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Teenagers

Parenting teenagers has its ups and downs. Get advice from Mumsnetters here.

Original poster

Clothing allowances

19 replies

40thisisit · 30/08/2015 18:01

Hi, I'm thinking it's about time to give my eldest dd (15 but nearly 16) a clothing allowance. I really have no idea what would be a realistic monthly value would be! Her best friend has an allowance of £65 a month.
So, if you give your child a clothing allowance, firstly how much and secondly what can/ can't they buy with this money?
tia x

OP posts:
DragonsToSlayAndWineToDrink · 30/08/2015 18:11

In my youth (10 yrs ago!) I had £40 a month. I used to get school uniform and basic underwear, raincoat, boots, trainers bought for me- everything else was out of clothes allowance or Christmas and bday money. With inflation, I would think £50-60 enough- I'd assume she already has a basic wardrobe, so is "topping up" as goes along, not starting from scratch?

Original poster
40thisisit · 30/08/2015 18:14

Many thanks Dragons, yes you are correct she has the basics!

OP posts:
balletgirlmum · 30/08/2015 18:16

£65 a month is s hell of a lot. I don't spend anything like that in clothes.

Dd has a dancewear allowance of £300 per year (to include pointe shoes)

I buy any school uniform required at the start of the year. If she looses any she has to replace it herself out of her £15 per month allowance.

Most othe clothes she gets for birthdays & christmas unless she buys them herself.

calamityjam · 30/08/2015 18:19

Dsd has £80 a month clothes allowance. She is 17 and has had this since leaving high school. She has to buy all her college clothing and stationary with this. She also has a part time job which she uses the money from to top up her allowance

Samantha28 · 30/08/2015 18:25

My 15 yo gets £40 / month. If she wants more she has earn it by doing extra chores , usually cutting the grass .

I buy uniform , footwear, outdoor jackets and quite a few others things TBH, she spends most of her allowance on going out and not on clothes . She's not into brands / designer stuff - most of her friends wear jeans and hoodies , pleather or denim jackets , scarves and boots / Converse type shoes .

I'd be wary of giving a large amount , I'm not sure how she would keep it up when she's at college / university . £65 is probably as much as I spend on clothes and it's more than DH spends , and we have well paid jobs !

I suppose if her friends were all very wealthy or materialistic, we would have to give her more , but they are all quite grounded kids .

Dancingqueen17 · 30/08/2015 19:06

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

PennyHasNoSurname · 30/08/2015 19:13

I always just got pocket money (for cinema, trips.out etc), and then any clothes bought for me at Birthday/Christmas. If I wanted clothes other than that I saved my pocket money or did some babysitting.

Do kids get clothing allowances? Surely at 15yo they arent outgrowing clothes fast enough to warrant replacing / updating monthly

Samantha28 · 31/08/2015 08:25

Good point dancing queen

My Dd and her friends are primark / new looks shoppers. And theyve all stopped growing ( thank goodness ) so it's only " fashion " shopping .

And I buy all the basics on top of that . So about £200 per year on school uniform , and maybe another £200 - 250 on other clothes .

21Oreos · 04/09/2015 10:55

From age 16 I used to get 150gbp a month + whatever I earned on top of that. I am almost 30 now.
From the looks of the other people who have commented it seems that i had more than most, but depending on what she likes to wear, 65gbp might not buy that much.

bigTillyMint · 06/09/2015 13:10

I am feeling extremely tight - DD(16) gets £25 a month! She does work though and has £££ saved. TBF I did buy her £100 worth of new clothes for sixth form, buy her underwear (and bras for big boobs but small backs are ££) and will put £100 towards a new winter coat. I also bought her stationery.

Maybe we should move to an allowance system...

nooka · 07/09/2015 01:46

I had an allowance as a teenager, worked out by my father on a needs basis plus inflation (he was an accountant!). Every year we'd all get called in and he'd explain why he'd made changes to the amount. Mine was generally based on what my sisters had needed at my age. It was for everything he thought I needed and paid quarterly, mainly to help me learn to budget. I liked to save it all up, very rarely bought anything.

I'm about to do the same for my ds, we worked out what we usually buy him in a year and divided it up into months. He doesn't wear uniform so it's really based on the clothes he gets through either from wearing them out or growing out of them. Once he has it he can spend it on what he likes but there won't be any more unless he earns it.

Mrsmoneyworries · 07/09/2015 13:37

Were supposed to give them clothes allowance, as well as pocket money?!?! Shock. Oh my days, I'm a terrible mother.

My 14 & 12 year old get £25 per month pocket money, then clothes as and when they need them. Blush

Mrsmoneyworries · 07/09/2015 13:38

We're* not were (clearly I was in shock!)

Kr1stina · 07/09/2015 13:51

I wording worry Mrs, I think that £150 PCM is more that many working adults spend on clothes and at the ..ahem...generous end of allowances

SquadGoals · 07/09/2015 13:57

I was 15/16 10 years ago and got £100 a month into my account.

From this, I had to pay bus fare, lunch, clothing, phone credit, (eventually) driving lessons and any bits and bobs. My DParents would pay for school uniform, shoes, coat and a couple of bits for my hobbies.

I ended up with about £10 left over per month, which, over 2 years, paid for a great Fresher's Week at uni!

Mrsmoneyworries · 07/09/2015 14:10

Oh it's not me doing £150 per month. There's no way we can afford anything near that each.

That doesn't sound too bad Squad.

SquadGoals · 07/09/2015 15:14

It worked well, I felt it was fair and my DParents didn't think I was taking the piss! It also was less than I probably would have got if they just gave me bits here and there, but at least I knew I was getting it consistently and has helped me plan/budget now I'm an adult.

As long as I did stuff around the house (looked after the pets, cooked one meal a week, washed the dishes/put them away, sorted my laundry, hoovered 2 rooms & kept my room tidy), I got my allowance.

My sixth form still had a uniform, so I probably didn't spend as much on clothes as friends who went to local colleges.

aginghippy · 07/09/2015 15:52

I give my dd ?50 per month, but that's for pocket money, clothes and toiletries. She can spend it on whatever she likes. I pay for anything school related.

Kr1stina · 09/09/2015 14:57

Squad - I wish I could get my teenager to do half as much as that around the house

I get Hmm and complaints if she as much as empties a dishwasher

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