Are any of these on your radar?

Whatever piques your interest from this list, please know you can find out all the details on gov.uk. Using the search box, type in the title as shown below and you shall be transported to the right place.

This could very well save you and create for you, a decent amount of money! And please, in the comments, do tell me if this has been useful.

1. Marriage Allowance

• Transfer up to £1,260 of your Personal Allowance to your spouse, potentially saving £252/year if one partner earns under £12,570. See the bottom of this blog for a real life example

2. Checking Your Income Tax Code

• Many people unknowingly overpay tax due to incorrect tax codes.
  • Standard tax code (1257L for 2024/25).
  • Check it annually on payslips or HMRC online account.

3. Tax Relief for Working From Home

• Claim up to £6/week (£312/year), reducing taxable income if required to work remotely (even part-time). Applies if employer doesn’t reimburse expenses. It doesn’t cover you if you choose to wfh or if your employer allows you to. It’s for people who HAVE to work remotely.

4. National Insurance Credits for Carers

• Many carers don’t realise they can claim Carer’s Credits to maintain National Insurance contributions towards state pension eligibility, even if not earning. Plus if you cared for a child under the age of 12 during Covid-19 you might qualify for this too!

5. Higher Rate Pension Relief

• Higher-rate taxpayers (earning over £50,270) often miss claiming an additional 20-25% tax relief on pension contributions beyond basic relief provided automatically.

This Life Map © helps you to visualise what needs to move closer to you – then you can let it bob away before bringing the next project closer. You can get it here I

I designed it for myself but my colleagues loved it and said I should share it! So it’s now part of a workbook I created designed to help you get yourself together.

6. Specified Adult Childcare Credits

• Grandparents (or family members) caring for grandchildren under 12 may qualify for National Insurance credits, boosting their state pension entitlement. This one is really under the radar so do share with your friends & colleagues

7. Council Tax Discounts

• Single-person households get 25% off council tax, but many people overlook discounts available for carers, apprentices, students, or severe mental impairment. Be mindful however of not informing them of someone moving in, or you might have a hefty bill to pay. Make sure that it matches the Electoral Register too, they are on different systems but in order to ensure each person can vote and get a credit file this is important.

8. Tax-Free Childcare Scheme

• Working parents get 20% government top-up on childcare costs (up to £2,000 per child/year). Many still miss out. For every £8 you pay into your account, you’ll get a £2 top up.

9. Lost Pensions & Pension Consolidation

• Millions of pension pots are forgotten or left unclaimed. Using the government’s Pension Tracing Service can uncover these, significantly boosting your retirement savings. When you’ve got them located, it’s time of course to take a good look at what you’ve got. You might need a financial advisor to help you understand if you have enough for the kind of retirement you want. Also they will help you understand if your investments are working well for you. Another blog, another time I think on this one.

10. Savings Starter Rate of Tax

• Low earners (below £17,570/year) benefit from a £5,000 tax-free savings allowance (starter rate), on top of the personal savings allowance, making savings potentially more beneficial outside of ISAs. A little number crunching here for you but worth it! There’s a useful example below and do look at the gov.uk page on this so it makes sense.

Here are two examples:

💑 Marriage Allowance Example

Your income is £11,500, and your Personal Allowance is £12,570, so you do not pay any Income Tax.

Your partner earns £40,000. Their Personal Allowance is also £12,570, so they pay tax on £27,430 (this is their taxable income).

As a couple, you’re currently paying Income Tax on £27,430.

When you claim Marriage Allowance, you transfer £1,260 of your Personal Allowance to your partner. It’s an easy process on gov.uk

• Your new Personal Allowance becomes £11,310. So that’s £12,570 allowance minus the transferred £1,260. So you have to pay tax on the difference between your earning of £11,500 and your allowance of £11,310 = £190.
• 20% tax on £190 is £38
• Your partner’s taxable income is reduced by £1,260, from £27,430 down to £26,170.

✅ As a result:

• Your partner now pays tax on £26,170 instead of £27,430. (Which, in this example is £1,260 less taxable income)
• You both save £252 – your £38 tax paid = £214 in tax over the year (20% of £1,260).
• It’s better than a poke in the eye! And it can go in your emergency fund, or paid into an investment or paying off debt. Every little helps.

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💡 Starter Savings Rate Example

Your income from wages is £16,000, and your Personal Allowance is £12,570. That means the first £12,570 of your wages is tax-free.

The remaining £3,430 of your wages (that’s £16,000 minus £12,570) counts toward your basic-rate band and reduces your starting savings allowance.

You’re normally entitled to up to £5,000 of tax-free savings interest under the starter savings rate, but because £3,430 of it has been used by your taxable wages, you now have £1,570 of this savings allowance left.

Since your savings interest is £200, it falls well within your remaining tax-free savings limit—so you’ll pay no tax on that interest.

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So what to do now?

Life Seasons change our relationship with money, they certainly have mine!

I want quite different things now, and of course, I’ve accumulated loads of things over the years so spending much less money on stuff.

If your heart and your mind are at odds with your money, or if you’ve not really had The Chat with yourself or your partner about where you’re at, this toolkit will be really helpful:

Pop your comments below and let’s start a conversation!

Until next time

Love from

Lucy x