What does it feel like to downsize to a one-bedroom flat on the south coast of England? “Freedom from worry,” according to Louise Purchase.
This move is the latest in Louise’s downsizing journey.
The 76-year-old sold her three storey, four-bedroom Victorian townhouse in Southsea, Hampshire in 2022 to make life easier for her husband Stewart as his health deteriorated.
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Your sleep has a huge impact on your heart health
How sleep and your heart
health are linked
Adults who regularly sleep fewer than seven hours are at increased risk of high blood pressure, obesity, heart attack and diabetes.
The risk of coronary artery disease is 45 per cent higher in adults with short sleep durations at night.
LIFESTYLE
4 min read
The bedtime habits that reduce risk
Sleep tourism in hotel. Exhausted woman sleeps sweetly in bed in the morning – stock photo. (Photo: Getty)
Consistency
Keep daytime naps to less than 20 minutes and aim for seven to eight hours sleep per night.
Wind down
A reasonable 20-30 minute bedtime routine can include reading, light stretching, and meditation.
A mature man meditates in the last sun rays coming into his bedroom – stock photo. (Photo: Getty)
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Time your exercise
Vigorous exercise within three hours of bedtime can cause insomnia.
The bedroom environment
Pensive young Asian woman sitting on bed writing on journal in cozy bedroom. Copy space. – stock photo. (Photo: Getty)
Sleeping in a bedroom with bright overhead light has been associated with a higher risk of major cardiovascular events, including heart attack (47 per cent higher risk), stroke (28 per cent) and heart failure.
Darken the room with blackout blinds or an eye mask, avoid blue light and leave your mobile phone outside your bedroom.
The bedtime habits that reduce risk
Food and drink
Alcohol, nicotine, caffeine and large evening meals can all disrupt sleep quality.
One theory is that alcohol and drugs can hijack the brain’s pathways (Photo: Guillermo Spelucin/Getty Images)
Know your numbers
If your blood pressure at bedtime is consistently high, consider discussing medication with your GP.
Beware of snoring
Sleep-disordered breathing is linked with cardiovascular conditions, so it could be time for a GP evaluation.
Separate bedrooms is not the first step on the road to dissolution; it’s the route to joint survival (Photo: LordHenriVoton/E+/Miljan Lakic/Getty)
Alzheimer’s can be seen on brain scans (Photo: Tek Image/Getty)
HEALTH
Reflecting on the early signs of dementia
Three families reflect on the early signs of the illness, which affected their parents.
They include the things they missed or dismissed, what they’d do differently and what they’d want other people in the same position to know.
Robert and his mother Joyce
She fell for a scam
Robert’s mother Joyce spent her last six years in a care home
One of the first incidents that rang alarm bells for Robert was his mum falling victim to a suspected scam from someone selling mattresses door-to-door.
She also started to struggle with cooking and making her special dishes she’d been making for decades without a problem.
LIFESTYLE
5 min read
Did he tell his mother?
We [had] just sort of played along with everything. But on one particularly bad day, I blurted it out over the phone, ‘Because you’ve got dementia, mum!’ She threatened to kill herself, which was very scary. Maybe it’s something I should have explained properly to her from the get-go.
JOYCE WAS DIAGNOSED WITH ALZHEIMER’S IN HER EARLY SEVENTIES
Old man with dementia enjoys sunny weather – stock photo. (Photo: Getty)
Rosie became a carer
in her early thirties
I think we missed some of the really early subtle signs.
Rosie’s mother was diagnosed with Young Onset Alzheimer’s Disease at 58 but some symptoms, like brain fog, were put down to the menopause.
She had become more forgetful, and was repeating herself, but as she had always “been scatty” it was dismissed.
She became fixated
It was on strange things like going to the same buffet.
Chloe was just 14 when her mum, Sarah, was diagnosed with young onset frontotemporal dementia, a rare form of the disease.
Another time Sarah, who was diagnosed in her forties, forgot how to boil an egg.
On Saturdays, when she’d usually go shopping, she’d go out and come straight back home, almost like she was forgetting
what she was going out for.
Unused or unwanted subscriptions cost consumers £1.6bn.
Writer Sadhbh O’Sullivan looked into her own forgotten subscriptions when she became a first-time buyer, and realised how much she was wasting on things she wasn’t using.
Are you good at managing money (Photo:
Peter Dazeley/Getty/The Image Bank RF)
The hidden spends that go unnoticed
I’d long considered myself to be quite a reasonable spender.
But the hidden costs across her bank accounts, like free trials that hadn’t been cancelled and memberships for abandoned services, proved otherwise.
It was full of small amounts, £2.99 here, £4.50 there. These small amounts added up.
The ghost subscriptions
Sadhbh isn’t alone.
19%
According to a Nationwide survey almost one in five Brits don’t use every platform they pay for.
The bank suggests they could save as much as £400 a year by ditching them.
4.7 million
National Trading Standards’ 2025 research found 4.7 million people were paying for subscriptions they didn’t know they’d signed up for.
In 2024, a government report found unused and unwanted subscriptions cost consumers up to £1.6bn a year.
How to deal with the subscriptions
Hunt them down
Banking apps usually list your ‘subscriptions’ separately from direct debits and standing orders so you can easily spot what you’re shelling out on.
Pensioners have some flexibility over the timing and payment of their state pension
(juststock/Getty Images/iStockphoto/ NIPITPHON)
Edge will give customers cashback on debit card and direct debit spending
Check everything
You can be debited through credit cards, E-payment services, your mobile phone bill, Apple Pay or Google Pay.
How to deal with subscriptions
Dating apps have failed the black community, says Amber (Photo: Morsa Images/Getty)
Be honest
Don’t vow to use a subscription you’re not going to, even if you
have good intentions.
Look over 13 months
Many businesses have changed from monthly to annual payments so look further back.
Changes are due to kick in on everything from inheritance tax to filling in self-assessment forms (Photo: Getty).
Customers struggling with debts are highly likely to be in vulnerable circumstances, regulators warn
(Photo: Martin Prescott/Getty)
Future proof
Make sure to track any subscriptions you have kept so you can cancel them, if need be, in future.
Don’t be afraid of phone calls
If companies don’t let you cancel online, don’t fear the customer service line.
With TV and broadband, call the new customer number as it’s often answered more quickly.
If you’re happy with the service, but not the price, speak to a real person that may offer a better deal.
Look for a phone number and press the ‘thinking of leaving us’ option. It’s usually a fast track to a team with authority to offer bigger discounts.
Donations to charity have increased dramatically
But staff say many people treat their shops like a tip.
Here they share the most useful donations they get, and the
ones that drive them mad.
A rail of clothes in a second hand vintage charity shop – stock photo. (Photo: Getty)
People won’t buy the current donations
The quality of donations over the last year has diminished.
Claire Stockman, head of retail for St
Luke’s Hospice [pictured], says many donations include used items from fast fashion like Boohoo and Primark, which they cannot sell for more than £2, if at all.
What the workers see
60%
of what comes into St Luke’s Hospice is unsellable, Stockman says.
She adds its soiled, damaged beyond
repair or smelly.
Vinted
Harriet, a volunteer at Crisis in Dalston,
says people bring in clothes that are dirty and stained – things that they cannot sell
on Vinted.
She also sees dirty kitchenware and technology that no longer works.
It’s not all bad
Two young women shopping in a vintage charity shop – stock photo. (Photo: Getty)
Harriet says they still get their
fair share of designer items.
She’s seen a pair of Louboutins
sell for around £400.
People will buy high-end items
even if they’re a little worn.
First Person
5 min read
The best donations
There was a box donated after someone’s family had passed and in it were all these medals. I researched them and the whole collection ended up going for £2,340…
JANE THURNELL-READ, VOLUNTEER AT
THE OXFAM GENERAL SHOP IN EXETER
What is a good donation?
A young woman chooses clothes in a fashion store and reads the labels on things while shopping at the mall. A millennial shopaholic woman tries on clothes in a fashion boutique – stock photo. (Photo: Getty)
A good donation is anything new with tags on, anything that hasn’t been opened, or higher quality items.
Items that have been well looked after are more likely to sell and generate a better price for charity too.
Harriet adds that knick-knacks and wine glasses are surprise hits in her branch.
The feeling of dread that the weekend is over is all too familiar.
Here, psychologists, career consultants and sleep experts give their best advice on how
to beat the gloom that the
work week is looming…
(Photo: Getty).
How to beat the Sunday scaries
Pave the way on Friday
Psychologist Maria-Teresa Daher-Cusack says to wrap up tasks and not to leave big or difficult things for Monday. And write a to-do list for the next week so you know what to expect when you return after the weekend.
Young man practicing meditation in nature at sunrise – stock photo. (Photo: Getty)
Working from home is being blamed by some councils for the rise in fraudulent ‘polygamous’ working (Photo: Moment RF/Getty)
Get outside early
Doctor Naheed Ali says getting out on a Sunday morning – not sleeping late – helps regulate the circadian rhythm that can become skewed over the weekend.
How to avoid Sunday scaries
On Sunday spend time away from technology to allow yourself a personal reset away from doom scrolling.
Relaxing with dog on sofa – stock photo. (Photo: Getty)
Rebrand your Sunday evenings from a daunting time to relaxing. Career consultant Victoria McLean goes out for dinner or reads something unrelated to work.
She also doesn’t check her inbox on a Sunday night as it can begin the dread.
How to beat the Sunday scaries
Sleep tourism in hotel. Exhausted woman sleeps sweetly in bed in the morning – stock photo. (Photo: Getty)
Sleep well
Put yourself in the best position to rest by avoiding large meals, screens and caffeine.
Structure your week
If possible don’t stack your Mondays with high-pressure tasks.
Caucasian mid adult patient writing a diary while recovering in the hospital ward – stock photo. (Photo: Getty)
Cheerful aged woman, senior intern waving, saying goodbye to her young colleagues while leaving office after first day at work – stock photo. (Photo: Getty)
Find the fun daily
Don’t just save joyful things for the weekend. On lunch breaks, try to do something you enjoy.
(Photo: Getty).
Sometimes, you
need to listen.
If the Sunday scaries are constant, listen to them. If every Sunday fills you with dread and nothing seems to quell it it’s worth asking if it’s the job, the culture or the career itself. No one should spend half their weekend bracing for impact… ” says Victoria McLean
The UK has one of the most stable electricity grids in the world.
But no country’s energy system is 100 per cent secure and large-scale blackouts, although rare, are possible.
Here’s how to prepare, and what could happen, if we do have a blackout.
The immediate effects
If the UK’s power went down tomorrow, these are the ways it is likely to impact you first.
You’d get stuck in lifts, wherever you are in the lift shaft.
Trains would be stopped as the signals depend on electricity.
Traffic lights would stop working on the roads – leading to congestion or crashes.
Contactless payments are likely to fail.
Your Wi-Fi at home would stop working and communication becomes difficult.
Fridges and freezers will turn off – unless you have a standalone generator – and food will spoil over time.
Hospitals and water treatment works have their own backup generators so will keep going until their supply runs out.
How transport would be affected
Caption: This photograph taken on April 29, 2026 shows people charging their electric vehicles at a charging station in Kathmandu. As global fuel markets reel from the Middle East war, motorists in Nepal are increasingly turning to electric vehicles, with high demand putting a strain on dealerships. (Photo by Prakash MATHEMA / AFP via Getty Images) / TO GO WITH ‘Nepal-Transport-Automobile-Energy’ FOCUS
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For EV owners that are already on the road, Professor Keith Bell, who works in electricity planning, recommends that those with an EV with reasonable charge use it as a generator, like your own store of electricity.
In the case of the power system going down, petrol isn’t a totally safe option as queues at petrol stations could be huge and places are likely to run out of fuel.
The longer term effects
The longer the power takes to return the worse things are likely to get. In 2021 Storm Arwen physically damaged power lines across the UK.
Without nuclear to take the strain, that exposure to gas is costing us dear (Photo: Catherine Falls Commercial/Getty)
Caption: FILE PHOTO: A row of electricity pylons is seen near the Frodsham on shore wind farm in Frodsham, Britain, September 5, 2023. REUTERS/Phil Noble/File Photo
Photographer: Phil Noble
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Source: REUTERS
During the 1977 New York blackout, which lasted 25 hours, there was civil unrest, resulting in widespread looting and arson, although intense heatwaves are thought to have exacerbated the situation.
Things to buy now to prepare
The Russian state-owned Sputnik news agency took over the BBC’s radio frequency in Lebanon (Photo: Getty)
Battery radio
To get updates during a power cut – a car radio can be used, but in severe weather it might be safer to stay inside.
Bottled water
A minimum of 2.5-3 litres of drinking water per person per day is recommended.
Caption: Plastic bottle with clean water on a blue background.
Photographer: SimpleImages
Provider: Getty Images
Source: Moment RF
A Cuban rides his bike during a nation wide blackout in Havana on 21 March (Photo: Yamil Lage/AFP/Getty)
Wind-up torch
The Government recommends opting for torches over candles, for safety reasons.
How to prepare
A blackout is unlikely but we should make small changes.
If possible, don’t let your petrol tank run down to almost empty. Keep it over half full so you’re never caught short.
Always have a portable power bank, and spare batteries, to charge your phone and other essentials.
As card machines could fail, keep some cash at home.
To keep yourself distracted and entertained, keep board games and a pack of cards handy to play.
Eight easy ways to stop
your child spending summer glued to their devices
Not all screen time is bad
Using screens in a way that benefits your child’s development is key and balancing educational content and entertainment with offline activities ensures a well-rounded routine.
DR GUMMER
How to keep your kids off screens
Outdoor activities
For younger children, try scavenger hunts, garden games and nature walks. For older ones, hikes
and biking trips.
Create a schedule
Designated screen-free times helps children develop a routine that balances screen use with other activities.
Caption: Mid adult man with eyeglasses sitting on a comfortable sofa at home, thoughtfully writing notes in a small notebook while natural sunlight illuminates the room
Photographer: Milan Markovic
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Source: E+
Family game nights
It’s an excellent way
to bond and develop critical thinking skills.
How to keep your kids off screens
Creative hobbies
Getting creative, through drawing, painting or model construction, enhances cognitive skills and offers an alternative to screens.
Social interaction
Arrange playdates or group activities with friends, or for older kids try an overnight camping trip in the garden.
How to keep your kids off screens
Lead by example
Showing that you value offline time encourages your children to do the same.
Have a reward
Implement a reward system where screen time is earned through positive behaviour.
Open conversations
Discuss the importance of balancing screen time with your children so they understand the reasons behind the rules.
Can following a particular diet
help prevent or delay dementia?
Some studies suggest so.
These are the eight brain-boosting foods registered dietitian Fareeha Jay
recommends people consume as part of a weekly diet…
Foods that can cut dementia risk
Caption: A detail of cracked egg falling into the pan as woman holds egg shells in both hands.
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Source: Moment RF
Eggs
They contain several nutrients thought to support brain health, including choline, vitamin B12 and iodine.
Coffee
Caffeine can reduce inflammation and
slow the degeneration
of brain cells.
Barista hand making cappuccino Coffee with espresso machine in cafe – stock photo. (Photo: Getty)
Cooking fruit and vegetables (Photor: GMVozd/Getty Images/E+)
Broccoli
It’s packed with antioxidants and high in vitamin K, which is essentially for healthy brain cells.
Fibre is overlooked in dementia prevention
Caption: Cookie jar, tea, wine, nuts, books, lit candles and Christmas decorations on the table. Cozy Christmas hygge at home. Selective focus.
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Source: iStockphoto
To increase fibre intake, include wholegrains, nuts, seeds, lentils, and legumes.
Fermented foods also support brain health by improving the gut microbiome.
LIFESTYLE
4 min read
Foods that can cut dementia risk
(Photo: Joff Lee/Getty Images)
Oily fish
Your brain uses Omega-3s to build brain and nerve cells – so a diet rich in them may slow age-related mental decline.
Walnuts
These improve heart health markers, which is linked to a lower risk of neurological disorders.
Health professionals are nuts about nuts – with good reason!
Supermarkets report increasing demand for blueberries (Photo: RHS/Guy Harrop)
Blueberries
They contain compounds which have been shown to improve blood flow to the brain, cognitive function, and memory.
The Mind diet
The diet aims to reduce dementia risk and the decline in brain health.
It was created in 2015 by Dr Martha Clare Morris and colleagues at Rush University Medical Centre and the Harvard Chan School of Public Health.
It encourages vegetables, berries, nuts, whole grains, olive oil, fish, beans, and poultry.
These foods contain nutrients that promote good brain health by reducing oxidative stress and inflammation.
The couple needed to live in a single storey home as Stewart suffered with several health issues, including chronic kidney disease and diabetes. They settled on a two-bed apartment in a converted former naval hospital, the Royal Haslar, Gosport with views overlooking the Solent, spending the small sum they banked from the move on enjoying the time they had left together.
Sadly, Stewart died just six months later and Louise knew that she had to move again – this time to free up enough money to support herself in retirement.
Time for a change
Louise decided that living minutes from the seafront and the beauty of the historic Georgian building was too good to give up, so she downsized to a one-bed flat in the same complex.
She sold the flat she had lived in with Stewart, her husband of 25 years, for £430,000 and bought a one-bed for £285,000. Her stamp duty and legal fees came to £7,000 and estate agent fees were £6,000, leaving Louise around £132,000.
“Downsizing was freeing for me,” says Louise. “I had the comfort of knowing that if I managed my money carefully, I could focus on my wellbeing at a critical time in my life.”
‘People get attached to a home that has family history but they might find unexpected benefits from taking the leap into downsizing,’ says Louise (Photo: Matthew PJ Clark)
She took advice from her bank on how to make her money last. Louise calculated how much the flat’s service charge would be over the years and put this amount into NS&I premium bonds.
She put £20,000 into a cash ISA to enjoy tax-free interest, and put a further sum into an investment account that matures when she is 80 years old.
“Not having to worry about scrimping and saving has allowed me to think: what do I want to do now?” she says. “People get attached to a home that has family history but they might find unexpected benefits from taking the leap into downsizing.”
Is downsizing worth it?
For most people, their home tends to be their most valuable asset, but not everyone can rely on it to fund retirement – downsizing to a smaller property often doesn’t free up enough cash.
The average sum freed up by moving to a smaller, cheaper home was £151,171 in the first three months of 2026, according to reallymoving, a comparison site for home movers. It may sound like a vast sum, but those with a mortgage to settle and stamp duty to pay on their onward purchase will soon see that cash pile shrink.
London is the region where the most money is freed up by downsizing, at an average of £260,000, followed by £207,000 for downsizers in the North East of England. The smallest amount released by downsizing is in Wales at an average of £77,000 followed by Scotland and Yorkshire and the Humber, both at £82,000, according to figures from Which?.
There is a lot to consider when deciding whether to downsize. The average cost of moving home in England is at a record of £17,831, says Rob Houghton, founder and CEO at reallymoving, while stamp duty can set downsizers in London back by £14,300 on average.
Then there is the mortgage to repay. Almost 40 per cent of homeowners aged 55 to 64 still have a mortgage, according to estate agency Hamptons, with an average outstanding balance of £115,762
Based on the average amount freed up, a typical downsizer would be left with just £17,578 after mortgage and moving costs.
But not everyone’s goal is to retire on the equity, says David Fell, lead analyst at Hamptons. “Downsizing is also about saving on day-to-day running costs. With lower utility and council tax bills on a smaller property, homeowners can easily save £200–£300 a month. They also tend to need less maintenance.”
Don’t rule out renting
Other downsizers may opt-out of ownership entirely and choose to rent instead. The prospect of banking their equity and skipping the stamp duty bill is growing in popularity, says Neil Bishop, general manager at The Senior Move Partnership, a concierge service for downsizers.
“Looking back just three years ago, few developers were building retirement properties to rent,” he said. “Now there’s a lot more choice but a lot of people find it overwhelming. A lot has changed since the last time they moved, when all they needed was a copy of the Yellow Pages and a telephone.”
Eleanor Mills downsized from her four-bedroom home in London after her daughters went to university
Eleanor Mills sold her four-bedroom maisonette spread over four floors in Kentish Town, north London, and moved to a rented house nearby after the sale of her onward purchase fell through. Although it was unplanned, she now thinks the experience was helpful.
“My top tip is to treat downsizing as a three-stage process,” says Eleanor, 55, founder of noon.org.uk, an online community for women in mid-life.
“First, sell your big house and get rid of your stuff, then go and live somewhere temporary. That way the stakes aren’t so high when you are choosing where you will live [permanently]. Once you’re out of the house and in your rented place you’ll have a clearer sense of what you want.”
You’ll also be a cash buyer when you do buy, preferred by sellers because of the speed at which you’ll be able to complete the purchase, which puts you in a strong position.
Eleanor and her husband are now flat-hunting near Hampstead Heath, her favourite spot for swimming. They have so far viewed around 50 properties and are hoping to make their choice soon. After the purchase, they expect to bank several hundred thousand pounds.
While Eleanor had been in the family home since she was 30, she says living there “didn’t make sense anymore”. The space, proximity to good schools and easy London commute that were so important when they were bringing up children were no longer relevant now that her daughters are in their twenties and at university.
Despite knowing it was the right decision, Eleanor says leaving was a “terrible wrench” and packing up was both emotionally and physically exhausting.
“You have to go through dusty boxes, which are mostly full of absolute rubbish but there will be a few things in there, photographs or letters from someone who is now dead which are precious,” she says.
When the time came to leave, the family carried out farewell ritual – each placing a special item from the house into the fireplace, thanking their home and talking about the happy memories made there.
Mortgage-free and with money in the bank, Eleanor only has to take on the work she wants to and has money to help her daughters onto the property ladder or clear student loans.
“I run my own businesses and don’t feel any financial pressure,” she says.
Equity release – a viable alternative?
If you can’t bear to move out of your home, the alternative to freeing up cash is to take out an equity release mortgage. The most common type is called a lifetime mortgage.
To qualify, you need to be over 55 and a homeowner. Any outstanding mortgage balance must be repaid using the lifetime mortgage. The remaining balance is either paid as a tax-free lump sum or left in an account with the provider to drawdown sums when you need them.
The debt is repaid when the last remaining mortgage holder dies or moves into long-term care. You can pay is back earlier, but hefty early repayment charges often apply.
Loans are usually capped at 50 per cent of your property’s value, and lenders can be choosy over the property types they will accept.
Lifetime mortgage rates depend on your age and factors such as health and lifestyle. They currently start from around 6.5 per cent for the smallest loan-to-values, according to broker Key.
You don’t have to pass any affordability tests to qualify or make any repayments if you don’t want to. And, while that sounds like a great deal, depending on how long you live, this could have a dramatic impact on the size of the debt that must eventually be repaid.
Homeowners considering a mortgage later in life should speak to a specialist adviser to weigh up their options.
Will Hale, chief executive of Key, said: “With a lifetime mortgage you continue to own your home and benefit fully from house price increases, but if you choose not to make repayments, compound interest can quickly erode the equity in your home, with a loan at 6.5 per cent doubling in about 11 years – potentially impacting your options down the line.”