Best investment options for my children

[Sunflowerlily]

I’m just wondering what the best options are for savings for my children (3 and 1 year old).
I am keen to avoid a junior isa as I want to be able to access the money, for example we might want to explore private schooling and some decent savings might help us out there.

currently I have it in a children’s savings account but the balance is getting to the point where it’s not sensible anymore as it attracts lower interest rates.

im thinking perhaps I just open a stocks and shares isa (not a junior one) in my own name. Id just need to be careful to not exceed the annual amounts between that one and my own one. (Unlikely). Or set up a vanguard investment portfolio and keep it separate.

what other options are there which give me access to the money should I need it, but help me keep it separate from my own savings?

I'm looking to save around £10,000 a year and with my current financial position this is doable. I’m just always mindful that things could change so I do like a degree of flexibility.

A separate stocks & shares ISA in your name on a low cost platform sounds a good option. Any excess above your allowance could remain in a children's savings account, named for each of your children. Then moved over to the ISA in another tax year if you have spare capacity.

For savings - Yorkshire Building Society has a One Day account - deposits are held in trust by the parent, when opened before the child is 8 years old and continues until age 21. Although the interest is not particularly eye-catching (reducing to 4.05% in March), there are no penalties on withdrawals provided it is for the benefit of the child, and the upper limit on savings is £1 million.

https://www.ybs.co.uk/savings/product?id=ONEDAY

Another option is Premium Bonds in the child's name, which the parent manages until the child is 16. (returns on these are dependent on luck).

We save the majority for our DC in Premium bonds in their name as we can still access this until they are 16.

We have a smaller amount saved in Junior S&S ISA's and I don't want to lock too much away in there (or give them free access to it when they're older) but it's doing pretty well over the longer term so I may continue to save for them in a S&S ISA in my name as I'm unlikely to hit the annual limit with my own savings.