How do you support your DCs in managing their money? Tell Nationwide for the chance to win a £300 voucher. NOW CLOSED

[RebeccaEMumsnet]

For some parents, when your kids get a little older, helping them to manage money responsibly can be a challenge. To celebrate their FlexOne current account for 11-17 year olds, Nationwide would like to know the ways in which you help your DCs manage their money.

So, is your DC a saver by nature or does spare cash burn a hole in their pocket? Are they always badgering you for extra pocket money, or do you enforce a strict allowance limit?

We’d also really like to hear how your DC compares to you when you were their age – do their spending habits mirror yours when you were young? If your DCs are a little younger, what advice do you plan to give them, or what advice do you wish you could give your younger self when it comes to money management?

Whatever advice you give, post a comment below to be entered into a prize draw where one Mumsnetter will win a £300 voucher of their choice (from a list).

Thanks,

MNHQ

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My dds have always been taught about money, checking prices, deals and advertising, ever since they could count

I have one saver and one spender

My spender is now 15 and money was becoming a real flash point with her wanting clothes and makeup NOW -it's only £5 was my most hated phrase as she just didn't get that 'only £5' quickly added up (complicated by the fact she has HFA and waiting is so hard)

Because of her aspergers I feel she's more financially vulnerable so I need to be confident she can manage her money before she heads out into the wider world

She now gets a monthly allowance of £50 which is for clothes, make up and coffee
The first couple of months it was gone in the first week -I made no criticism but every time she asked for something I told her she needed to wait for her allowance

She's got so much better at managing her money and now is managing to save each month. Having her own card has taught her lessons such as you have to wait for refunds to be credited -they aren't instant. Returning goods online can mean a lengthy wait and no refund on the delivery charge hard lesson that one and she's started looking at delivery charges to see if items are still such good deals

She's really proud of herself because she can now look at a piece of clothing and say 'I like it but will I wear it?' she'll quite often now like something but wait a month to see if she still likes it -managing her own money has really worked

My dc are both careful to always have a bit in their piggy banks though one is a v generous spender and the other is more careful but will get herself things she really wants, or wants to give.
I worry whether they think love = stuff as they're growing up in a world where we are all encouraged to express ourselves through buying having and giving things.
I've taught them to look for value and decide for themselves if something (which I might think is a good or bad deal) is worth it to them bearing in mind xyz factors.

I've also explained to them - at tedious length - how credit cards and high interest loan companies make their money : they were both appalled that you can end up paying back so much more than you wanted to spend just because you didn't have it to spend in the first place

I let my children (8 & 11) keep their pocket money in cash in their rooms. They like to count the money and be able to see how much they have saved.
I have suggested to them that they always save at least half of what they are given, but the truth is that now they have realised through experience that if they buy something, they no longer have that money, they prefer to save most of it.
I also keep them up to date with how much savings they have in bank accounts that I have set up for them, and encourage them to think of that money in terms of it being there to pay for driving lessons/gap year travel etc.
We talk about the cost vs. value of various experiences and things in day to day conversation, and I try to give them an awareness of concepts such as investments/depreciation through real life examples.

I have one of each - a saver and a splurger. Saver still has £30 in an envelope on a shelf from his birthday in April. Spender is TRYING to budget, especially as she gets a grant from her 6th form, and she has a bank account which she can access online to check before she spends. if she is really worried she gives money back to me to stop her spending it. She has ASD so its a long process

My children are learning about the value of a pound via Poundland and all the crap you can buy there.

I give DS a set amount each month. When I first started doing this, I gave him a savings box and explained to him the importance of saving. Thankfully this appears to have caught on! He prefers to save his birthday, Christmas money and allowance for things he really wants, like new games.

My DD is a hardcore saver, who has squirrelled away a decent amount of cash over the years. She loves spending other people's money though.
We've just set up a GoHenry account which is encouraging her to spend some of her own money.
She's the total opposite of me at her age. As soon as I got my pocket money I was off to the shop to blow it on sweets & magazines. It definitely burned a hole in my pocket, in fact, that was a phrase I heard a lot from my mother 😄

We have sat down with our older two children and explain the benefits of saving money.We have 2 accounts for them to be able to deposit some or all off there money too contrbute too there futures(As well as us).I think it extremely important to teach them.As It can be so easy to get in too debt these days.

DD is 5 so a bit young but I'm trying to teach her the value of things and how to save. When she gets money from relations she is keen to put it in her money jar (which is a good sign) but enjoys spending mine instead!

I use cash with her so she can see how much I'm giving over - I think debit cards can mask just how much things cost.

Both DDs earn their pocket money through doing chores.
I have also discussed things like living costs, how mortgages and loans work, etc. I want them to be financially savvy growing up, it's to easy to get into a mess.

My sons have always loved saving for something special and they now have bank accounts. It is great when they see interest and our youngest son is only tiny but gets very excited putting his pennies in the money box.
He is saving for a real helicopter lol

I have 4 DC, all under 13. We show them how to take care of their finances by teaching them what we pay for and how much things cost. It can be as simple as getting them to workout the best offers in the supermarket, or more complex like talking about what taxes are. Our thinking is that when they leave home they need to understand how the will manage their income and cover costs, as well as save for luxuries or unforeseen events. When they get money as a gift, we always encourage them to think 'beyond the now' and consider purchases carefully. Our eldest wants to open an account now, so we have told him about banks offering different services and interest. It will be his job to research and come tons decision with our guidance.

The kids used to want to spend any money that they for but they now quite happily let us put their birthday/money into their bank account. This is quite often used to purchase premium bonds for them and the aim of saving is to help towards a mortgage when they are older. If they want an expensive item, this will be bought for them by us but only as a birthday/Christmas present. 'Everyday" money is earnt by earning 10p a chore (which adds up a lot more than it sounds!) and also through their tuckshop money at school - they can either spend it at the time or see it mount up in their piggyback. We will periodically check piggy banks and if a large amount, this will be transferred to a bank account.

I started giving my kids (15 and 8) pocket money from quite a young age, about 5 or 6 and allow them to use it how they want. They usually save it to buy things like computer games and my older DS uses his also for trips to cinema, shops and food when he's out with mates. They both already have a really good appreciation of what things cost and have found they're much less likely to spend they're money on "tat" when it's "their" money 😂 the older DS has his own bank account and pocket money gets transferred 4 weekly and the younger one is an online saver and again the pocket money is transferred online, but weekly for him. If they spend all their money they don't get extra, but so far this hasn't been a problem, they just have to wait till next pocket money payday, or do an extra special chore to earn extra, like washing car.

Agree with starting pocket money at a young age and making it a realistic amount so they can save for items within a sensible time because if it's going to take months and months to save for something relatively small I think kids don't bother, the goal seems unobtainable.

Dd is in sixth form now, we've given her control of the child benefit so that she can decide whether she wants to buy food at college or make packed lunches and to help with any non college related travel. She's now responsible for all of her spending, other than the most basic of items. She's become very frugal and has saved up a good amount which will help at uni.

My 6 year old does not spend any money and has it all out in the bank for him. My 17 year old used to be the same until a few years ago when she started spending her pocket money on Xbox games and snacks and had non left at the end of the week. We have opened her a new bank account that she is in charge of and hopefully she is being more careful with her cash.

Encourage them to save towards things they want

Mine have always had a savers account but more recently have an osper card. Their pocket money is automatically loaded onto it and we each have an app to keep a track of the balance. They can save up for what they want and then spend online as it is a MasterCard so can be used everywhere. Their spending habits could easily get out of control as we live in a more materialistic world than when I was young. I like the osper as it teaches them the value of money and that it may take weeks even to save enough for something that doesn't seem big. Also it enables them to earn extra money through chores etc and teaching them that you have to work for your money.

We use a coin reward jar with our 5 year old, only 5p at a time, but it's good motivation for him to help out at home. He knows it's not a huge amount but he likes to see it building up in his jar and he is saving for a bath bomb! Hoping this will start to develop the idea that you don't automatically get things, and that little bits add up quickly.

I have saved for ds since his birth, though for a long time it was £1 a week. However, because of his Child Trust Fund we got a good start on it. We save quite a bit more now, and I've also always made him put a chunk of his pocket money into his building society account, in cash so he can handle it and see what happens to it. This is very much what happened to me as a child.

I have always been a complete spender but I think ds is a little different - he has several times managed to save up for something quite big. I keep him up to date on the interest coming into his account, and involved him in a decision to put his building society account money into longer-term bonds as the interest rate had been cut severely.

My 5 year old gets a small amount of pocket money each week (£1). He decides how much to spend, invest, donate or save. (Savings gain weekly interest and are instant access, investments gain more interest and are long term savings). I pay 10p on the pound interest per week to encourage saving, and we discuss things like how sometimes we buy things that look good in the shop but are actually rubbish, and how advertisers trek less to make us want to buy things that we don't need. He seems happy with his pocket money at the moment.

How advertisers tell lies

My children are older now. DS has always been good with managing money. DD has always had it burn a hole in her pocket. I help them as best as I can.

still too young, but once pocket money comes into play I will encourage to save half and spend half.