Advice for a newbie re: child investments

[piraterach]

Hi. I'm hoping some of you lovely Mumsnetters can help me.

My daughter has been given £500 for Christmas from grandparents with the stipulation that this is to be invested and given to her on her 18th birthday. I've never had any amount worth investing so have no idea what I'm doing.

I've been looking at a stocks and shares isa but seem to be stuck choosing a platform that is good for a beginner.

I'd like to have a ready-made portfolio with the potential to change in the future once I get the hang of it. Does anyone have any suggestions? What should I be looking for when choosing a platform? TIA

I'm using interactive investor, and one of their ready made portfolios. Main reason is there is a flat fee covering both adult and junior isa. I didn't want an account fee that increased with the size of the portfolio, as I intend to have my main pension in there too.

Edit to add this might not be the best for someone starting out. I've heard good things about Hargreaves lansdown's interface.

Baillie Gifford have a Children's Savings Plan that is v easy to use and beginner-friendly - well worth a look.

The Share Centre also has flat fees and is very user-friendly.

Go for a super low charges tracker. With that sum charges from the posh boys could guzzle it.

My DD has a Junior S&S ISA with Hargreaves Lansdown. It's really easy to manage, invest and research funds. It's also really easy for family to pay directly into it. I haven't used other investment platforms so can't compare, but HL do make the whole thing very straightforward and explain stuff well. They also do ready-made investment portfolios based on how much you're investing and how adventurous you want to be.
For long term savings, and with cash interest rates so low, investing in S&S funds gives better growth imo (although you could also lose on investments) - my DDs portfolio is doing way, way better than a cash savings account at a bank.

I've got Junior ISAs with Hargreaves Lansdowne for mine.

Invest it in an index tracker with super low charges, leave it in there for the long term and you should see some nice growth.