To get increasingly annoyed at the mention of 'Uni funds' on here?

[WincyWillis]

Am I?

Not a thread about a thread as such but I've seen it mentioned several times on here recently, in an "Everybody must start a uni fund for their child or they're a terrible parent" way. Firstly, not everyone's children want to or have the ability to got Uni. Secondly, many people don't have any spare money at the end of each month and can barely cover bills, let alone save towards a Uni fund. Also, it's perfectly possible for a child to fund his/herself through Uni, as my friend's 3 teenage children are currently doing. There is no need for Mummy and Daddy to have a Uni fund.

And the phrase makes my teeth itch!

[Thowra]

That's £9K per year btw.

[wordfactory]

If parents can't afford it then so be it, but for those that can I think it's got to be hugely helpful to start saving.

The amount of loan available for living expenses is means tested. Many DC will not get anywhere close to what they need to even pay their accommodation costs, let along travel/books/social life etc.

[SeamonkeyHasMyMoney]

These threads are so frustrating.
Every time they pop up they are full of 'only spolit children get a fund from mummy and daddy, my children will pay for it themselves because they're oh so independent.'

Parents who earn over the Student Finance threshold are pretty much expected to part fund their child's education.
In my first year, I was entitled to a £4000 maintenence loan. My accommoation fees alone were £4400 for the year.
Living in a small town with 3 big universities combined with very busy timetable, placements, and a heavy workload mean that holding down a term-time job is near impossible.

I am very grateful that my parents had saved in case I decided to go to university.
I sure has hell wouldn't have been able to get my degree if they hadn't.

[mummytime]

Well into my DDs Uni fund goes left over birthday money and money they earn from singing. And we have been vaguely saving for University since they were born (not as much as we should have, but some).

My mother was on benefits when I grew up and saved for me from birth (with the hope I would go to University) and that was when you got a full grant and no fees.

Saving if at all possible is always a good idea. I would probably feed my kids on more lentils etc. if we couldn't afford to save a bit.

[Hopeforever]

Sea monkey, the funniest thing about this thread is the OP has a savings fund she will use if her children go to university

[ethelb]

I agree with seamonkey.

I went to university with people who had parents who went on about how they expected their children to be financially indpeendent "like they were". Bollocks. They got hand outs from the state if they went to uni. And if they didn't they had a realistic chance of apprenticships etc. Then they came out the other side to more affordable living costs.

I know one family that had to do a huge about turn in the middle of their first child's second year as they realised how stupid they had been.

They ended up paying all of their other children's uni costs once the message came home that if your parents work they are expected to top you up by the gov.

In germany you can take your parents to court if they don't help you financially at university!

It's not great. I am 25 and would far rather have been "financially indepenent" ie had the gov give me the funds like previous generations rather than my parents helping me with rent. I would also far rather be living in an economy where I could save up and buy my own house rahter than raid my "granny''s pension fund". It's not going to happen under this government though!

[TunipTheVegemal]

Agree, also you get a lot of 'I paid my own way through university' from people who don't realise their fees were only paying a portion of the full cost of their degree and students now will be expected to pay a lot more.
Not to mention the massive rise in rents etc in the last few years.

[23balloons]

YABU it is reaching the stage where only children from poor or very well off families can afford to go to university, anyone from middle income families won't be able to borrow enough to survive on and if their parents cannot help out they won't be able to stay in education unless they work a lot of paid hours/week.

If your family earns pretty much nothing you will recieve £3k+ free money (grants) and be able to borrow the maximum amount from SFE and probably also be eliegible for extra bursaries from the university. i know of students whose parents have split up and they claim to be living with the one on low income to be eligible for the maximum loans etc. yet the ones from two parent middle income families can't even borrow enough to cover rent costs. If you are in this bracket OP and you want your dc to go to uni you had better start saving too.

[wordfactory]

Well quite tunip many of us older posters had no fees to meet and got a grant towards living expenses.

Sure I worked but at no stage was I expected to borrow around 16k a year.

[scottishmummy]

i started savings accounts and isa for uni since birth
i am fortunate i can afford to
i dont need to but i chose to.dont want them to struggle and whilst i appreciate not everyone an i certainly dont feel apologetic at saving for uni

[MrsTerryPratchett]

My DD has one. I call it the Bora Bora if she doesn't go fund. Don't kid yourselves that it will stay at 9,000. By the time your young children are there, it will be more and the loans and assistance will be less. I don't judge people who don't have one. Please don't judge me for having one.

[scottishmummy]

worked my way through uni and it was fucking hard scraping by
freezing in winter and eking out a cheap dinner isnt fun
im more than happy to save for kids uni fund,and fortunate i can

[wordfactory]

I think it will become more common to have an investment plan for DC from birth/early age to cover university/house deposit...

[Happygirl77]

YANBU.

We have 3 dc and no such savings. We are both professionals (three degrees and a set of professional qualifications between us) but I am well aware that my kids may want to leave school at 16 and become hairdressers / plumbers / nannies or whatever and I'm fine with that!

[thebody]

Op not sure what your friends earn but we have 2 kids at uni at the moment and we certainly have to 'fund them through uni'

They both have part time jobs in term time and full time in holidays.

Both me and dh work full time.

My lads have the basic maintenance loan that doesn't even cover rent.

Sorry you don't know what you are talking about.

[scottishmummy]

is unreasonable to be annoyed others have made provision
whilst i get one is fortunate to have the ability to plan for uni
i also dont think it warrants youre ire either

[Knowsabitabouteducation]

I think it is more annoying when parents get surprised when their DCs are on the verge of Freshers' week that they might just need to support their issue.

[puds11]

Well, i have a 'uni fund' for my DD and i am a single working class mother. I am doing it so that if my DD wants to go to uni she can. If she doesn't want to go to uni she can use it for something else.

With the increase in fee's i personally think you would be stupid not to save for it. Call it whatever you like, i don't give a shit, but i do want my DD to have opportunities, whether she takes them or not is up to her.

[Flossiechops]

I couldn't give a shite that the op or anybody else for that matter is annoyed at the mention of uni funds. We have been saving a small amount for our dc since they were born. I'm a nurse and dh is on a small salary, so we don't earn a huge amount, but as other posters have said it won't stop at 9k. God knows how much it will be in ten years when my dc are at that age. If they choose not to go to uni then it can be their house fund!!

[bigkidsdidit]

I have put £100 a month into a fund for DS since he was born. I call it his university fund, but it's not to boast about it or force him into it! If he doesn't go we'll use it for whatever training / business setting up needs he does have. Although seeing as I and three of his grandparents are all university lecturers, I would be staggered if he didn't go

And speaking as a lecturer, university is really really expensive. Saving is a very good idea if possible

[flossy101]

We have a savings account for our little boy. I don't call it a "uni fund", just putting money away, maybe for a car when he turns 18, maybe to support through uni if he goes. Whilst we can afford to put a bit by each month I will continue to do so.

[Maat]

We started a fund for our kids. It was not necessarily for Uni but might have been for start up costs towards independence.

It was called an endowment policy.

Not worth the bloody paper it's written on now.

So even those of us that try to make some kind of provision can't predict what the future holds.

DS1 is at university and DS2 goes next year. We will support them where we can but it's not easy.

[PiggyBankMum]

YABU.
As soon as anyone CAN save it would be prudent to do so. For pension, for University, for a house deposit.
No shame in not being able to, but no reason to slag off people who can and who choose to put money away for a child's future rather than spend it.
And of course people mean 'IF s/he goes to University.
It's just doing as you do - saving - by a name that irritates you.

[scottishmummy]

lol,just seen op does save for dc does have finances to save
just wants to split hairs and get wanky about what its called. because she can
call it mum and dad are contrary despite being as mc as everyone else fund

[Tressy]

'Single parents' get full grants/loans and bursaries, bit of a sweeping generalisation there. Some single parents earn about the threshold, don't ya know.

Mine gets the full grants/loans and bursaries because I don't earn above any threshold but I do work just as hard as families with two parents. In fact I've worked since she was 13 weeks old .

My DC wasn't expected to pay for anything up front i.e hall fees where due once the student loan came through. She paid a fair bit up front for freshers tickets though and also all her household stuff as we couldn't transport anything due to the distance. I managed to save the meager maintenance I got for many years as a backup for when she reached 18, so not a 'uni fund' as such.

Don't understand why university being shortened to uni is annoying or why the OP is quibbing when she herself is saving money.