DadTalk

The price of Christmas is £112.50 per child apparently.

Parents will spend an average of £112.50 on Christmas presents for each of their children, a straw poll has found.

It is the debate that rages between parents every year: how much to spend on the children's Christmas presents?

This year the discussions are likely to be tenser than ever, with incomes stretched and jobs at risk.

To keep costs under control, parents have adopted different strategies - with some setting a strict limit on spending per child.

Many are reluctant to discuss the issue, not least because of the role played by Father Christmas in delivering the gifts. But a new straw poll suggests that parents will spend an average of £112.50 per child this year, covering everything from a main gift to stocking-fillers.

Retail experts say hard-pressed families are likely to carry on spending on children's presents even while cutting back in other areas. Toy retailers – who sell £1 billion worth of toys each Christmas – expect this year's three top sellers to include an electronic gadget costing £80 and a huge Lego set at £92.

Joanna Leapman, 41, from Eynsford, Kent, a mother of three children aged 11, nine and six, is restricting spending to £150 per child.

She said: "We don't give the children their presents, Santa does. But these days, even he has to watch his costs.

"We haven't stuck to a limit in past years, and to be honest, some of the children probably had more than £150-worth when you added up all the bits and pieces. But looking at the cost of some of the big items, £150 seems reasonable."

Gary Pogson, 36, an engineer, from Hook, Hampshire, shopping with his wife Sarah, 39, a full-time mother, said he had calculated a £50 budget for their daughter Isabelle, two.

"I draw up the spreadsheet with all our income and outgoings. I make sure we never go over our limits."

Mrs Pogson added that the adults in the family were cutting back on spending for themselves.

"This year we are doing a secret Santa with our brothers and sisters because there are so many of us. This way we only have to buy for one adult each."

At the other end of the scale, Manni Walton, 43, a Microsoft worker, admitted he and his girlfriend would be spending £750 on each of their three children, aged one, five and eight. He said possible presents included an iPhone and a quad bike.

Shopping in Cambridge, he said: "I have gone over the top this year. The youngest probably won't even remember Christmas. When I was a child I would only get a box of soldiers."

In the straw poll of 52 Mumsnet users, for ToyNews magazine, 24 per cent said they would spend more on children's presents this year than last year.

Some said they would pay for children's presents by cutting out gifts for adults or even cancelling festive gatherings to save on travel costs. The average spend of £112.50 spans all ages from babies to teenagers.

Among the Toy Retailers Association's "dream dozen" of gifts expected to prove popular this year, only one is priced at less than £20. Marketing analysts Experian Hitwise expect the three bestsellers will be the LeapPad Explorer, an electronic "tablet" for under-10s (£79.99), the Lego Ninjago Fire Temple (£91.99) and the Fireman Sam Pontypandy Rescue Set (£29.99).

By contrast, 15 years ago the equivalent three bestsellers, at today's equivalent prices, were more affordable: the Buzz Lightyear action figure (£36.58), Crime Buster Action Man (£36.58) and Strolling Sisters Barbie (£27.81).

Jez Fraser-Hook, the UK toys director of NPD, the market research organisation, said parents were very resistant to cutting their gift budget.

He said: "The overall spend will stay pretty much the same. Those pushing for the must-have toy will probably buy fewer presents.

"When spending is cut back, it is done on things for the adults."

Read more about this at The Telegraph Website