Best way to save for kids.

[NeverHomeAlone]

We have been putting a small amount (£20 a month) into a Santander 123 mini account for each of our 4 kids. We occasionally top it up with extra birthday money etc. I think the interest rate on the account is 0.75 or 1%.

Could we be putting this money somehwere else with a better interest rate? I know it isn't a lot of money but each account has a few grand in it.

Crypto.

@Delectable

Crypto.

Stupid answer.

I'd like to know this too OP. I don't know much but I know that cryptocurrency is not a good idea for investment!

The Halifax regular saver is good if it's a fixed amount. Money saving expert is probably the best place to look

We have a Tesco junior ISA for our children. 2.25% interest rate

Official inflation stands at 5% CPI and RPI is higher. Most analysts agree that this calculation formula is very conservative and doesn't paint the true picture of inflation which is much worse. Also the govt continues to print money making matters worse.
In effect irrespective of what rates the banks are giving the money is loosing value and its much better to consider putting it into an asset that will cat a minimum retain current purchasing power of the amount saved.

Do you want to be able to access the cash before dcs are 18 (for something like driving lessons)? If so, don't use a Junior ISA.
Ditto if you are wary of them to have free access to spend it all on their 18th birthday.

If you have an unused Stocks & Shares ISA allowance of your own, I would use that, in your name. You will have greater flexibilty of access and more control over when to gift it.

Premium bonds!! We won £200 last year, much better rate of return than savings or ISA.

Premium bonds average rate of return is 1% as stated on NS&I website.

@seekingasimplelife

Premium bonds average rate of return is 1% as stated on NS&I website.

Well it was a good year for us 😂 we were getting FA from her ISA ...

Well I've been hammering money into them since we switched, but last year we got £57 interest on her ISA and on the same amount in bonds £200 the following year. I can't recall what the balance was but initially it was the same (we've been boosting the bonds since) . The ISA was a nationwide kids ISA.

S&S JISA will almost always beat cash / premium bonds over the long term. If invested in a low cost tracker fund.

We invest £25 per month for DS into Vanguards life strategy 100.

Stock and share isa.

As possible said, my dds are around 26% ish.

That's several thousand pounds.

In the cash isa we got about £150 interest.

I have some pb as well I've won £100 over two years.

Stock and shares isa!! As pp said we are mostly in vanguard as well.

@Pandoraperoxide

We have a nationwide cash isa which earned us the grand total of £150 last year. That's about 1%

I keep money there soley because they had a small inheritance and I don't want it all in the stock and share isa because they may spend it all..
The cash isa money will be plenty for a car, insurance, driving lessons etc.

That's the only reason I have not put it all into the stock and share isa (you can hold two at the same to me)

Our stock and shares isa has gone up several thousand pounds! As has mine!! It's roughly 26%!!!

Look into it!!

We have accounts with Halifax for DC but I noticed the interest rate has fallen a lot since we started it, especially for new customers.
We also have a bit in Premium Bonds.
DD account will soon reach its max for earning interest (anything above that set amount only earns 0.01% which is ridiculous!) so we're planning to move it out into something else - either a JISA or a pension. On the one hand a JISA (either cash or S&S) would save money that would be available to DC when they reach 18; or we could open a pension for them each & start that off, where obviously the earlier you start the better. We might do one or other or both. Haven't decided yet.

[quote Newyearoldyou]@Pandoraperoxide

We have a nationwide cash isa which earned us the grand total of £150 last year. That's about 1%

I keep money there soley because they had a small inheritance and I don't want it all in the stock and share isa because they may spend it all..
The cash isa money will be plenty for a car, insurance, driving lessons etc.

That's the only reason I have not put it all into the stock and share isa (you can hold two at the same to me)

Our stock and shares isa has gone up several thousand pounds! As has mine!! It's roughly 26%!!!

Look into it!![/quote]
Wow 26% I'm a bit of a luddite with anything too complex, what's the risk with stocks and shares ISA?

@Upupupintheair

S&S JISA will almost always beat cash / premium bonds over the long term. If invested in a low cost tracker fund.

We invest £25 per month for DS into Vanguards life strategy 100.

The only Vanguards I can find all have a minimum monthly deposit of £100.

Do they do a more flexible one? I only want a minimum of around £20 incase circumstances change.

@Troublesometooth if you set up the first payment for £100 then you can change it once the first payment has been paid in to whatever you want. We pay in £25 per month

[quote Upupupintheair]@Troublesometooth if you set up the first payment for £100 then you can change it once the first payment has been paid in to whatever you want. We pay in £25 per month[/quote]
Ah right, it says the minimum monthly payment is £100 so I didn’t think it would let me do that.

Depends if you want to save towards a future that you have a say in, or save and they get full control of the lot on their 18th birthday...

Junior ISAs have great returns, but the cash will belong completely to your DC as soon as they are 18

Might be better to save in as ISA in your name (if you are not maxed out on allowance) then decide how much and when they get it