What to do for your child if they DIDN'T qualify for the Govts trust fund............

[Puff]

My mother in law has very kindly given us a cheque for £250 to invest on behalf of ds2 (ds1 qualified for Child Trust Fund but ds1 didn't).

But, I can't seem to find anywhere suitable to invest it. I want to treat it in the same way as ds2's money ie put it in something until he's 18 (no other cash would be added) and hope that it makes some money.

Any ideas?

sorry, she gave us the cheque for ds1, not ds2.

you can set up a trust fund with any bank or building society, and specify when you want the child to access it. I think.
You may be able to invest it in the same place as you have put your ds2's money...

puff-im expecting a baby anyday now and was wondering the same.
there are so many places to invest it-it's a bit of a minefield.i THINK we've decided on the saffron waldon building society though as the interest rate on their "ladybird" child's savings account is 5.35% which i thought was quite good.i'm just waiting for the info to come through the post so i can have a read of it,just to be sure.

Thanks folks .

Any other recommendations?

thers a bank advertising 10% aer whatever that is if you put 10 quid a month in ATM...cant remeber which one it was...would you like me to find out or is it just the one cheque you were going to save?

It's just the one cheque cc - this is the problem I'm finding - there are lots of long term savings plans for children, but all requiring a monthly contribution. I do that already, but want to treat this money in the same way as ds2's CTF cheque if I can.

Okeys dokes, my mums says its the halifax if anyones interested. I have my dds money in a normal kids saving account and a small amount like 250 earns abour 13 pounds a year...not much but something.

halifax info - lots of catches to the 10% rate - it's actually not as great a deal as the headlines make out

I had same problem with with my ds who didn't qualify for it but dd has. I invested dd truct fund voucher with nationwide as they had the best interest rates at the time, and I have now opened an account with 250pound for ds in the same branch, it will be interesting to watch whos grows the most. I didn't invest in the stockmarket with any of them as I didn't want to get less back than we put in, I know this is highly unlikely but Its a thought after 18years you wouldn't want to get less back!

There are companies saying they offer alternatives to their CTF accounts, but all of them want a monthly amount off you.

You can set up a unit trust investment for any child, sorry I don't know the rules, but any IFA should be able to advise (in the process of trying to sell you their products). Look for something with low charges to match the stakeholder certification of CTFund offers.