child benefit - what do you spend yours on?

[PersephoneSnape]

I apend mine on (part of) the weekly food shopping for me and 3 dcs, ds2s ballet lesson and dds pocket money. does anyone tuck it away in an account or spend it on wine and handbags?

DH & I both work, so neither of us feel as if we "earnt" the benefit money, so neither of us touch it. We can afford to pay for everything out of our wages, we dont have much money left at the end of the month, if any. So putting the money from the government for DD away for her future makes sense to me.
But, like I said, she's two, and not screaming for money yet

The CB in our house just goes into the general "pot" of money, into our joint account along with all other incomes such as salary, etc. So it has no specific purpse and just gets spent in the same way all other moneys do.

Our regular savings and investments, etc. are dealt with seperately, as is savings for DD.

I think it should be means tested too. I agree that it seems unfair that those already fortunate enough not to need it to live on are able to save it up to give their kids another advantage in our horribly competitive society but then again hopfully the lower paid get their tution fees paid is they manage to get to uni. Mine goes on swimming lessons, brownies etc and towards holidays. My kids do have savings from grandparents but it will not be masses and I would not want to, in any case, pay for their wedding, cars etc, I would hope they would not expect all that on a plate.

If we are talking just about the £18ish, I dont think it should be means tested. People who are "poor" do get additional benefits from those who are "comfortable".

For eg, DH & I both work. We have a mortgage, bills to pay, debt, student fees etc etc, we get a small amount of family tax credits based on wages, and child benefit.

My friend and her husband do not work, they get the same child benefit as I do, they get family tax (more than us) and their rent, council tax and heating paid for. They have more disposable income than us at the end of the month.

But from a who earns what amount basis, we're better off than them.

JB like eoas said,those on a lesser income get more benefits that what those of us on a higher income get...like I said, we also pay a higher band of tax...just because you earn more doesn't mean you have more left at month end...higher mortgage,higher council tax banding,higher bills.... etc

DS was ill at birth with a genetic condition,our neighbour suggested that due to the condition we apply for a reduction in our water rates (as I said,we still had bills etc to pay and dh couldn't work for 6 months due to ds's illness)we didn't qualify as we weren't claiming other benefits and dh's wages was over the relevant threashold.
To me it seemed madness that we were contributing in tax yet there was no support for us just because of our income....

Again,as I said before this extra support would have helped us greatly.

I would love to be able to save it, but it ends up being spent usually on clothes etc for Tom. I did save 2 months and bought a pushchair I used for an hour then sold it, so won't be doing that again. Although I am tempted to save 3 months and buy a Wii, lol.

I did suggest to DF it would be good to try and save it up for christmas each year seeing as it does go into a seperate account. I had also thought about taking out a SAYE using the money. My mum is doing a SAYE for Tom though.

Well we save it for the future, with one DD I can work PT, when we have the next I won't be able to afford the CHildcare (well not enough to go through the hastle of working as well). So we are saving it as a slush fund for the leaner years to come.

I suppose I am lucky but it will be used for its' purpose eventually in that we will spend it on paying the bills while I can't work.

Mine all goes on the kids activities, I have a seperate account so I alwayss have the money to pay whats due.

I was thinking about this earlier as I belatedly opened the 22 January letter telling me it had gone up. When DC4 arrives in May, we shall be getting over £55 per week. That's nearly £3000 a year.

Ours goes to 2 UK childrens charities and an overseas sponsored child. We really don't need it.

childcare. one day per week earn too much for tax help, child benefit/tax credits cover this.

goes into my account. 15 quid per child goes into their accounts per month, the rest sort of sits in the melting pot that is spent on them and the house stuff for them

Just for the record, I certainly wouldn't be considered 'better off', however I have never spent the CB money on anything else, so have never missed it.

Mine just goes into the current account and gets used for whatever. I don't ring-fence it in any way.

Why should it be means tested?

I spend the child benefit on everyday stuff for my ds, thats what its there for.

I was told that it was means tested because if you earn more than 60k a year you dont get it.

My mil's friend's dh earns more than that and they cant claim it due to it being means tested.

We saved all ds' and £100 a month ffor the first year he was born but then dp walked out of his job and it had to pay the morgatge whilst dp was being interveiwed for his current job.

That's not CB, Kay. There are other benefits available for low earners.

What annoys me about that system is that they have an arbitrary cut-off, but don't take into account the number of children you have. It should be a sliding scale.

Ah its Child Tax Credit she can't claim for.

Just had a look.

It goes into the pot here too, to spend on things like, oh, let's see, food, education, clothing.....

I don't believe it should be means tested. It's the only bloody thing we actually phyically get back from the government and I'll be damned if I give it up.

Our goes straight into the joint account. I have worked out a very strict budget and actually count CB as part of our income, I would love to be able to save it but the way I see it this was DD gets to have at least one parent at home full time with her (DH and I are each going part time next month when I go back to work) and I hope that that will mean more to her later on than a nest egg (probably won't though .

I don't mean that to sound smug or judgemental to anyone else but it's the way I justify it to myself.

I'm glad the majority or other posters use it to live on too. I was feeling really bad about that. I still haven't sorted her CTF voucher our either

Cocaine usually

Ours goes straight into the joint account. I have worked out a very strict budget and actually count CB as part of our income, I would love to be able to save it but the way I see it this was DD gets to have at least one parent at home full time with her (DH and I are each going part time next month when I go back to work) and I hope that that will mean more to her later on than a nest egg (probably won't though .

I don't mean that to sound smug or judgemental to anyone else but it's the way I justify it to myself.

I'm glad the majority or other posters use it to live on too. I was feeling really bad about that. I still haven't sorted her CTF voucher our either

Our child benefit goes into a separate account in my name. Out of it I pay for the weekly swimming lessons, Cubs and Rainbows subs, new shoes/clothes as and when needed, pocket money for ds (dd still a bit too young), cash for icecreams if on day out etc etc.

Food, petrol, mortgage usual stuff. Goes into the main bank account.

don't think it should be means tested btw, though should be taxed-but iirc the MAIN reason it isn't, is that it actually would cost more in administration to means test.

(doing the maths in my head I am a bit unconvinced by this but hey)