Would you pay for a Reading Festival Ticket for 18yr old ?

[bankofmumdad2021]

Essentially that. We have an 18yr old who wanted a Reading Festival ticket for next year. We lent her the extra money she needed and have said she can use Christmas money and pocket money to pay back over time.
She is insisting that friend's parents are helping their sons/daughters out and paying for some of it.
We want to teach our 18yr old the value of money and think it is good for her to earn it. She is not going to have huge debts if she goes to Uni as we have provided a large savings account that she can use for that. So we feel it is important for her to want something and manage paying herself for this one.

What do others think?
Is It mean to make her pay the full amount?
Costs £260 I think.

However much you give a teenager, their friends are always getting something they’re not, just the way it is!

@BungleandGeorge

However much you give a teenager, their friends are always getting something they’re not, just the way it is!

Absolutely.

Since time began

You are doing the right thing. These kids who just get stuff bought for them have very easy come easy go attitude.

If it were me I'd have bought it as a joint Xmas birthday present rather than asked for money back.

Be careful with the bank account. I know people who gave their kids a big budget but they still got into debt. Might be best to keep the savings back, let them fund essentials from debt then give them the nest egg later.

If I could easily afford to, I'd probably pay for the ticket, but any of the other stuff, like a tent or whatever... that's on her.

Has she not got a job?

We refused to pay for a ticket when one of ours was 16 as we thought she was too young. The following year we asked her to save some xmas/birthday/part time job money if she wanted to go, as I was still worried about her going (had a history of making daft decisions and drinking too much) .. she didn't and MIL bought the ticket which I was so pissed off about.

If I can afford it I'll definitely buy things like that for DS as a one off if he's at uni. If he's working full time then I won't!

I bought my sons Reading ticket as his main Christmas present last year

My 16 1/2 yr old has paid for her ticket from her wages from her part time job. For her birthday she will get accessories/necessities to take with her (I am on a very limited budget) She knows the value of money and would never ask though. Round here there are jobs aplenty so there would be no excuse for her not to be working alongside college. She has a fab work ethic though and understands the value of money. I have said I will drive her and her friends down there and pick them up.

^Under 18 year old can't really work that many hours so it might be difficult for them to build up the funds to go on their first jaunt with their friends.^
Are you joking? 😂 my dd earns over £300 a month -she paid for her ticket with 1 months wages. She has a long term savings account (car/house) medium term saving account (festival/holidays) and short term (clothes)
I wish somebody had taught me similar when I was her age - unfortunately it took me decades to get to grips with money and not be crap with it and I won’t have my children turn out the same way as me

I went when I was 18 and I’m pretty sure I paid half from my part time job and my parents paid the other half. I too was well provided for for uni, but “beer money” and that kind of thing always came out of what I earnt. This counted in that.

I’ve given mine £150 towards it and will probably be dropping him and his mates off, picking them up, sending him with bags of food and spends. I’m so happy they have the chance to go and have proper fun after the shit time they’ve had. Someday soon he’ll have left home and I’ll have all my money and time to myself.

I’m happy to help give him a good time. That’s what money is for and what parenthood is about. He has the rest of his life to learn how to manage money ffs. Why do people get so stressed about whether to just treat their kids with money they actually have!?

There are a lot of costs in going to a festival outside of the ticket price. ie camping equipment (if you don't have it), travel, food and drink when you're there, festival attire (wellies, kagoul etc).
If you can afford it, why don't you cover the big expense of the ticket, but tell her she has to pay for the rest?

I suppose it depends how much you spend on your children at Christmas. I’ve bought this as my son’s Christmas present, which is in the region of what I’d spend on him.
However, we live near Reading and he and his friends have sensibly decided they’d rather come home each night, which aside from the £4 train ticket each day should keep the cost of camping etc down!

Assuming money isn't an issue, why would you only pay for part of it? Personally I'd buy it as their gift and just get a couple of small festival based things to unwrap.

My 17 yr old has a Saturday job. Wouldn't stop me buying something like this as a gift though.

DD and her friends are 17/18 and have all bought themselves Reading tickets either with earnings from part time jobs or from savings. We could afford to buy DD her ticket as a gift but by paying for it herself she’s learning the value of earning her own money.

Should be working at 18!!

Both mine worked from 13 (paper rounds to 16) and then waiting jobs. Younger one did 3 months full time hospital cleaning during the first Covid wave when A levels ended.
Paid for own festival tickets and socialising.
We can’t spend that kind of money on Christmas or Birthday.
That said for a while it was tough to get part time work. Easy now but most not up for the hard graft in hospitality.

Ds is 17, he bought his own ticket. We are unlikely to have a family holiday next year and I'm paying for an overseas sports trip for DSs younger brother, so in that context I offered but he has refused as all his mates are paying their own way so he wants to as well. So I'll save my cash for his clothes, driving lessons, car insurance, lap top etc etc etc

Yes, if I could afford it I would. It's been a shit 2 years, it's a once in a lifetime festival.

Has she actually got it then ..? They are hard to come by

My daughter is paying for her ticket (part time job plus birthday money) and I’ve said I’ll pay the £65 so she can use proper toilet and have use of power points for use of straighteners etc

I went when younger, 17 and 18 to various festivals. Used part time job to pay for everything at parents never would have helped. Didn't harm me in any way

Lid suggest she pays half by finding a part time job and pay the other half as an incentive.
Both our children had little jobs from age 14, one a paper round then a bike shop, the other a cafe washer upper, then bar work as they grew up.
Working saw them through uni, with lots of spare cash for the things that make life special.
I never gave them pocket money, but was always willing to help out on those special occasions.
Lets face it its nice to be able to share your cash, but good for them to low how hard you have to work for the pleasures in life.

I bought my Reading tickets myself at that age with money from my supermarket. Admittedly it was about half that price 20+ years ago! Though actually I earned £1.20 an hour at 17 😬

Supermarket job * didn’t own a supermarket unfortunately

I can't understand why people are equating teens having jobs and then them having to pay for everything themselves.

Why can't they still have things like this bought as presents even if they have a job?