Guide to the Cost of Living

Location, location, location

There is something very modern about the town of Woking. Nestled in beautiful Surrey, we offer something different for city slickers and country folks alike – thanks to our gorgeous greenery and upmarket retail selection.

Boasting top-notch connections to the rest of the UK thanks to the M25 and beyond, including rail services and an easy mooch to the nearest airport (London Heathrow) for far-flung destinations.

Although Woking is only 25 miles from central London, it maintains a 60 percent greenbelt for agriculture, recreation, and the countryside.Â

As everyone knows, it costs nothing to get back to nature, which makes it especially good to go green.

Other free, family-friendly activities come in the form of good old community spirit here in Woking.

In addition to celebrating the vibrancy of Woking, the local folk also host a fantastic calendar of events called ‘Celebrate Woking,’ which attracts around 200,000 people every year.

See? Who said fun had to cost an arm and a leg?

Rail in and out of Woking:

For the mindful commuter, Woking railway station is one of the busiest in Surrey and connects directly to London Waterloo within 25 minutes.

As such, it’s part of the aptly named ‘London Commuter Belt’, with trains arriving every few minutes, so getting to the Big Smoke for working or playing is never a problem.

A ticket from Woking to London Waterloo goes for about £13.50, or a coach from the station can set you back the price of an artisan pistachio latte. That’s to say, around £6.

A number of major cities across the country can also be reached directly from the station, including:

• Bristol
• Exeter
• Bournemouth
• Winchester
• Southampton
• Cardiff
• Portsmouth
• and many more

These services are operated by ‘South West Trains’ (run by South Western Railway)

Buses and Coaches:

As we touched on earlier, buses and coaches are a great way to cut down emissions – and get where you need to go at a fraction of the cost of filling up a tank of petrol.

As with many other locations across lush Surrey, Woking also has a fully functioning bus and coach network connecting its large town with the surrounding 14 villages.

So why not hop on and off a bus at your leisure across the Woking area for just £5.80 for a day ticket, with unlimited travel for the whole day.

You can view all the timetables for Woking buses here, as well as ticket prices to suit your needs.

Cycling:

On yer bike!

Now come back, please. You might want to hear this.

If you’ve already got a bike and are keen to use it (and save money on fuel or tickets) – then Woking is an incredibly cycle-friendly place.

Nearly £2 million has been invested by the ‘Cycle England’ initiative to help improve the cycling facilities and routes in the area (cleverly named ‘Cycle Woking) – making the town one of the greenest and cleanest around.

Plus, it’s part of a larger plan to make Woking a regional ‘hub’ for shopping, employment and transport, so it’s worth sticking around to see this amazing transformation.

Cost-saving tips and tricks

Of course, the cost of living crisis is something that can impact us all – meaning there’s no one-size solution.

 

That’s why our team has collated the following hints and tips so you can get more bang for your buck, especially when those pennies have to be pushed a little further.

Track your spending and set a budget

OK, so straight to the basics.

When trying to reduce your cost of living, you should first manage your money and make a budget.

The trick here is to figure out what money you have coming in and how much money you have going out, so it pays to be as detailed as possible to capture everything. Literally.

Consider using:

• An online tool to help you understand your money
• A budget planner to give you an overview of where and when you are spending your money

Once you understand how much money you are spending, you can then work out how much you could save if you stop spending on non-essential items.

According to Barclaycard Payments, households spend around £500 a year on subscription.

So, if there are streaming services or gym memberships that you are not getting good use out of, get them clicked off or binned entirely!

Haggle where you can

OK, so most people think that haggling is restricted to market stalls in the East End, but for people looking to save any extra money, looking at getting a better deal on your everyday services is a great place to start.

This includes:

• Phone
• broadband
• pay-TV services

It’s also handy to time this ‘review’ when you notice your outgoing bills are going up or if you’re on an introductory deal that’s coming to an end.

This is because switching is often the best way to secure the best price for you. However, you can also look around for saving schemes or message your provider directly to see if they’ll match your price point.

Shy folk get nothin’, eh?

Slice that (food) spend

Your food shopping is one of the biggest things that ‘eat’ into your budget.

Experts say that preparing and cooking your own meals is usually cheaper than buying takeaways or ready meals (sorry to break it to you, food fans) – but it’s also good for your body, too!

To kick the habit, plan and plot a weekly meal plan that uses the ingredients you already have and make a shopping list of any missing items. Some apps can help you collate recipes based on these ingredients, then use a quick online shop to help you reduce costs.

Plus, choosing veg over meat and fish and batch cooking by using a slow cooker can also help to save on the cost of food while saving the planet – so it’s a win for you and the planet.

Don’t want it? Flog it

One person’s stash is another’s treasure. If you’ve got things knocking around that aren’t getting used, why not sell them to someone who’ll want them for a handy bit of extra cash.

From Vinted, Ebay, Depop and Facebook marketplace, you can sell anything from vintage docs to bottle tops (seriously). Just make sure to stay safe and check your platform’s guidelines before posting your first listing!