ALMOST a quarter (23 per cent) of parents in the South East dip into their overdraft facility every month, according to new research commissioned by Equifax.

When it comes to the financial strain facing families, 20 per cent of parents in the region also confirmed they have missed monthly credit card payments compared to the national average 25 per cent.

More than half (51 per cent) of families surveyed in the South East believed that they would be able to survive financially for up to four months if they lost their job.

However, just over a quarter (26 per cent) said they would only be able to last a month or less financially if they faced this situation.

Equifax warns families are about to come under even more financial strain in the build-up to Christmas with the increase in the Bank of England base to 0.5 per cent.

Lisa Hardstaff, consumer credit information expert at Equifax, said: “With the Bank of England making its first interest rate increase in a decade, UK households may well be worried about what it means to their budgets.

“It may not sound like a big rise, but even an additional small amount added to an already tight household budget can add financial pressure.”

The Equifax-commissioned research also highlights the added financial pressure on parents during the school year.

According to the research, parents in the South East spend on average £1,517.40 per school year per child on extracurricular activities, uniform, wrap-around care, school lunches and technology compared with the national average of £1,400.

With government cuts in education funding, many schools have a school voluntary fund which can cost the parents surveyed on average an additional £13 per term.

Extracurricular activities add up to £72.47, while wrap-around care costs £140.18 per term.  With school lunches costing £124.08 a term per child, it’s easy to see how the costs soon mount up.

Equifax encourages families to use a budget planner to help prioritise payments, such as its own which can be downloaded online at www.equifax.co.uk/news

room/budget-planner.html.