A retiree couple living comfortably and hosting guests this Christmas could potentially have around £260 to splash out on food, according to calculations by a pensions body. A pensioner couple with a moderate lifestyle may have around £145 to spend on food for guests, while those on only a minimum income may have around £60 available in their budget to spend.
Zoe Alexander, director of policy and advocacy at the PLSA, said: “The retirement living standards help people plan for retirement by identifying the lifestyles retirees can expect at three different levels of expenditure – minimum, moderate and comfortable.
“To illustrate these, we’ve created festive hampers showing how retirees might allocate their ‘celebration events’ budget at each level, including a special dinner, decorations, and presents.”. Researchers producing costings for retiree couples assumed that those on a minimum and moderate budget would be hosting four people for dinner, while those on a comfortable budget would have six guests.
For those on a comfortable budget, a couple would have £259.44 to spend, based on a budgeted amount for celebration events, plus a proportion of their regular weekly shopping budget. Researchers included items such as smoked salmon, trout pate, prawns, cheese and crackers and a matured Christmas pudding for those with a comfortable lifestyle.
