The North East spends just £22.30 going out

Whilst many dream of being swept off their feet on a date – being taken out for a lavish three course meal, a trip to the theatre or at the very least, the cinema - the reality these days for most is that actually affording to go on a date is getting further from reach.

Leading wood burning stove experts Glowing Embers conducted a survey of 1,250 people to discover just how much Brits are able to spend on a date.

The survey found that the average amount Brits can afford to spend on date is the princely sum of…£22.22. Us in the North East, meanwhile, can only afford to spend £22.30 on a date.

Now, of course, in some parts of the country that might go further than in others, but, for example, the average price of a cinema ticket in the UK is £7.21, so once you've got tickets for yourself and your date, there's barely enough left for a couple of Cokes and some popcorn.

And the average cost of a meal for two in a midrange restaurant is around £40, so unless you're going Dutch, there's going to be no offer to pay for both of you to impress your date.

However, if you live in the South East, you are positively minted in comparison to the overall UK average (well, to the tune of £24.86, but still, that means you can upgrade that cinema Coke to a large, right?!), while the West Midlands aren't looking too shabby with £23.83 in their pocket to flash around.

The region most affected by date poverty, though, is the South West; with living in the likes of Bristol and Dorset equating to a spend of just £19.44. That could include bus fares to and from the movies but not much else, frankly.

The region second most affected by date poverty is Wales, who can just about stretch to £19.55.

Other findings include that over one fifth (21.1%) of Brits avoid looking at their bank statement after going on a date as they always spend more than they budget; we all know how easy it is to get carried away after a couple of cocktails...one always leads to at least three or four, right?

"Money is tight these days," says Richard Fewings, director of Glowing Embers, "and going out is expensive. If you can't afford to go out, why not stay cosy at home - maybe watch Netflix with a takeaway in front of one of our toasty wood-burning stoves! You never know, things might really heat up!"

To find out where your region stands on the date poverty line, see the infographic map below: https://www.glowing-embers.co.uk/blog/dating-poverty-uk/