All aboard with the artisans: sew up a hand-made discount to the festive crafts fair

Independent readers have a 30 per cent off for the Handmade Christmas Fair at Manchester Central - and there are some pretty good deals at M&S and Pizza Express too.

Kirstie Allsopp gives her creative and cost effective top tips at B&Q's Sutton store in 2011

We’ve got an exclusive discount for craft lovers. Independent readers can take advantage of a 30 per cent discount on the cost of a day’s “Full Experience” ticket to the Handmade Christmas Fair at Manchester Central from Friday 20 to Sunday 22 November.

The TV presenter Kirstie Allsopp has brought together designers and artisans to show off craft products and hand-made gifts, as well as offer hands-on crafting. Tickets are available from thehandmadechristmasfair.com, but you will need to enter IND30 at the checkout for 30 per cent off a full experience ticket, cutting the cost from £27.13 to £18.98. The offer runs until 31 October.

M&S hopes sparks will fly in new loyalty scheme

Marks & Spencer finally enters the loyalty card world next week with its new Sparks members club. Shoppers will collect 10 “sparks” for every £1 spent and can use them to take advantage of offers such as invitation-only events and master classes as well as special offers and exclusive discounts.

You can collect a Sparks card from your local M&S store now, ahead of the launch of the scheme next Thursday.

Weight Watchers claims to have a “50-year successful track record of delivering multicomponent weight management services” (Rex)

A cashback diet if you sign up with Weightwatchers

Here’s a great deal for those looking to diet: sign up to a three-month online Weightwatchers plan through Quidco and you’ll qualify for £30 cashback if you’re a new customer, reducing the subscription cost to just £2.85.

Go to quidco.com/weight-watchers for the deal.

The cost of chocolate will melt in your mouth

Meanwhile chocaholics can get their hands on a free Coeur Iconique chocolate box from Godiva by signing up to TopCashback.co.uk and buying the chocolate using the free delivery voucher code on the site for £11.50 cashback.

Pizzas served up with a Nectar topping

Pizza Express is offering Nectar customers an exclusive “golden ticket” style chance to collect points while eating.

Offers will be sent through the Nectar app and appear on the Nectar website and weekly email, including the chance of collecting up to 1,000 bonus points when eating at one of the pizza chain’s 400 restaurants.

Valuable loyalty points are going to waste

Billions of pounds worth of consumer loyalty points that could otherwise be spent on flights, holidays, days out or groceries are sitting unclaimed in the cards of British wallets, according to new research.

The study, by the new Loyalive app, suggests that 8 million consumers haven’t redeemed their points in the past year, with 3 million never having cashed them in. Part of the problem is that people don’t know their balances and have no idea what the points are worth or what they could get with them.

Loyalive allows savvy shoppers to store cards, collect points, view balances and check for rewards from their smartphone. It can be downloaded through iTunes or Google Play.