Mums Finance

Our parents and grandparents were great at saving what little money they were able to hang onto years ago; these days it is not so easy to put a bit aside for any reason let alone building up some savings for the kids. But with some thought and committment you can set aside some money as watch it grow - it will make a great gift for the when they come of age. And we all know how quickly that comes long!

* Make use of that free cash from the Government

If your child was lucky to be born after 1 September 2002 and is entitled to Child Benefit then they’re also entitled to a voucher - a Child Trust Fund voucher - of £250 at birth plus a £250 top-up at seven, both double if you’re on a low income. In the bigger scheme of things I know it’s not much but it’s a start and often that’s all you need to get onto that road to that nice nest egg.

The route to that nest egg really begins with the fact that once invested - and you’ve got to choose the stocks and shares option for this - you and your family can top up the account to the tune of £1,200 a year, returns are tax-free and the kid can’t touch it till they’re 18. Arm yourself with a good Broker for this task, there are plenty around. Child Benefit, if you can afford to invest it, is nearly £1,000 a year. Do all this and, assuming a roughly achievable annual return of 6%, after a mere 6,570 days (18 years), your child has £40,025.57 !

Remember, we are talking about looking to the long term here - nothing happens overnight as we all know.

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