Will having a baby break my finances?

Jenny and her partner are planning to have a baby but, beyond forking out for nappies and a pushchair, she has no idea how much becoming a parent will cost. How big a budget will the couple need to cover parental leave, childcare costs, and other unexpected expenses? Claer talks to Tobi Asare, founder of parental finance blog My Bump Pay, and Maike Currie, FT columnist and investment director at Fidelity International.

If you would like to be a guest on Money Clinic and chat to Claer about a money issue that’s bugging you, get in touch — our email is money@ft.com or follow her on Instagram and Twitter @ClaerB

Further reading:

-Tobi’s blog My Bump Pay can be found here and has a wealth of resources for soon-to-be parents and she is on instagram @mybumppay You can download her baby equipment spreadsheet here, or use her planner to calculate how to spread out the ‘income shock’ of parental leave

-Follow Maike Currie on Twitter @MaikeCurrie and check out her FT columns here

-Check if you are eligible for the UK government’s Tax-Free Childcare account

-Hiring a nanny: what I wish I’d known. Click here to read

-More than 1m parents in the UK are estimated to have lost state pension credits by mistakenly not registering for Child Benefit. This free article explains what to do

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