Britain’s biggest family share their savviest Christmas tips… and reveal how long it takes to wrap presents for 22 kids

Britain’s biggest family share their savviest Christmas tips… and reveal how long it takes to wrap presents for 22 kids

10/14/2020

CHRISTMAS is a stressful time for many parents, but with 22 kids plus an extra few grandkids, it's on a whole other level for The Radfords.

So how do they do it? Noel and Sue, from Morecambe, Lancs, have shared a few tips over the years which help them budget for the big day and breeze through the hectic occasion.

Budgeting

The family famously doesn’t claim any benefits, and live off the money from and Noel’s bakery business

Sue, 45,previously admitted that they don't have credit cards as they "don't believe in them" and instead budget throughout the year by putting money aside.

"We save for it over the year, putting money away in an account. I do supermarket savings stamps for the food shop too," she said.


Gifts galore

With so many kids to cater for, strict budgeting is essential, so they set a budget for the kids based on their ages.

The Radfords previously revealed that spend between £100 and £250 on presents for each of their at Christmas – working out at a total of over £5k.

Last year, Sue shared a snap which showed piles of personalised Christmas Eve sacks she bought for her little ones, each featuring the child’s name as well as reindeer with either a blue or pink nose.

The bags are believed to have been purchased on Etsy, costing £9.99 each and are filled with goodies for her brood.

But they're also met with a huge pile of gifts on Christmas morning too, with everyone's presents in the same place each year to help things run smoothly and to avoid mixing them up.

All wrapped up

As for the wrapping, Sue considers herself a "demon wrapper", according to Mail Online as she can wrap a whopping 20 presents in just 15 minutes -and goes through 60 to 70 rolls of wrapping paper.

She also said: "I buy presents through the year, and wrap them as they come in.

"One of our biggest headaches at Christmas is where to hide all the gifts. We have them everywhere — even in the boiler cupboard. The trick is remembering where"


Christmas chaos

Each year Sue shares a detailed clip on YouTube detailing the family's Christmas morning chaos.

After the kids have unwrapped the mountains of presents, the living floor floor is literally covered in wrapping paper and rubbish.

Sue has previously said: "The worst thing is the packaging. We have a mountain of it. After Christmas we have to take the minibus to the tip to get rid of it.’ Then it’s really all over. Apart from a few birthdays, that is . . ."

Shop online

Sue previously told how she loves getting the best buys online in order to keep costs down.

She said to the Star: "We always shop around for the best deals online, it’s worth making sure you get the best deals on your utilities and take advantage of voucher deals where you can."

But this isn't limited to just Christmas, but year round to ensure they're budgeting throughout the year.

Feasting

Preparing for a large Christmas is not an easy task for the Radfords, who have to cook Christmas lunch for around 30 people, including their grandkids.

Speaking on This Morning in 2018 Noel told hosts Ruth Langford and Eamonn Holmes: “We prep a lot the night before on Christmas Eve.

“We’ve got a table we can fit 16 around, we’ve got an island in the kitchen for another six and some double up.”

The weekly food bill for the family usually comes in at around £300 but they splash out even more on their festive food which they often order online the day before.


Sue took to the family’s YouTube channel on Christmas Eve last year to post a video of the enormous Asda order that had arrived in preparation for the big day.

The massive order completely covered the entire kitchen – but Sue stillpanicked about there not being enough food.

But in previous years the busy parents have headed to Tesco instead, dragging along a couple of the older kids to help out – and usually require two trolleys, sometimes three.

The kids also help out with food prep on Christmas eve with Sue admitting "Everyone has their tasks".


Bulk buy

"I buy batteries in bulk too, packets at a time,"Sue has said, which helps keep Christmas day running smoothly.

"The absolute worst bit of Christmas Day is putting the batteries in toys and actually getting to them through all the packaging and those twiddly little fixings that you have to unscrew."

But that's not all as Sue prevoioulsy told Closer magazine: "We buy in bulk things like wash powder, toilet rolls and we shop about for things and see what's on offer.

"It's all about planning and being savvy."

Meanwhile, Noel is no stranger to using cheap products to whip up meals for as little as 40p a head – allowing them to put money aside for Christmas.

The Radfords are Britain's biggest family, with Noel and Sue parents to Chris, 30, Sophie, 26, Chloe, 24, Jack, 22, Daniel, 20, Luke, 19, Millie, 18, Katie, 17, James, 16, Ellie, 14, Aimee, 13, Josh, 12, Max, 11, Tillie, nine, Oscar, eight, Casper, seven, Hallie, four, Phoebe, three, Archie, two, Bonnie, one and Heidie, four months,

We also shared The Radfords best money-saving tips, from feeding 22 kids on the cheap to how to bag cut-price holidays.

And they share their tips for cooking on a budget including pies and pasta for 22 kids.

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