Shortstripper
I too have a family and money is extremely tight but I did distance learning whilst holding down a full time job and passed the CPL exams.
Then I sold my car to fund the CPL course
Then I put 5K on a bit of plastic to fund the FI rating
Yes it was a hell of a sacrifice and I wish I didn't have to do it all but I did
So it can be done and you can do it if motivated enough
You don't need the CPL course so you can save 5k straightaway
Your potential investment is £1800 for distance learning (plus exam fees)
£5k for FI Rating
Job done !