Not giving DS advance on pocket money

[bizzybeing]

DS (10) gets £5 per month pocket money. There's nothing he needs to buy with it, just fun stuff he wants. I try not to tell him what he can and can't spend it on but once it's gone, it's gone.

Yesterday DS saw a book he really wants on a really good offer but he was £1 short. I agreed that I would buy the book so he didn't miss the offer but that he would have to wait to have it until he's saved up the full amount. DH thinks I should let him have it now.

It'll be 2 weeks until he gets his next pocket money and can buy it off me.

So AIBU?
Yes - give him the book now, he can pay the extra £1 later
No - he needs to learn to budget for things he wants

£5 a month is stingy as hell for a 10 year old in my opinion anyway. Unless you really can’t afford more then that’s different.

You sound terribly mean. Give him the pound and the book. Are you really struggling which is why his pocket money is so low? How can he be expected to learn and budget with so little?

YABU and mean.

Just buy him the book and let him save his pocket money for something like sweets or crappy toys.

Its £1 and I don’t understand why you’re being so stingey about it.

I would never expect my child to pay for a book.
That’s the fastest way to turn them off reading and not want to buy any books in the future, as most kids would rather spend their money on sweets or toys.

You should be encouraging a love of reading, not punishing him because he can’t afford £1.

In this instance I'd have given him the book. I'm all about fairness and learning the value of money but this does seem mean spirited unless he is constantly asking for things or is generally spoiled.

Agree with others £5 a month seems very low. FWIW, mine only get pocket money from age 11 when they have a bank account and can generally go to the shops themselves, they receive £23pm which goes up every year. Prior to this they will get small treats every now and then, a book would fall into this category.

YABU, £5 is tight as fuck, unless it’s all you can afford. It’s a book, you should be encouraging him to read.

Give him the book now. Reading is so good.

It’s £1 and it’s a book not a stupid purchase. Let him have it

YABU and you should up his pocket money if you can afford to.

Yabu. For reasons everyone else has stated

YANBU for making him wait, the ability to delay gratification is one of the biggest predictors of "success" in adult life.
However I probably would have just bought him the book, they're not something I expect pocket money to be used for.

So then why does it matter that they only get £10? It sounds as though OP absolutely is using it to help her child learn about budgeting and saving up, and all the better if she can give options like doing an additional chore to "earn" more.

YABU - it’s a book. I encourage reading and would be delighted to buy mine a book that they would read.

YABU - £5 per month is very low, paying monthly is too infrequent, even if you can’t increase his pocket money you could pay it weekly in smaller amounts.

YABU - even if you won’t buy it for him, or give him the additional £, you could give him the opportunity to earn that £ this weekend, find some extra household chores for him to do.

£5 a month isn’t enough to cover sweets, tat and books though. That is the issue you have to make the pocket money amount a realistic budget for the things you expect the child to buy for themself.

Of course give it to him! I don't understand why you're even asking.

£5 a month can't even buy a magazine for my 3 year old. He's making the fiver work. Just give him the book ffs

Op he’s 10. Just give him the book.

Bloody hell, it’s £1 🙄 for a book to read, I’d have bought the book for him & not let him use any of his money, you should be encouraging his willingness to read.
it’s not sweets or plastic tat!
you sound very stingy/controlling & mean, that’s not a lot of pocket money at his age at all.

£5 a month would be sweets and chocolate money here or a toy to save up for that's expensive.

Not books. Books are educational and o would never have discouraged ds from reading. (He hates it 😂)

I agree with others that I would have bought the book and not made him spend pocket money. For the sake of £1 I would have said he can either pay it back out of next month's or again just covered it myself. I also think £5 a month is low for a ten year old. My 4 and 8 year olds get £3 a week.

£5 a month is less than most kids get that age. If he is interested in books - that should be encouraged by buying the book yourself. We have never made our kids buy books out of pocket money as it's got great education value. Pocket money is for sweets, tacky toys etc.

This post made me sad for your boy. You sound awfully mean op. If you can’t afford it that is one thing.

Honestly, it's a book- it's not some plastic tat of course let him have it and reimburse him.

This.

I understand the concept of teaching kids to budget, but being this stingy over £1 is awful.

Also, £5 a MONTH…? £1.25 a week for a 10 year old? 🫤

If it's a book, then give them the £1. A toy or sweets? No way

Give him a raise