Mumsnet users share how they teach their children about saving money

[EllieMumsnet]

This activity is now closed

We recently ran a survey with Mumsnetters and 45% of you said you think it’s important to speak to children about saving and investing before they reach the age of 10. So Legal & General would like to know how you teach your children how to save, invest and do more with their money.

Here’s what Legal & General has to say: “While many of us believe that encouraging children to think about the power of their pocket money is important, sometimes just knowing where to start with this tricky topic can be the biggest obstacle we need to overcome. We’ve made it easy to begin your savings journey and invest for your child – you can save for their future with £20 a month or a £100 lump sum (click here to find out more). We also recently launched our Investment Academy, which includes a wealth of resources and quick guides to help you develop your understanding, so that you can help your child with theirs.”

So how do you teach your children about saving? Do you give your DC pocket money for doing tasks? Do they have a money box or their own savings account? Perhaps they have to buy some games or toys they want themselves so they understand that you have to save up to be able to afford them?

However you teach your children about saving, please share it below and you will be entered into a prize draw to win a £300 voucher of your choice (from a list).

Thanks and good luck with the prize draw
MNHQ

Terms and conditions apply

Open 04/03/19 to 18/03/19. To enter please post on the thread below. One entry per person. One prize to be won: £300 voucher of winner’s choice chosen by random draw performed by computer process.

The value of your investments can fall as well as rise and any income from them is not guaranteed. Legal & General (Unit Trust Managers) Limited.

[cannotmakemymindup]

We definitely help our Dd to save for holidays and other toys she wants to buy but are costly. It is definitely helping her to learn the value of things, learn to not waste nor to be uncaring to her toys.

On holiday she buys herself little souvenirs, icecreams. And it also has helped her to become generous in gifts, she often wants to pay for our icecreams on holiday which is really cute and kind. Other shops to she often says Daddys being kind can we buy him a treat.

We put money in her piggy bank - all our loose change is her holiday fund then different grandparents often give lump sums that go on more expensive presents for herself. She loves using her purse and cash to pay for things.

[whatcheekyfuckery]

I save our son's Child Benefit every month into a kid's regular savings account at my bank that pays a good rate of interest. When this matures at the end of each year I then withdraw and invest it into his JISA. He knows about this and that the money will be his one day for say towards a deposit on his first flat. He also has a pocket money bank account which I pay into via a regular STO and when he needs to buy something expensive eg new technology or a driving lesson, there is already a store of cash there to draw upon. I often discuss the relative value of items with him and he sometimes comes with me to the supermarket and sees how I shop around. Eg I'll buy tissues in one supermarket but not at another because of pricing. He saved up all his pocket money and birthday money for 2 years to get his gaming PC.

[RunningKatie]

We have just started a chore chart, to help me keep the house under control the enthusiasm lasted one week. This week they would rather play! I've explained that that's absolutely fine with me, but if they really want X then it will take longer till they are able to buy it.

They know that they have money saved for them every month, birthday and Christmas etc., but that they can't touch it until they are much older. We've told them that this can be used for driving lessons or towards a car which is exciting.

[QueenOfPharts]

We count the money in the dcs money box together. We look when we are out and at prices of things ie look you could buy 12pears ECT. I think its helping the dcs understand the value of money and how expensive the stuff they want is and how they must save

[musicalprof]

We have taken a variety of approaches, including not just buying what they want when they see it, giving them pocket money to manage, talking to them about not being able to afford the latest gadgets, matching their savings when they are saving for a larger item & now, at 16 & 12, having a savings account which helps them to see the interest on their savings growing.

[ButterflyOfFreedom]

My DC can earn their pocket money by helping with household chores- they're learning if they do them, they get it but if they don't, they won't! Teaching them if you work hard it pays (literally!). I'm saying this in a tongue in cheek, lighthearted way though the principles are important. DC decide what to spend their money on though at the moment they are saving it as they realise once it's gone, it's gone.

[lisapop]

Both of mine enjoy using their piggy banks

[Gazelda]

DD loves seeing how much is in her savings account. She loves to see it grow, and enjoys the extra little interest she gets.
We've also started to sell some of her old toys, books etc. She then appreciates the value of things because she saves up her 'sales' money to buy new things she wants.

[Larnipoo]

We give our 11 year £5 pocket money a week. He has a wallet and a bank account (NatWest were excellent with him) which he loves going to the bank and paying money in/taking money out - old school (and telling the cashier what he’s saving up for/buying)

[abitoflight]

Not so much about saving but not spending
DD13 surprised me by telling me she'd bought stuff from Poundland rather than spending ££ on cinema snacks
Questions like how much will you use it, do I need it, how much difference will it make? Is this the best place to buy it? Can you get a voucher for it? Etc etc
Eldest has not spent half her maintenance grant

[jitterbugintomybrain]

Mine don't get given money, they have to help out around the house and earn it. Teaches them the value of working hard and contributing to family chores also.

[Quietvoiceplease]

We have tried since our DDs were very young (now teenagers) to know something of the value of things, and to realise that delayed gratification is often better frittering money on fleeting wishes. They see us save for things we would like, and they are encouraged to do the same. The two older ones get pocket money, and the eldest has had a Saturday job, and they each have bank accounts and see their statements each month with the balance. They all love having some money in their accounts in order to have choices about the things they like.


Having said that, there is an extent to which their different personalities have an impact on the success of our approach. Our eldest DD (16) is brilliant: saves most of the money she gets, allows herself to spend 15% of her wages/birthday money and the rest is saved for (I kid not) a house. She is opening a Help to Buy ISA with the proceeds from her Saturday job. The littlest DD (11) recognises that many things that draw her eye are not worth the money, so her bank account (with birthday and Christmas money) sits mostly untouched. Our middle DD14? Lordy. Lives hand to mouth, entirely lives in the moment, buys any old tat, honestly cannot hold on to money for longer than about 10minutes. I want to cry at the rubbish she's spent her money on - even she knows she can't budget, but our attempts to help seem to not be able to over-ride her impulsivity.
Chalk and cheese.

[m0jit0]

My dd is too young to know about money at the moment but when she is old enough we will teach her the value of money eg if she wants something she might have to save her pennies for it

[CloudyTuesday]

My dc are teens. I don't link money to specific chores as I have seen that approach create children who ask 'what's it worth?' for every task they're asked to complete. Instead, they receive a monthly allowance that is dependent on them pulling their weight and doing anything I reasonably require of them.

They are encouraged to save for bigger purchases, but I don't stop them splurging if they want to. They know that when it's gone, it's gone. They have all experienced splurging only to later regret the purchase, or regret buying the item so soon and leaving themselves without funds for, say, an unexpected trip out with friends.

I think 'expect the unexpected' is an important lesson for adulthood and intrinsic to financial planning. Don't leave yourself short as that is when your friends will organise a trip to a theme park (or your boiler will break down, if you're an adult!).

Saving for events is also important - holidays, Christmas presents - whatever age you are.

And getting a job as soon as they are old enough. When you hear your teen saying 'I'm not buying that, I'd have to work two hours in the shop to buy that, it's not worth it' you know they've 'got it'.

[daniel1996]

So how do you teach your children about saving?

Yes, every time they get birthday or Christmas money, but they are allowed to have and spend their spending money at the supermarket, I talk to them about loans, and it's best to spend rather than borrow to buy. They are good with money, and hope this life skill will be with them throughout their life.

Do you give your DC pocket money for doing tasks?

For unstacking the dishwasher, and making their beds, yes they do.

Do they have a money box or their own savings account?

They have both, a money box for spending money and a junior savings account for birthday and Christmas money.

[lovemyflipflops]

I teach them that to have something you really want when you're an adult you should save up, and when you don't want anything save anyway because there WILL always be a time you need to replace or renew something. Whist they get birthday and Christmas gifts they get spending money from grandparents which I make sure they save in their junior bank accounts, and when they want a new game they can get this with their savings. They appreciate that when their money grows, they can buy something substantial.

[CallmeBadJanet]

I tell my 16 year old how many hours I have to work (changing nappies, looking after children) to be able to afford the trainers/guitar/top he wants. Its quite stark when expressed that way.

[scarfattack]

I've been a bit lax about all this. I don't give them monetary rewards for anything yet. Eldest is 6 so maybe don't need to yet anyway. They have a piggy bank which we sometimes take a pound from to buy a chocolate from the shop but that's it. I don't think they really understand well yet - mainly because I pay for most things with card or online so they don't really see me using real money!

They have a bank account and savings I manage and they don't have any need to talk about that or to be told about it.

[itsabongthing]

We use an online pocket money account for each of the older kids they can log in and see how much they’ve got. If there are bigger things they want to buy then they are encouraged to save up for them and can watch their pocket money balance grow. They can also do extra chores for a boost of extra money. It seems to be working and it’s so important to teach that uoi can’t have what you want straight away.

[SuzCG]

I started giving pocket money to mine when they were 5 and they were taught to save it up so that when we did things (day trips/went away) in the holidays they had a little bit of their own money to take with them to buy a treat/souvenir.

Whenever they get birthday/Christmas money they put half of it into their bank account and the other half they are allowed to take shopping & buy something they want. Spending their 'own' money encourages them to think about what they are buying/how much it will cost and is it really worth it.

[GooodMythicalMorning]

We give them pocket money once a month, they used to spend it all at once on fairly frivolous things but they have now realised they have to save if they wish to get something more expensive and better if they want it. I guess It's a natural learning curve. I suppose they learn from watching us save for things too as we're fairly careful with money.

[nerysw]

My children are 7 and 9, one is a saver and one really doesn't care much about money. They have a Child Trust Fund and Junior ISA which we pay into when we can and some of their Christmas/Birthday money goes into this when they've bought what they want out of it. Both understand that if they really want something they can spend money from their piggy banks or wait for their birthday or Christmas. They understand that we go to work so we can afford things and are starting to get the value of money and earning it.

[janekirk]

If there is something special that they want then I match their savings to make it a bit easier for them to get it, within reason of course.

[perfectstorm]

We do the whole matching savings thing. It does work to incentivise saving. It's like the principle of interest, but on steroids. And a child's account helps, even though the interest is derisory, because he can see the money slowly adding up, and then he doesn't want to dip into it because the 'collecting' aspect of seeing the number rise is lost.

[Gumbo]

Right from when he 1st started getting pocket money at about 4 years old, I've spoken to DS about the importance of saving. He''s now 13 and puts his weekly pocket money in his piggy bank, and every couple of months he puts some of it in his bank account. We've had many conversations about why debt is stupid, and why we should only spend what we can afford... which is why we need to save etc...