Daylight savings is nearly upon us once more. This heralds lighter nights, spring, warmer weather and very soon it will be Summer time again! Now is the time to start getting organised for summer and arranging some fun activities and holiday leisure time for your children. It needn’t be expensive.

Keep an eye out for events and workshops for kids. They are starting to advertise them now. Many local authorities offer clubs, classes and fun days for children at sports facilities and clubs throughout the summer months.

After a simple search, we found weekends for kids interested in building their own computer games, mountain biking, orienteering, swimming, art classes, bread-baking, painting, pottery and photography, all for the 8 – 14 age groups. Most of them cost less than £5 pounds for the day, and the kids are being encouraged to bring a packed lunch so there’s a saving on lunch money coasts too.

Check local libraries and schools too. Many of them offer free summer clubs and reading clubs. One library we found, is offering places on children’s writing classes with a writer in residence, and these are free.

Children are usually on holiday for around eight weeks during the summer. That is a long time to keep them happy on a budget! And even if you do go on a family holiday, for most families, these are only for one or two weeks in duration, leaving a great deal of time still to fill.

For working families it can be even harder, especially if child care is needed during working hours. Many families make arrangements with aunts and uncles and grandparents. We know of one family where the two sisters have each other’s children for a short two week stay, taking it in turns. This way everyone gets a holiday and no need to pay for expensive child care during the summer.

Start thinking about your plans now so you can get organised and book your kids onto some great activities, arrange for them to stay with family, and make the summer as enjoyable as possible without it all costing a small fortune.