine graphics (they also do their product analysis).
11 a.m. — Have a little pastry from the staffroom that was left over from last week’s Macmillan staff breakfast. Go and stand outside to chat with a colleague and R is there as well.
11:30 a.m. — My next lesson is my year thirteens. They have just two lessons left to finalise their planning.
12:30 p.m. — It’s Chip Friday so I get my chips from the canteen, £1.44. I have 28p left on my school account so I will top this up next week. I’ve only been to the canteen three times this term, which is pretty good! I have my lunch in the staffroom with some friends/colleagues.
1 p.m. — I have year seven art, and it’s a lot more eventful than it should be: One student is distraught because they’ve left their tie in a building that’s now locked, but it’s quickly resolved. Then the freestanding whiteboard falls to pieces when I pick it up to show how something should be drawn. Later, another student has an extreme reaction to not being allowed to go to the toilet, but luckily the headteacher is passing by and they are able to help.
3 p.m. — The last lesson of the day is for faculty meetings. This afternoon, it’s Ofsted preparation. When they came last year for an ungraded inspection, they thought we could be better than our previous grading, so they’ll be back sooner rather than later.
3:15 p.m. — And that’s the end of another school week! Have a Graze honey flapjack and do a very short session at the gym. We go home to get ready for tonight. I also prepare a tried and tested pasta salad I saw on Facebook — tricolore fusilli with baby tomatoes, red pepper, sliced salami, cubed Red Leicester and mayonnaise.
7 p.m. — We’ve invited A’s faculty to come over, this includes friends R and L. Everyone’s brought something, so it’s food and drink galore! We have all kinds of ham and cheese, including A’s pride and joy, a leg of Spanish ham. There’s antipasti, Spanish tortilla, quiche, brownies and more. Most of us stick to the non-alcoholic stuff, as they all drove and a few of us, me included, drink very little (or not at all).
12 a.m. — We say bye to everyone, it’s been a great night. We do some quick tidying and stick the dishwasher on, then head to bed.
Total: £1.44
Food & Drink: £56.08
Clothes & Beauty: £0
Home & Health: £4
Entertainment: £0
Travel: £0
Other: £46.91
Total: £106.99
Conclusion
“The main reason I wanted to write a money diary is because I’ve enjoyed reading them for years and thought it would be fun to write one. It really was! I’m totally fine with the amount spent; it’s typical of any school week. Some of the spending was routine, some was one-off and there were some £0 spend days too. Last year, I would buy lunch from the canteen a bit more often, so I’m doing well there. Next week, my spend will be higher, as we head on break and we’ll be travelling to see family and friends. Overall, I want to keep saving as much as possible for the future.”
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