best way to invest 50k for the kids?

[Marn1e]

they have 25k each in the form of an individual cheque as part of a legacy. I am the trustee.

do I just open them accounts? can I decide what to invest it in? any advice appreciated

Yes, as the trustee you're responsible for making the investment decision.

It really depends on what your hopes for the money are. Do you have any specific plans for where they will use it (education/car/house deposit etc.), or do you just want to put it away for a while and give it to them when they reach a certain age? How long is it likely to be invested for?

Thanks for the reply!

Well there is a big age gap between them so one will have their money in 3 years and the other has 11 years to wait. For my eldest it is going to be for university bits and pieces and for my youngest ... No idea yet!

I even considered investing it in a property I've just bought ... The idea being that it'll be worth lots in years to come and I can pull out their money plus the interest on top - beating the banks by a fair bit. I then decided that that probably wasn't the 'right' thing to do and it might be better in just a bog standard savings account.

What do you think?

So yes it's supposed to be for when they're 18!

But as the trustee I could choose to give them the money earlier? So for example I might decide that at 17, my eldest can have a car if she so wants.

As you can tell, I'm a novice at this!

Invest £10k for 10 years for the 7 year old and put the rest in a high interest paying childrens account halifax have one paying 6% for the first year. Second child it might be worth putting £20k away for 3 years in a cash bond and then buy some shares with the remainder. You could do so much.

you need to keep a very close eye on savings accounts. That Halifax rate only applies for a year max and only if you also hold a Halifax account.

inflation is really about 3% or more so no savings account gains money at the moment. For the long-term, stocks and shares is the way to go. You could even start their pensions with it.

Depending on where the eldest wants to go to university could u use it as a deposit for a student house and rent rooms out to other students for the time she is at university.