Dd1 is going to secondary in September , does she 'need' a mobile ? And how much for pocket money?

[HarrietJones]

As I assume she will have an increased social life!

She currently has an old battered mobile of dh which only works for texting. Should I get her a cheap/basic one & move the sim. Assuming she will be using it more? Currently it's used v rarely but jet friends are all getting them now.

She currently gets £2 a week pocket money which she doesn't spend but I guess she will go out more cinema? Shopping with friends? So will need more & I don't want to be constantly giving hand outs.

[saladfingers]

My DD Yr7 has a mobile and it is quite useful after school to find out where she is or what her plans are, but tbh texting alone is fine. My DD has to save for a new phone or wait til birthday or christmas.
At the start of Yr7 we set her up with a bank account and we pay £20 a month into it. She has a debit card and PIN number and uses this money to pay for trips into town/the cinema with her friends. She has a couple of responsibilities like loading the dishwasher after tea etc
I also give her dinner money most days and she has 3 dance lessons a week.That along with school trips(not talking skiing or eurodisnet either) soon adds up to quite a large sum of money every term (trip today to London to see a show £55).
Life suddenly gets more expensive with a teenager at home!

[HarrietJones]

She does jobs anyway + extra for extra money (dd2 usually takes those!)
I'll pay for dinners ( looking cheaper than juniors ATM!) and music lessons/guides.

[CeliaFate]

saladfingers do you mind telling me which bank you went with? I'm looking to set this up for dd in the Summer holidays too.
I agree, a mobile is very handy for peace of mind if nothing else. I'm getting dd a bog standard, non fancy one for emergencies or letting me know of change of plans etc.

[RockStockAndTwoOpenBottles]

My three older DC all got mobiles when they started in Year 7, and I think you will probably find that the vast majority of them will have them. They are all now rapidly approaching 18, 17 and 15 but have also had allowances since then as well. I think I started them on £30/month which has increased annually, and they all (when they got to 14) got themselves jobs earning extra ££. With the older two (DDs) they now have a much bigger allowance each with which they have to buy pretty much everything - clothes, socialising, petrol (in one case), make up, all that sort of crap that apparently they MUST have. I do buy them clothes occasionally though. DS gets £50 (or at least will do after his 15th birthday shortly) and I take him clothes shopping twice a year. He has to use it for anything from cinema with friends, to watersports in the summer, meals out with friends etc.

They all have accounts with Lloyds and have debit cards with their accounts.

[saladfingers]

Sorry CeliaFate for the delay. Was away from civilization yesterday!
We went with Nat West. I pay money in monthly by Direct Debit. DD has a debit card and a paying in book should any money she's given not escape through that 'hole in her pocket'!I still buy vast majority of DD's clothes but it does give her the freedom to save for something she really wants. I'm dreading the day she has enough money to buy all her own clothes as we rarely seem to agree on what is appropriate for her age. I fondly remember the days when she wore children's clothing!