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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To think £5 a week is enough pocket money?

131 replies

Childrenofthestones · 16/09/2015 05:41

12 and 15 yr olds.
We pay everything else, phone contracts, bus fares when they go out with friends, treats etc. They do no chores for this.
Is this enough?
I guess I am asking is what is the going rate?

OP posts:
AlfAlf · 16/09/2015 15:57

I don't give our kids pocket money at all.
We just give them money when they want or need it for something specific, for example gave dd2 and dd3 and their friend €2 each to buy sweets at the weekend.
If we go to a bookshop we let them choose a book each.
They love Tiger, so very occasionally we'll give them a fiver or a tenner each and let them go mad in there.
If we go away we will give them all a bit of spending money.

Dd1 is 16 and we pay her if we get her to babysit in the evening. She also earns money babysitting for our friends, and she worked for a few weeks in the summer. If she's going to see a film with friends we will give her just enough to cover the bus, her ticket, and maybe chips and a drink after - up to her.

They are all expected to do little jobs around the house as part of a family. DH and I don't get paid to do their laundry so I don't see why they should get paid to help hang it up or put it away.

They get money in lieu of presents from some of their relatives for birthdays and Christmas, and they tend to spend some of it and put the rest in their savings.

m0therofdragons · 16/09/2015 16:05

I have a 7 year old and don't give her pocket money - genuinely have no idea what she would need it for, what do your 7 year olds buy with pocket money?

Blackcloudsbrightsky · 16/09/2015 16:18

Sweets, save up for toys, birthday presents.

The point is, you can encourage them to save up for things they want which is a good habit I think.

rainbowunicorn · 16/09/2015 16:40

I suppose it very much depends on individual circumstance. My two have been going swimming alone with their friends since they were around 8. The cinema at around the same age so it just gradually happened.

Even when they were younger they got pocket money which they would ave up if there was a toy or something that they really wanted and didn't want to wait till a birthday

DixieNormas · 16/09/2015 16:52

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

derektheladyhamster · 16/09/2015 16:56

I can barely afford the £15/month my 2 get as it is! (15 & 12)

Blackcloudsbrightsky · 16/09/2015 17:10

If you can't afford it you can't afford it.

I suppose from my own experience, my parents probably spent on average around £100 a month on me as a teen with clothes, outings, hobbies, bus fares - and I think it would have been far better for me to have had a set amount every month or week which I had to budget with as I really wasn't very good with money when I fist had to do that and if I'm honest I'm still not that great!

Saltedcaramel4 · 16/09/2015 17:12

It's fine as long as they work for the cash

abigamarone · 16/09/2015 17:16

We've just negotiated £5 a week for my 13-year old. He'll be doing regular chores though, dishwasher and kitchen. Why would an older child not have to pitch in?

no73 · 16/09/2015 17:21

My 5 year old get s £1 a week for feeding the animals daily, doing his own washing up and putting his dirty clothes in the laundry basket. I can not understand giving kids money for doing absolutely nothing around the house. Its bonkers!

I think YABU to give them that amount and pay for everything else and they do nothing for it.

rainbowunicorn · 16/09/2015 18:05

My two have always done things around the house, making beds keeping room tidy, setting table, dishes etc. The oldest has to make a start on dinner a couple of nights a week and generally be helpful when asked.

passthewineasap · 16/09/2015 20:34

I don't think its enough. DD 14 gets £10 a week basic but She cleans the house and I pay her £7 an hour she does a good job as long as I write a list of what needs doing. She earns the money for clothes shopping ect but was trying to clean every hour which was getting a bit OTT so we agreed set hours!

Iamnotloobrushphobic · 16/09/2015 20:44

I suspect this comes down to family attitude towards money/spending as well. DH and I don't routinely buy magazines or DVDs or books and hence would find it odd to be giving our DC money to buy those things.

Neither DH nor I buy books, magazines or DVDs either but those are the things that our DS likes so he buys them. I buy handbags, clothes and nice toiletries with my spare money, DH buys beer, and football tickets. I don't find it odd giving my DS money to buy the things he wants, that's what learning to budget is all about; you have to prioritise the things that YOU want to buy, not that other people think you should buy because it's what they would buy. DS is an avid reader and has exhausted the library so books is a good use of his money.

Blackcloudsbrightsky · 16/09/2015 20:46

Hear hear iam

DixieNormas · 16/09/2015 21:31

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

19lottie82 · 16/09/2015 22:05

I don't think it's a lot, but you say you also give them money for fares and treats? I think you need to give them a larger amount but that's to cover EVERYTHING, if that makes sense?

£5 doesn't even buy a kids cinema ticket these days, unless it's an early bird showing, or similar.

coffeeisnectar · 16/09/2015 22:18

I couldn't afford to give mine weekly money but would fund trips to cinema etc. However I was paying £50 a month on her travel pass plus her phone contract.

When she turned 16 she got a Xmas job in next and used the money to buy a new laptop. When that job finished she started working in McDonald's and has saved £700 towards driving lessons and is planning a holiday with her friend next year when they both turn 18.

She now buys her own clothes although I do still buy things if I see something I know she would like. I am really proud of her attitude to working and saving alongside full time school.

My other dd is 9. She gets the odd £ for sweets and has saved up Xmas and birthday money in the bank. Apparently she's saving up to buy a pink car when she's old enough.

StarOnTheTree · 16/09/2015 22:46

DD2 gets £100 per month. She pays for her phone and school lunches if she wants them (she can take lunch if she wants to), any social activities and all clothes/shoes except school uniforms.

I gave DD1 the same until she left for uni last weekend.

It helps them budget and it helps me with my own budget.

redskybynight · 17/09/2015 11:43

iam sorry I didn't make my point clearly. what I meant was that DH and I don't tend to buy nonessential "stuff" so it would seem odd for us to give our DC money to do that. Whether it's books/magazine/handbags/clothes/whatever is by the by really. I suppose we have a family attitude that you don't buy things just because you fancy them. Giving DC discretionary money just encourages this.

sphinxydah · 17/09/2015 12:31

DS 16 has Aspergers so he gets half his DLA and ESA as an allowance which works out at £78 a week. I'd normally expect an older teen to be working part time at that age, but DS isn't able to due to his disabilities, and those benefits take that into account. He tends to save a lot of it as he doesn't have a social life but he does spend a fair bit on games.

TwmSionCati · 17/09/2015 12:40

I thought DLA was to give people/their parents and or carers financial or prictical help in dealing with disabilities. not to provide such a vast amount of pocket money?
For example I have a friend who spends his in getting a taxi back from the supermarket, that kind of thing.

KevinAndMe · 17/09/2015 12:51

I agree with red
Our family attitude towards money is that you don't spend it just because you fancy xxx. You spend that money because either you really need it or you are really really keen with it.
It must have rubbed on the dcs because neither of them will ask or buy anything extravagent, even though they could as they both have money in a saving account to do as they please.
On the other side, toiletteries

sphinxydah · 17/09/2015 12:53

DS is over 16 and so it's technically his own money now.

He can choose to use his on a taxi if he needed one (but rarely goes out without an adult so unlikely to happen).

KevinAndMe · 17/09/2015 13:01

Press POST too soon .....

My dcs are getting much less pocket money than the OP but we still buy most things for them. We also go away due a weekend more often than most of their friends and in general do a lot during our weekends.
This is something I've always explained to them. Yes we can give them £30 (each) to go to the fair or increase their pocket money BUT £60 would more or less allow us to go away for the weekend (£40 for the night at the hotel). Which one would they prefer to do?
Every time they chose to go away.
We've also had a similar discussion about packet lucked against school lunches. At more than £3.00 a day if left to it, it's a hell if a lot money. Count how much it is over the year and see what you could do.again they will chose to save the pennies rather and get a nuce time away instead.

And that also means that actually they are happy to keep their 'wants' to a minimum. Because really that's what pocket money is about. Wants rather than needs.

Blackcloudsbrightsky · 17/09/2015 13:12

What a miserable life only buying things you need, though.

I wouldn't like it and I don't expect my DCs to.

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