The next steps after your wedding: Financial planning
Zoe Bailey, Chartered Financial Planner and Director at Tilney comments on the next steps after your wedding when it comes to financial planning for life's milestones: "Major life events like moving to a new home, renovating your current one, or starting or adding to your family are exciting milestones but they do need careful planning. Putting a savings plan in place can help you meet your life goals as you reach each important stage of your life together," she says.
Rebuild your emergency cash fund for unknown expenditure While you might have built up a cash fund before your wedding, there are always those unknown expenditures that come up in the weeks leading up to it that may have depleted this. Now is the time on refocusing on building this back up again. I would advise you target at least 3 to 6 months basic expenditure. This will increase your peace of mind and enable you to be prepared for any future costs to your household, family or car, and unforeseen costs. From buildings insurance to car servicing and right through to home repairs, these costs can really add up and if you're not financially prepared, could end up impacting your lifestyles. Putting aside money each month into your cash fund, reserved for these additional payments will help you plan better for the long-term.
Planning for house renovations For those not looking to buy a new property, you may instead want to renovate, rather than upping and moving your lives elsewhere. And with so many of us now having to work at home regularly, it's never been more essential to have space that you love to work and live in comfortably. Thanks to a recent small change in the planning system, homeowners are now able to add extensions on of their homes without the need for planning permission, allowing construction of up to two additional storeys to houses consisting of at least two floors, and one additional storey to bungalows. 1 This new rule will only apply to detached homes, and those built between 1948 and 2018. Before embarking upon a home renovation, you first and foremost need to work out how much it is going to cost – including additional fees like design work, structural engineers or insurance, depending on the scale of your project. Click here to find out more.
Planning to grow your family Family planning is an important stage in many people's lives and preparing financially is an essential part of this. There are a few ways that you can get your finances in order, including finding out how much maternity/ paternity pay you will receive in your current job. Once you know this, you need to work out your monthly expenditure, and depending on how much time you wish to take off, the shortfall. You and your partner should jointly save for this shortfall, not just the partner who is taking maternity leave. It's important to have this shortfall on top of your cash fund so that you also have this financial buffer of at least three to six months' basic expenditure for emergencies before or when your baby arrives. Once baby arrives, you might also want to think about how you will invest in your child's future, which could involve setting up a Junior ISA – a savings account which remains tax-free until your child turns 18 – or even a pension. You parents may wish to contribute as well. Speaking to a financial planner can help you forecast your future finances and work out how much money can you afford to save each month without affecting your lifestyle.
Planning for a big trip away Now that you're happily married, it's exciting to think about the big trips away and adventures that you and your partner can plan – be it for your honeymoon or otherwise! Covid-19 has given most of us a break from travel, perhaps giving you the chance to build up more savings where you would ordinarily spend it on holidays, family days out, restaurant trips, and so on. If you do have your eye on a big trip abroad in 2021 or perhaps 2022, it's wise to start saving for it now so it doesn't come as a sudden hit to your bank balance. Discuss with your partner how much you're willing to spend on the whole trip, including flights, accommodation, insurance, and daily expenditure when you're there, and set a goal to put aside money each month into a savings account, perhaps setting up a joint savings account. Christmas presents this year could even be contributions towards this for each other. You'll watch the money grow and be in a better position to splash out when the time does come to book your trip. Importantly, include a contingency fund if affordable. It will also then be less likely for your honeymoon to spill over onto credit cards, and ensure you don't return home with any debt or negative feelings about the amazing time you have just spent together.
Planning for school fees If you've decided to send your child to an independent school, or are planning to do so in their future, you'll need to work out how you'll fund it. The average term fee for a senior day private school is now £5,009, or £15,027 a year2, and don't forget on top of this there are extra costs for trips, clubs, music lessons, uniforms and sports kits. Cashflow modelling with a financial planner can help to build a complete picture of your finances now and in the future. They can use this information to realistically estimate your future expenditure, and if done plenty of time in advance, what the income shortfall is likely to be and therefore how much you need to save in the time before your child starts at school. From there, you can make a more informed decision, begin new investment decisions to build this savings plan, or speak to family members about possible financial support. 2. Independent Schools Council Annual Census 2019
New app launches to simplify one of marriage’s biggest admin headaches
Changing your name after marriage can mean updating details with countless organisations, from banks and subscriptions to official documents and employers. New app Name Change Navigator aims to make the process easier, guiding newlyweds through each step from one platform. Founded by Rebecca Dainton, Head of Product at Flutter UK & Ireland, the app was created to reduce the stress and mental load associated with name changes. It supports a range of naming journeys, including traditional surname changes, double-barrelling, blended surnames and other choices following marriage, civil partnership, divorce or personal identity changes. The launch comes as younger generations increasingly rethink traditional naming conventions, with technology offering a more streamlined approach to this often-overlooked part of newlywed life.
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Flawsome! reveals 81% of Brits say weddings don't need to be perfect to be memorable
Growing frustration with wedding perfection culture is reshaping how couples plan their big day, with sustainability, guest experience and authenticity becoming increasingly important, according to new research from Flawsome!. A national study of 2,000 UK adults found that 81% believe a wedding does not need to be perfect to be memorable, while 71% say social media has increased pressure on couples to create a "perfect" day. Sustainability is also becoming a key consideration, with 52% saying it is important when planning a wedding. Yet wedding waste remains widespread, with 41% of respondents having seen food and drink thrown away at weddings, while 32% recalled single-use decorations being discarded and more than a quarter had seen flowers go to waste.
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Something borrowed, something blue’ is out – but 1 in 4 Brits still value wedding cards
New research from Moonpig reveals the top wedding card writing confessions. A whopping 30% of Brits admit to defaulting to a safe "congratulations!" because they simply can't think of anything else to say. This is followed by recycling the same message for different couples (11%) and signing a card without knowing what your partner has written (8%). What's more, when stuck for words, one in 10 (8%) admit to turning to AI for inspiration - this rises to one in seven (14%) among 25–34-year-olds. Brits are not alone in facing this wedding card conundrum. More than half of Brits (55%) admit they have struggled with at least one aspect of wedding message writing. Nearly one in four find wedding cards (23%) or guest-book messages (24%) difficult, while one in five (20%) hit writer's block when preparing the all-important wedding speech.
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The YouGov Big Survey on Weddings
The journey that begins with "will you marry me" and ends with "I do" transforms a couple's lives in multiple ways, but it also involves a huge number of decisions, as planning a wedding is no mean feat. Every guest will have an opinion on what a wedding should be like: from what's classy and tacky, to which traditions should be followed and which can be discarded. To help prospective couples get a grip on what these potential guests hope to see in a wedding, YouGov's new Big Survey on Weddings examines all these key debates about what should and shouldn't feature on the big day, including looking at the decisions that brides and grooms would make themselves. The study is part a Big Surveys project: a series of in-depth surveys on British society. It was conducted between 7-9 August 2026, with a sample of 1,784 adults in the UK aged 18 and above.
