Help and support

[Biffa7777]

Hi everyone, new to the forum so Hi. Sounds really cheeky but I am literally on the bread line when it comes to wages and was wondering if anyone has double items or items they could donate for a new prepper or at least point me in the right direction for cheaper purchasing.Im happy to pay postage. Im from South Shields Tyne and Wear. I am purchasing bit by bit bit, but if anyone has anything to help I would be very grateful. Sorry if this sounds like Im being some sort of charity case but just thought I would ask.

[jennyjj01]

Hi everyone, new to the forum so Hi. Sounds really cheeky but I am literally on the bread line when it comes to wages and was wondering if anyone has double items or items they could donate for a new prepper or at least point me in the right direction for cheaper purchasing.Im happy to pay postage. Im from South Shields Tyne and Wear. I am purchasing bit by bit bit, but if anyone has anything to help I would be very grateful. Sorry if this sounds like Im being some sort of charity case but just thought I would ask.

Hi and welcome.
We could all find ourselves on the breadline, so why not be 'cheeky'?
No freebies from me, but you DID invite advice, so I won't feel bad giving it.

Money: Write down your realistic budget and costs. All costs are costs that need addressing, so don't count any purchases as out of scope for cutting. The flip side is looking to add to your incomings.

Charity: You can get a referral to a foodbank from any of Citizen's advice, Samaritans, Your GP, or any branch of Social services. I know many recipients of Foodbank parcels who turn up in much newer cars than mine. Foodbanks don't judge. If you volunteer at a foodbank you can sometimes get some free expired food.

Economising: Install the TooGoodToGo app on your phone. You can usually get a lucky dip bag of food for about £3.30 Local Carvery restaurants use it to sell off what they haven't sold by 9pm, so you can get well fed just by changing your TeaTime timing.

Always exploit Yellow sticker discounts and valuable offers.

Shop at Lidl, Aldi and Farmfoods. Install the Lidl App which is one of the better loyalty schemes.

Grow some food. A handful of tomato pips now could give you a summer worth of tomatoes.

[Frnc]

Hi. Sorry to hear your situation.

Have a look at 'freebies' on Gumtree. You can get good stuff. Some of it is collected by dealers, who go on to sell it. Some is as new. People sometimes in a rush to clear stuff, or can't find a buyer. It's local, so you don't need postage.

Don't stress about getting everything straight away. Took me 2 years to get my bugout bag sorted.

Food stocks, just buy a bit extra when you can, and rotate it. A bag of pasta, or tin of tuna. Soon adds up. But extra cost is minimal.

Water you do need. A few 10 litre containers full is enough. Resteralise and swap out every six months.

Emergency cooking, you just need some sort of camping gas stove and gas. I use the backpacking kind, but many use the family bistro style, which the fuel is cheaper for.

Good luck with it all! And your finances, which of course are a major prep in themselves.

[GillyBee]

There is no shame in being broke. It is its own SHTF.

I would suggest joining Freecycle and Olio which both have local people clearing out non-food and food items.
Water preps can be free if you can lay your hands on empty 2litre fuzzy drink bottles to refill. It is the sort of thing you could ask neighbours or Freecycle for "for a craft project" or "for gardening"

[Yorkshire Andy]

Also crawl the supermarkets bargain racks

My latest haul In Asda consisted of....

2x AAA torches with batteries £1.89 each reduced from. £5.99

10 packs of AA batteries £0.79p

And a 2m extension lead £1.95

There was a dab FM radio in b&M for £10 tonight

Also have a bloody good read of this

https://prepare.campaign.gov.uk/

[Biffa7777]

I want to thank everyone for replying and for the great advice and information. I have gotten some free 25ltr containers as water is top of my list, and I have started putting one or two cans of food aside where I can and have a preppers list which I aim to slowly add too. Hopefully I can pick up some cheap items for a bag. I was surprised by the swift responses. It's good to know that you can be open and ask questions or ask for help without any criticism or sarcastic remarks.
Thx everyone.

[Yorkshire Andy]

I want to thank everyone for replying and for the great advice and information. I have gotten some free 25ltr containers as water is top of my list, and I have started putting one or two cans of food aside where I can and have a preppers list which I aim to slowly add too. Hopefully I can pick up some cheap items for a bag. I was surprised by the swift responses. It's good to know that you can be open and ask questions or ask for help without any criticism or sarcastic remarks.
Thx everyone.

You'll probably find most peppers have been on their arse so to speak at some point be it loss of a job, illness , a curved ball disaster such as loss of home ... Not like any of us on here have mentioned having a mansion with a underground bunker with a self contained pool and gym if so I want to be friends with them



And don't worry the sarcasm comes once we get to know you a bit better


For a bag don't go mad... Start with a weekend away bag / hotel bag / hospital bag type bag

Work out what you'd need to be comfortable for a few days away from home. Be it police evaluation due to say a fire or some lunatic making something silly in the garden shed or a builder finding a 1000lb ww2 bomb in the nearby building site

Or you develop some medical problem at 3am and the NHS finest come collect you and deposit you at the hospital 20 miles from home

Say

Change of smalls
Towel
Basic wash bag
Spare t shirt
Light weight jacket
Little sleeping bag
Bit of cash enough to get a taxi / train home from the local major injuries hospital
A book to read and pass the time
Bottle of drink (can then be topped up with water)
Any regular medication
List of important numbers / insurance details
Phone charger and relevant leads and possibly a small power bank

You'll probably get some funny looks turning up to a council sports hall dressed like Rambo with a 100l burgan full of camping kit for a sleep on a camp bed whist the fire service put out the local school

[jennyjj01]

...
I have started putting one or two cans of food aside where I can and have a preppers list which I aim to slowly add too.

A hint for starting an extra food reserve on a budget...
To get max bang for your buck, look at what you buy in terms of Calories per £ or Portions per £ or Kilos per £ in that order.
If you want Some survival rations for true SHTF, Get a base of cheap white calories such as Long Grain rice at 52p per Kilo. That Kilo is enough for over ten big portions. Then augment with something that can make a meal of it, such as tinned tomatoes or beans. With just a very few pounds you can know you at least won't starve for a week. Then augment with some niceties that can make for better meal experiences, such as a few (cheap) stock cubes, Cook in sauces, tins of fish, etc. It's easier to feed yourself cheaply if you know what your spend is contributing to your diet.
Rice, Pasta, Flour, Oats and cooking oil can get Calories in you cheapest. Tinned Tomatoes and Baked Beans starts to make it livable. Far cheaper than any kind of ready meal or even tinned soup

[GillyBee]

And try to live within your means It sounds trite but it is true.

The thing that made the difference for use was to put a bit of money aside as soon as I had been paid. That went into another account and we did our level best to avoid using it each month. It meant that we had an emergency fund so that when things did go wrong (like the car), I was able to borrow from the savings account instead of the credit card and avoid having to pay back interest on top of the loan.

Even if you are trying to live on an impossible food budget, if you can do £9.50 instead of £10, those 50ps start to become a small fund that can be used to take advantage of some of the bulk buy supermarket offers you would otherwise have to pass over. Which then means the £9.50 goes a bit further.

I also recommend Martin Lewis Money Saving Expert blog. It was one of the things that helped my get my finances straightened out.