Let’s talk pocket money with Money Advice Service

[EllieMumsnet]

This activity is now closed

Navigating the world of pocket money can be a little tricky, especially since the rules are always changing. However it can also be for many children their first introduction to the concept of money and how to deal with it. That’s why in aid of ‘Talk Money Week’, Money Advice Service would love to hear all your thoughts, experiences and tips when it comes to pocket money.

Here’s what Money Advice Service has to say: “Children learn about money earlier than you’d think: by the age of 7 children have begun to form money habits. That’s why it’s never too early to start teaching them where money comes from and how to handle it. Giving pocket money – no matter how little – is one way to help children's’ money skills."

How much pocket money do you give your child/children? Do you set up a system where they can earn more if they do chores or do well in school? What about what they can spend it on? Are there any limitations or do you try encourage them to save it for something big? How much pocket money did you get when you were a child? And what age do you think it’s appropriate to start giving them pocket money?

Tell us everything about pocket money on the thread below to be entered into a prize draw where one MNer will win a £300 voucher of their choice (from a list).

Thanks and good luck with the prize draw
MNHQ

Standard Insight T&Cs Apply

How much pocket money do you give your child/children? Do you set up a system where they can earn more if they do chores or do well in school?
DS is 4 and he gets £2.50 every Friday. This is for general good behaviour and doing a few bits chore wise (tidying toys/sorting clothes for washing). No system in place to earn more yet but this will probably change as he becomes more money aware and grows up.

What about what they can spend it on? Are there any limitations or do you try encourage them to save it for something big?
DS can spend his pocket money how he likes, usually on Superzings. But he does know what he can get for his money ie 3 blind bags or 1 Blind Bag and 1 hideout.
Anything leftover from his £2.50 we put in his money box - this he hasn't asked for the money from yet so he's inadvertently saving.

How much pocket money did you get when you were a child?

I don't remember ever getting pocket money. From 13 I did odd jobs and had a paper round so my parents said that was for me to spend as I liked. But before that I don't remember getting any.

And what age do you think it’s appropriate to start giving them pocket money? My DS is 4 and he has had pocket money since around his birthday. I think it's important to start from a found age and teach them about money and value. DS knows once his money is gone he can't have any more treats and he likes being able to choose and pay for his own things.

Mine don't get as much as their friends but it's what I can afford. One saves pocket money and does extra jobs for his hobbies, the younger one is still learning.

If my youngest comes to the supermarket with me and badgers me for junk food I've often said I'll give you this £1 instead and you can keep it instead of the sweets. If you really want the sweets, you buy them, but you don't get the £1. He's learning how much could be wasted on rubbish 'food'.

He knows I'm a hypocrite and will share my secret stash of chocolate with him later at home anyway!

I haven’t started with them but I will probably give £20 a month. I will also add on to it if they complete some tasks

Dd is still too young but I like the idea of her earning money rather than just being given it. It is important to us that she understand the value of money and is able to appreciate what she has.

DD2 aged 16 yrs recurves £50 month by direct debit into her bank account . On top I pay her phone contract plus regular screen replacements . I buy all her clothes etc - her £50 is for jollies with her mates etc . I top up if there is anything special required , going out for parties etc

How much pocket money do you give your child/children?
I think we don't pay very well in our house. DD15 gets £20/month (and has a lucrative Saturday job from which she earns £60pw), DD13 gets £10/month - both paid straight into bank. DD11 does not yet get pocket money, but will do so when she goes to high school.
They are expected as a minimum to keep their rooms tidy to receive their money.

Do you set up a system where they can earn more if they do chores or do well in school? Yes to chores - the younger two are often given opportunities to earn extra money for things like gardening, washing the car and cooking meals. A big definite no to rewarding success at school: I have children with vastly different academic abilities and it would only entrench that difference.

What about what they can spend it on? They are free to spend their money as they wish, as it is a v small amount. My middle DD is given money by us for say the cinema or a trip to McDonalds with her friends - assuming we are content for her to go.

Are there any limitations or do you try encourage them to save it for something big? They are encouraged to save for something they really want, but my DDs have wildly different abilities to do so: two are brilliant at saving and enjoying delayed gratification. One is terrible. Very little we do or say seems to influence her actions. That is partly why her pocket money remains quite low.

How much pocket money did you get when you were a child? I can't actually remember. I seem to think my opportunities to spend money however were much lower than they are for children now.

And what age do you think it’s appropriate to start giving them pocket money? We use their move to high school - when they start to be more independent - as the time when they get their own pocket money.

I remember getting pocket money from the age of around 5 or 6, something like 25p or 50p (it was the early 80's!) which I would mostly spend on sweets.

As I got older I got more but I had to do chores such as wiping up the dishes.

I think children should be given an amount appropriate to their age and as a reward for helping round the home and for good behaviour.

They should be encourage to save some and have a long term goal of what they want to buy but also use it for small treats.

I've never given pocket money (although realise now that it probably would have given them good money skills!) We live quite rural, so no nearby shops to spend weekly pocket money on. Instead they got money for shopping trips as and when. My 14 year old now has a part-time job - she only earns £13 a week, but this is paid into a current account, she now has a bank card so is learning about the choices available to her - spend or save!

Whatever brown and silver change I have lying around is gathered up and taken to the money machine at Metro bank once a month, usually about £4. I prefer to buy things for them as and when. There is also 35 a month in CTF but they don't really clock that.

5 years old - Saturday £4 treat money for good behaviour linked to chart for going to bed , getting ready for school, good behaviour
13 year old £40 per month for doing dishes on an evening, doing a family chore at the weekend , she always gets £20 for the chores but the other £20 only if had a good attitude and not been rude to me or her dad from this needs to come present money for friends birthdays and non necessities, movies or shopping with friends etc
16 year old doing a levels has part time job. We pay for bus pass and school needs, some basic clothes but her job needs to pay for her fun and make up etc, she does same chores as 13 year old but no extra money as we feel as you get older it’s just part of life.

I agree it’s very important to teach good money habits and budgeting as a life skill from a young age. Our children received pocket money from age 4.
Our 5, almost 6 year old has £3 a week, he spends some and saves some into a jar for larger purchases. He loves to count his jar money so handling money is great for maths skills too. He does chores to earn his money.
Our 14 year old has a £40 a month allowance, at age 11 we changed from giving cash to her using a bank account and debit card. She has responsibilities around the house to earn her allowance.

My son, aged 8, is very interested in money. He has a savings book at a building society and happily saves away to add to his total. He loves seeing his balance increase in black and white. He finds it motivating. He doesn’t get a regular amount of pocket money but will ask for housework jobs, and I pay him a small amount for each task. This doesn’t include clearing up his own messes, however much he bargains . He ‘earns’ on average a few pounds a week. I like this method because hair installs a work ethic too.

Right now my dcs are too young. They get money for birthdays and christmas and we put some money aside each month into their savings. I try to show my daughter value for money by taking her to spend some of her birthday money and I give her money once per week for tuck shop. However i will think about giving her money more formally in the future and getting her to earn money through chores.

I used to get £1 a week and I had to do one a job daily like clear the table or set it or wash or dry up. And I had to make sure my bedroom was tidy. I think I was about 7. I plan to start pocket money with my boys at a similar age. At the moment I usually tell him he can have one pound to spend but I don’t actualky give him the money as he’d definitely lose it!

i have a 17 year old DS at college, he gets £10 a week for spending, £30 a month savings and his phone paid for.
i don't pay him for chores- they are part of life for us both!

Our son is 7 and earns money if he has a good day at school and doesn't lose any reward time across the day. If he keeps a clean slate all day he gets £2 which he puts in his money box. He's a massive Lego fan so we empty the money box a couple of times a year, when he's earned enough to buy a decent sized kit

Our little one is only 4, however he gets £10 pocket money from us each week, he often forgets he has it but he has his own wallet. He can spend it on what he wants however if theres anything left over at the end of the month we go to the bank and he puts it in his bank account.

Dd, 13, and DS, 15, each get £5 a week. They’re meant to do chores for it but hardly ever do, and I must admit I let them get away with that. Apart from one time, when my DD’s bedroom was so disgusting (dirty plates, food on carpet etc) I told her she wasn’t getting any that week.

We first introduced pocket money a few years back but DD squandered it on such tat - and I still gave them money each day for sweets - that we reverted back to just buying stuff they wanted (and no tat!)

Reintroduced pocket money about 18 months ago and decided to give them the same amount as it just seemed fairer. They’re old enough and sensible enough not to spend it on rubbish so nothing is really out of bounds if they want to buy it and have the cash. However we have talked about a couple of poor purchases (overpriced stuff) but it’s their money. DS saves then splurges. DD sometimes saves for 2-3 weeks, though often just spends the lot.

My sons are 14 and 16 and have both elected to ask for money on an ad hoc basis rather than have a set amount of pocket money. We discuss with them what each outing/activity/purchase entails and agree a sum of money. We will quite often "go halves" with them if they have birthday/Christmas money from other relatives, particularly for large purchases.

My 16 year old has high-functioning autism and some mental health problems, and recently told us that he found it stressful having to apply to us for money when he needed it and facng the possibility of being refused. We had a long discussion about it as a family, and he decided that he did not want to switch to a regular allowance, as he felt he might get less money that way. So we came up with a system: he sends me a Facebook message in advance, letting me know the proposed sum and purpose of the money he wants, and DH and I consider it and get back to him with an answer. He finds this less confrontational and it's working well so far.

At 11yrs, I took my kids and opened a bank account with them (normal high street bank). They have their own debit cards and I put £10wk (12yr old) and £15/wk (14yr old) into each account as regular standing orders. I've had the embarrassment of them coming home having had their card rejected because there wasn't enough money in the account, but it taught them to check their balances at a cash till, etc. When they went to secondary school, things they do with friends are more independent and expensive so rather than them ask for money from me it gives them the opportunity to be financially responsible. Typically the money is spent on (I can see the bank statements!) - cinema tickets, toiletries, McD's and Tesco's (my 14yr old found out what a £3 Meal Deal is pretty quickly when he had to use his own money for lunch!), hair cut, pottery cafe with friends, Superdrug, shakes, etc. I don't get them to do chores for money as I'd hope for a basic level of cooperation without having to pay them to do it, and they've never batted (much of) an eyelid if I ask them to empty the dishwasher, lay the table etc. I buy new clothes they need each season, but any on top of this they save up for and buy themselves which has taught them what is good value on the high street.

My DS is 10 and does not get pocket money yet, I did try a chore chart where he could earn money but then he would complain about helping around the house if it wasn't on the chart! Now he knows he's expected to help tidy up the mess he helps create. He gets given money when he needs it, or has helped do an out of the ordinary job like weeding the garden. I think secondary school is probably when we will start the whole regular pocket money thing, right now if he goes anywhere and wants anything he's normally with us or his grandparents anyway.

Not pocket money as such but eldest DD has a bank account and a kitty in there, she feels very grown up!

My DD is almost 5, I will probably introduce pocket money around the age of 7. I would expect her to do jobs for this and it would only be given with good behaviour too. I used to get £2 a week, I always spent it and never saved it though. I will be teaching my DD the importance of saving.

I never had an allowance as a kid and I have done much worse financially as an adult than my friends who did have it. They learned how to save earlier, they were much more conscious of the long-term effects of saving up, the benefits of it, they learned about goals, about consistency, many many lessons that it took me decades and regretful mistakes to get to! I would ask for money and if I got it I spent it all there and then, I was so careless because I never knew when money would be coming in again, this method definitely did not work (at least for me).
This is why I am definitely starting allowances now with my children, 3 pounds every Sunday. They also both have savings accounts where I put £25 for each every month until they are 18, which will hopefully help them with uni expenses, but I don't think I will tell them about this until they are older.

We have a chip system where the children earn chips for things like making their own beds or brushing their teeth etc. Chips are deducted for things like fighting or throwing. Chips can be exchanged for treats like screen time or if they have enough chips at the end of the week they can exchange it for pocket money of £3. They are 8,7&3