11/12 year old earning money

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My son (currently 11) has an opportunity to go to Japan for 10 days with his judo club in oct 2025.

With a price tag of £1500+ I think he should at least earn some of the money towards this himself and am looking for some ideas of things he can do during the holidays as he is clearly too young to get a proper job.

Any ideas of what a tween can do to earn some money towards a big trip? A parent would be supervising.

Weeding? I think he might be a bit young for a lawnmower but maybe not if a parent were there. He's really a bit young to earn outside the home.

Can you pay him for chores at home?

I'd also be asking the club if they're putting any sponsorship opportunities in place for all the kids, e.g. Sponsored swims.

The safest and simplest option is chores for relatives, family friends, and neighbours. Garden weeding, car washing, anybody who needs somebody to water the plants whilst they’re away on holiday etc.

Or, perhaps the club has previously organised things such as bag packing and carrying in tandem with local supermarkets: I occasionally see groups of kids when I’m checking out who are there offering to pack bags and take them to cars to earn money for a trip for their hobby group or sports team. Worth asking or even suggesting it.

I was thinking maybe setting up a table on the front driveway and selling some books and toys he doesn't use. Maybe also buying some packaged sweets from the cash and carry and reselling them at the same time type stuff - not full on child chimney sweep type labour. He has two summer holidays where he could do some bits and contribute a little towards what will be an amazing trip (parents aren't going). Even if he can just get some spending money together.

The club are going to be putting on a competition at christmas and putting the profit into the shared pot (looks to be about 15 kids going).

i dont think he should be forced to work to earn money to pay for it.. if it were my child, it would be a case of yes we can afford it, or no sorry we can't afford it.

although that said, maybe you could organise a 'fund raising event' for the club to help all those who might struggle.

a sponsored event, or a jumble sale.

I'd be thinking about whether there are any tasks you, relatives, or friends could use an extra pair of hands for – he's old enough to be genuinely useful with lots of things in the house/garden, but not really old enough to work independently. At 11, a family friend used to pay me to play with her 3 year old for a couple of hours a week whilst she got on with work in another room. I earnt my money, but a couple hours after school every week adds up.

If he's got decent things to sell, like lego he's outgrown or branded clothing, I'd consider selling them online, but of course he couldn't do that entirely independently.

I have worked since 13 (paper round and then 8 hours in a shop at the weekend) - we have funded trips to sweden, bosnia, belgium with the club but the most the other trips have cost has been £100-£300. This one is going to be an incredible opportunity to him but I have no issue with him doing some chores to pay something towards it.

Selling toys, games etc on Facebook market page

agreeing to forego Xmas/bday presents and have the money put aside towards the trip

offering jobs to neighbours for small change

doing “extra” chores at home on top of his usual

I think it is a great idea for your DS to contribute to the cost of the trip - however nominal. He could sell old toys on eBay (with your supervision, but with him doing the legwork - checking all the parts are there, photography, writing the description, answering the enquiries, packaging and taking to the post office/parcellocker). My DD used to go a neigbours house and open/shut curtains morning/evening and tidy the post into a pile in the kitchen when they were away. They would pay her £1 a day. DS used to pick up milk for another neighbour on the way home from school. They gave him cash in the morning and he kept the change (not riches, but it was not out of his way and it added up). We used to pay a young teen to feed our fish while we were away. Taking library books back for people or recycling to the bottle bank? I also like the idea of money towards the trip in lieu of birthday/Christmas presents from relatives. Also saving some of any pocket/holiday money.

we are paying a 12 year old neighbour friend of my son's to feed our guinea pigs and water the garden while we are away in the summer.

This is the kind of thing I am talking about - not hard manual labour

my children need a similar amount for a scout holiday next year.

They are currently only 10 and 12.

I have a load of grown out clothes etc that I keep meaning to eBay.

I get them to do all the uploading to Vinted and anything that sells, the money goes towards their funds. They are actually doing something useful, saving me a job and earning £. They also enjoy it!
anything that sells, i take to the shop and post. (we live in the sticks and there is no where walkable that they can do this)

The scouts are also doing lots of events to raise money including monthly car wash sessions, and they are doing a sponsored walk as well

Get him to print out a small quarter of A4 size note explaining he needs to earn some money for the trip and offering to do any small jobs eg holiday garden watering/cat feeding, playing with children whilst parents work over the summer or walking older children to holiday clubs, cleaning cars etc etc. Get him to put the through the doors of a few nearby streets and see if any one gets in touch.

If he's sensible he might be old enough to baby sit - mine did a bit at that age.

What skills does he have and would any of them lend themselves to making things to add to the second hand stall in garden idea, eg cake sale always seems to raise loads, cookies, cheese straws, homemade lemonade, elderflower cordial, plants if he's into gardening - take cuttings or grow some seeds and pot on eg cosmos, marigolds, salads, herbs. Grow veg or flowers to sell over summer.

Or could he do leaflet with ideas eg clean neighbours’ garden furniture, wash cars, sweep paths, pressure wash with parent if you have one, weed, clean fences and gates, clear and tidy sheds etc.

Does he have any secondhand judo clothing/equipment he can sell at club?

What a fantastic opportunity for him OP.

Selling toys on eBay (he'd need your help obviously) or help for family friends & relatives

DS was doing a reasonable job of car washing by that age.

I used to water a neighbour's plants when they were on holiday.

Or he could sell old toys on FB /eBay etc?

I think it's fine to get them to contribute through working for some money.

Ours have to do chores at home but they have extra things they can do to earn extra money.

First job for the summer holiday is in

He is going to grandma's for the day to help with weeding the veg patch (with her)

Going to set him up a bank account.

Please don't suggest this. It is an absolute nightmare, I have been packing supermarket bags at speed for 25 years, I have a well honed system, which TBH even DH manages to fuck up on the rare occasios he accompanies me to the supermarket. I would only tolerate an 11 yo " helping me" if I could explain it to them and supervise in the watch one, do one model. Thus would undoubtedly take much longer than my just packing the bags and is absolutely not appropriate on a busy saturday morning. Also I wouldn't have cash with me as many wouldn't. I am guessing the PP who suggested this internet shops. Thise of us who still go in person do it because we have an interest in shopping if I wanted teenagers doing it I'd go online.

Going to the local shop for neighbours / delivering groceries?

Making and selling cakes or biscuits. Could you do a 1970s throw back of a 'coffee morning' (as a kid my mother and the neighbours were doing this what felt like daily) he bakes some cakes, invites people round, makes and serves tea and coffee.

As a one off taking a group of younger kids trick or treating at Halloween. Obviously only if you think he is mature enough.

Putting out the neighbours' wheelie bins and bringing them back in on bin day.

Grow some veg to sell, seed and compost are not expensive. Herbs can be grown on a windowsill.

Print out a list of tasks and suggested donations and deliver to your neighbours with a phone number and times / dates he is available.

Round here they wash cars.

Charge between £2 and £5 per car. Just a wash and rinse.

One kid I offered extra to to hoover mine out (with my cordless hoover) and laid £10 for the whole job (inside and out) which took less than a hour.

Sweeping up
Weeding/pressure washing driveways
Leaflet dropping? (You'd have to sign up and go but let them keep the funds)

Lots of people do those boards where it's £2 a go and the prize is revealed by scratching the answer. 50% prize money and 50% kept.

Do you have any neighbours who want their cat fed while they are in holiday? Dog walking if he'd be comfortable doing that. Weeding gardens or watering plants whilst neighbours on holiday. Washing cars. At home I'd get him cleaning window sills of outside double glazing. Pruning back bushes in garden. Scraping out weeds from block paving and re-sanding it.

My ds (7)made nearly £600
Last year by giving me all his unwanted toys/grown out toys and I sold them on eBay and vinted for him , he was saving up for a ps5 and managed to buy one and have some left

DD (11) baked and sold cookies at school this term. It was actually accidental. She had a couple of her home made cookies in her packed lunch and shared some with friends. They loved them and offered to buy some from her so she made a batch and sold them for 50p each. The mum of one of her classmates tasted one and commissioned DD to make a batch of 25 and its continued to take off from there. She’s made about £150 so far.