How much have you saved for your kids future?

[workworry1]

Just wondering. Ds is 7 and we've managed 15k between savings from dh and I and gps birthday and Xmas money

I was reading that if he wants to go uni I would need 80k for him to leave debt free so that doesn't sound anywhere near enough

I've saved zilch due to my circumstances! DS1 has his child trust fund that is now invested elsewhere and has about £8k in it due to his grand father putting a bit in each month. He also put money in for DS2 (who didn't get the government trust fund) but died before much could accumulate. My kids are going to have to borrow the max to go to uni. I can't imagine we're the only ones in this situation! The only way that would change is if, god forbid, my parents both died before then. Every £10 I save means not enough food or heat for us at the moment. At least there are loans available for uni.

Tbh I don't think it wise to give huge sums of money at 18 either. I got an inheritance at 18 and it didn't last long! I didn't blow it on anything ridiculous, I was just a poor student and it got eaten away at bit by bit.

We saved a small amount for our kids ( approx. 5k) which went from a child ISA to an adult ISA when they turned 18. My ds1 blew the whole lot in his first term of Uni. So I would possibly say keep it in your name so that you have some control over it when they turn 18. Then again there are down sides to this because if you ever fall on hard times and need to claim benefits yourself and the money is accessible to you it will be counted as your savings.

How do you get £280 a month in child benefit?! Its £20.70 per week for the first child and £13.70 per week for the second. How on earth do you receive £280 a month?

@happyendings1 we are in Ireland where cb is 140 per month per child

Nothing. We save for ourselves. nothing is in their names except presents they got and money they earned.

It is definitely worth it to get through uni with no debts!
My friends who have loans get depressed every payrise/bonus as they actually get hardly any of it due to student finance whereas i get all of mine as i didn't take any loans out for uni

Not much yet but we’ll get there. Like someone upthread said £25/m but once childcare isn’t such a burden we’ll be able to increase it.

Nothing saved as such but he is sole beneficiary of my estate which will give him approx £750k.

we've got a JISA stocks and shares for each DC that my husband controls. We put 25 pound a month in this for each child and they've also got birthday money / christmas money / little bits of extra money that come our way. They have a couple of thousand at the moment (theyre both under 7). We don't plan for these to be too big because they get access to the money. We would advise them to use for a car, to pay towards their living costs at uni or to add to for a house deposit but what they will do is anyone's guess. But they will be told that once its gone its gone.

I started saving then realised hold on they have more money in savings than us now? Where is the logic in that, we need it 😂 so now only put money in from grandparents until we are better off

I would much rather help towards 1st deposit than uni.

£20 so far and she's 4.

But she will get a 1 bed flat near C.London from us when she has graduated from university and the money that we are saving now will go towards her education (private) from reception to sixth form.

@Lipperfromchipper thanks so much for replying and clarifying! I thought soon after I posted you were probably abroad! Just though I was missing out on something.

Around £4,500 and almost 4. Saved via Junior ISA. Mix of regular monthly contributions and saving all money gifted at birthdays and Christmas from grandparents and family.

It is definitely worth it to get through uni with no debts!
My friends who have loans get depressed every payrise/bonus as they actually get hardly any of it due to student finance whereas i get all of mine as i didn't take any loans out for uni

It is definitely NOT worth it. The repayments will only take 9% of your payrise or bonus.

It is definitely NOT worth it. The repayments will only take 9% of your payrise or bonus.

I would rather have the 9% tbh! I went through with no debts! So that 9% would bother me. And also that only applies to U.K. in the USA they take A LOT more!!

@Lipperfromchipper because the alternative is a deposit towards your first house.

Don’t use the savings for uni apart from if needed to make up a shortfall.

Take the loan for tuition fees and for living costs. Most people won’t pay it all back and payments are at a reasonable amount.

We saved about 30k for dd. She’s currently at uni and the money remains untouched. Hopefully she will be able to use it for a house deposit when she graduates.

I don't want to say exactly but they will have a significant lump sum. It won't be wasted on uni though as it's actually better to take the full loan amount as most will never repay it. If they become high earners and end up having to pay a large amount per month we might then step in. Money is primarily for a house deposit.

They've got approx 4k each of squirrelled away gifts over the years. Few more years left to add to it.
Unfortunately it's now in accounts they can access at 18 (and I can't touch), I can't keep it in my name in case I'm moved to universal credit. I'm always terrified they'll blow it as it's out of my control.

To all the people that are saving for their kids, are you currently mortgage free? If not then surely paying off your mortgage ASAP would be the more sensible option?

You will save loads in interest and be in a better financial position to help your children when they are older.

Nothing.

We have never been high earners and will always be in rented accommodation - we try to make life as comfortable as possible for them now then like us, they can make their own way in life.

Shit but it's the reality for many.

I have £10 in my current account and £20 in my other. 4 pence in my savings account and dc have the £10 they got from ggp last week. Thankfully we live in Scotland so uni is free to a point but these threads always make me feel like such a failure. Quite sure dc won't be the only ones in this position leaving school though. One of the main reasons for it is living in a great school catchment and trying my best to give them something like the same opportunities as their peers from much wealthier families

@19lottie82 yes we are.

Why do people take their DC's Xmas/birthday money and put it into savings? That is gifted to them to spend on something they will enjoy at the time it's given, not to save for uni. That's very weird in my opinion.