The news is a  seemingly never-ending story of financial problems but keep to the basics and you can manage through the turmoil.

Review your spending over a period of at least one month to establish what your money goes on.

Cut down on discretionary spending if necessary.

Set a budget of your spending which is less than you receive in income.

Try and have some funds that you can access immediately, some for the medium term and the remainder use for longer term plans.

Reduce your level of debts wherever possible and avoid having a build up of debts on higher interest charging vehicles such as credit cards.

Have a financial plan of where you want to be and how you are going to get there.

Regularly review how you are doing against your plan.

Make use of tax efficient savings like ISA's whenever possible.

Have insurance against loss of possessions, job, illness and death. to protect yourself and your family.

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