With only just over two weeks left until Christmas, this is traditionally the time of year when children are pleading for all the newest toys and there are lots of tempting items in the shops which promise to make your Christmas just perfect.

Christmas should be eagerly anticipated and enjoyed to the full, but how will you afford it all? Over the next two weeks, City of York Trading Standards will be urging consumers to follow a few easy steps to avoid unnecessary debt and a difficult financial time in the New Year.

Last year consumers on average spent £560 at Christmas time (£302 on gifts alone), and this year's estimates indicate that figure will be more than £600. The top three things people buy are toys/games, food and drink and clothes. York Trading Standards advises all Christmas shoppers that much of the unnecessary suffering of pre-Christmas credit and New Year debt can be avoided by forward planning and sensible borrowing.

Purchasing toys and preparing for parties can be an exciting time, but the long-term effect on your finances needs to be kept in mind. Most things bought on credit in December involve a long-term commitment, with a first payment on those pre-Christmas borrowings coming through the letterbox from January onwards - often when the initial excitement of the purchase, be it a toy or a glamorous dress or lots of special food and drink, has worn off.

Obtaining credit is easy enough at the best of times - our advice is to plan ahead, set a budget for Christmas shopping and stick to it. If you can buy with existing funds rather than getting carried away and over-extending yourself in financing a shopping spree with additional credit, then so much the better. If you do decide to sign on the dotted line for credit, the huge variation in credit deals and APR rates means that the only way to be sure of getting the best deal is to shop around.

Next week we will publish our top ten tips on Christmas spending, but for further advice on credit and debt, and a budget planner to detail income against proposed expenditure - to help avoid a New Year filled with loan repayments and creditor demands - please contact City of York Trading Standards on 01904 551562, fax us on 01904 551590 or call at 9 St Leonard's Place. Our e-mail address is trading.standards@york.gov.uk