Halloween is a fun time of the year and a good excuse to get dressed up and have lots of treats! However, it can soon get costly, as well as producing a lot of single use waste in the process.

Our guide will not only help you celebrate Halloween for under a tenner, but also show you some simple swaps to become more eco-friendly.

Pick up a pumpkin and reuse it afterwards

Pumpkins are a fairly inexpensive item to buy, especially if you pop down to your local supermarket. Usually they cost no more than £2 and are sometimes reduced towards the end of the week. You can carve one at home using your own kitchen utensils, no need to go out and buy a carving kit.

To minimise waste, you can use the pumpkin flesh to cook simple meals like soup or pasta, and roast the seeds in the oven to be eaten as a healthy snack. You could even re-use your whole pumpkin after Halloween to create a bird feeder or a plant pot. Who knows, you might even attract some new wildlife to the area!

Grab a bargain when it comes to decorations

To find some spooky lights and accessories, you could call down to your local pound shop to see what bargains they have. It’s also worth looking in charity shops to see if they have any preloved decorations in good condition.

Just remember to save anything like confetti or bunting to be used again next year so it doesn’t end up getting thrown away.

Get creative with your costumes

Costumes can quickly become expensive – especially with growing children! One good idea is to organise a costume swap in your community or amongst family and friends. Not only will you be able to donate any old costumes gathering dust, but you’d also be able to pick up the right sizes for this year.

You could also get creative and try your hand at making a DIY costume using old items and clothing from the house.

Make your own decorations

Rather than going all out and buying new decorations, why not have a go at making your own? You could task yourself to use items that you’d usually recycle and turn it into a fun activity for your kids on a rainy October afternoon. Toilet roll tubes would look great as bats, and milk bottle tops are the perfect size for a spider’s body. The good news is, they can all still be recycled afterwards!

Minimise single use plastic

Sweets and chocolate often come in individually wrapped plastic that cannot be recycled.  The cost of buying different sweets soon adds up, so a good alternative would be to buy tubs of baked goods like flapjack or brownies from the supermarket instead. They usually cost around £1 each for bite sized treats, and contain no single use packaging other than the initial tub which can later be reused or recycled.

So there you have it – Halloween on a budget is possible! For more cost-effective yet eco-friendly hints and tips, follow us on social media @ForHousing.