Share with Teachers Assurance your thoughts on children and finance: you could win a £100 voucher! NOW CLOSED

[AnnMumsnet]

Teachers Assurance, a friendly society and provider of savings and investments for children, has asked us to find out from Mumsnetters the attitudes or plans that you have for continuing to financially support your children, even when they’re all grown up.

They say “we know that, at the moment, you’ve probably got your hands full with a young child and understand that it may feel like you’ve got plenty of time until they’re old enough to need financial help for the things they want to buy or do. But children grow up fast and soon enough, they’ll be experiencing the later costs of life such as university fees, a first car, or finding a deposit for their first home”.

So, have you made provisions for your child’s future? Maybe you encourage your child to start saving from a young age instead? Or perhaps you’re planning to gift them some money on a milestone birthday? Please share your thoughts on this topic on this thread and you will be entered into a prize draw where one MNer will win a £100 Love2Shop voucher (additional Teachers Assurance T&Cs* apply).

Please note that any comments posted on this thread may be used by Teachers Assurance in further marketing material.

Thanks and good luck!

MNHQ

*NB Standard MN terms and conditions apply – see here.

**Prize draw closing date: 20 November

We have supported our daughters as much as we can. When our eldest started Uni we try to help out as she didn't qualify for the full grant. She has to also work part time though to try to fund her costs as much as she can. Unfortunately, the cost of living is expensive. I think more emphasis should be given in schools regarding money, bills, mortgages etc.

We don't save for our kids, but the grandparents do. They also got left some money by their great grandfather. We've nearly paid off our mortgage and have committed to paying their accommodation costs through university (or equivalent), and afterwards we should be in a position to help them out/save for our grandchildren. They each have current bank accounts where their pocket money goes in, and have to pay for pretty much anything they want or do that's not to do with school. And they have savings of their own separately.

Yes. We have three dc's, elder two got a child trust fund with the government and we put £50 in every month.
Youngest dc missed the trust fund, so we opened up a children's bond and pay £50 into there every month. On their birthdays we buy them £100 premium bonds each as do grandparents. Hopefully as our finances get easier we can contribute more each month. Fingers crossed they should each have a nice little nest egg each.

We've always saved the majority of Christmas & birthday monies into saving accounts for our kids & add to it if & when. They're aware of the importance of money and yearly donate 10% of their yearly dosh to a charity of their choice.

When my boys were younger we opened an ISA account each and would save birthday money and Christmas money plus others eg, grand parents gave pocket money. As they got older we shared money saving half in ISA and allowed them to treat themselves a little too. Now they are both just about to buy their first home and the investment is a very helpful addition to their finaces.

Its just not easy for many people to save these days. We have a trust fund for my eldest which she will get when shes 18. I still need to set up something for my youngest though.. I wanted them to have the same type of account but thats no longer possible.

My daughter has her child trust fund which has been added to yearly - relatives also have the account number and they add to it at Birthdays and Christmas. By the time she reaches 18 it will be quite a sizable sum.

My daughter also received pocket money in exchange for her keeping her room tidy and drying up each evening.

we have instilled that doing little jobs in the house earns money and that when they are older know they have to work to earn money and to divide the money they get to 50%save and %50 spend that way they don't feel like they are missing out but can also see the total in their savings account rise and hopefully will have a good savings bug as they are older and then put it towards a house deposit or whatever big purchase they decide but they are also taught when the money is spent there is no way to unspend it

We are lucky enough to have been helped financially by our parents and have relatively comfortable amounts of savings. I do worry though that we won't be able to help our own children in this way.

For example, my parents helped me with a deposit for my first flat, taking me from alReady having a 10% deposit to having a 20% one. With the way house prices have risen, I can't see us being able to help our children in the same way

Well, I encourage my son to put half of all pocket money aside and put it in a piggy bank.

We discuss finances with our teens and encourage them to have a part I time job and save up for things they want

I too save for my son but only £10 a week. He is expensive enough with all his activities at the moment and we like to go on a good holiday each year. We give him spending money each week as well which he has to earn by doing age appropriate tasks in the home. I think it's important to learn young that we have to earn our money

My little girl is 2 years old, we opened a savings account for her when she was born & put a bit in on birthdays & christmas. She's got quite good a going through Daddy's pockets & finding change for her money box! but once she is a bit older I will encourage her to start saving a bit of money

Anytime DC are given any money, they put it into the money box and are allowed to take out a £1 every holiday to spend. They love then going into Poundland or Asda and buying something for themselves.

We send £20 a month to their account and have done since birth. That way when they turn 18 it can be used for a car or uni or whatever without us having the big surprise.

Me and husband have always planned to try and leave enough to make sure they have a stable start to their adult life. We have saving plans to make sure we can pay for their UNI fees and also if thinsg go to plan then enough for both of their first houses.

Let them fend for themselves, I received no handouts from my folks.

I put £50 a month into a children's savings account for my dd. I also encourage her to save up her pocket money to buy herself things.

I haven't made plans yet. I just save a set amount each in her savings account with the aim to give her access to it on her 18th birthday. That's as far as it goes for now!

I encourage my boys 5 and 8 to save their birthday money for something special and not just splurge. It works only some of the time. I would love to save regularly for them but nit enough left over at the end of the month. I hope to help them make the best of what money we do have. ...

trying to save a little along the way, but don't expect the kids to save birthday money! however any large inheritance will not be accessed until they are 25!

I've insisted on teaching the kids about money from day 1, we've played with the penny jar to learn counting (as well as making pictures) and taught them that we go to work to earn 'pennies' to buy things. My son who is 6 turned round and said he didn't want me to do extra work as he wanted to spend time with me. We keep any money they've been given in the highest interest account, which I look for with their help and explain the difference between piggy banks and bank accounts. Only trouble is most banks/building societies don't use pass books anymore so very difficult to show them how it works. If they get money they can spend some and save some. We will try to save for their future but if they're not good with money what's the point as they will blow the lot. They will get their savings when I think they will use them wisely, if not the majority will stay hidden. Hopefully money will be taught at schools soon to reinforce what I'm teaching at home.

I think its impossible at the mo to save, its hard enough just getting by on the money we have.

We give ur children packet money and have from an early age but they have to complete chores to get it. They are allowed to spend some but a proportion of it always has to be put into their savings account. Even if they get £5 half of it is banked.

They both have a healthy attitude to saving now and really think carefully about whether something is really worth spending their hard earned savings on or whether they would rather wait until Christmas or a birthday to get something.

I'm pretty terrified about this, especially about payin for university.

We were struck with a horrific and unexpected tax bill a few years ago and had to use the (not very big) savings of DC to pay it off...we then set up a direct debit to make sure ti was paid back and it's still going so at least every month they get 50quid each into a savings account, which I currently control - but I need to work out how to make sure they can't just have it when they reach 18, that we save it so they have it when they need a deposit/wedding injection/travel round the world or whatever

Other than that we're not even saving towards a pension at the moment