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  • novazombie
    novazombie Posts: 327 Forumite
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    Any update on whats happening now?

    Is it 1st Aug no more CTF?

    We just had a baby I must register the Birth quickly dont want to miss the 250.
  • Madtyke
    Madtyke Posts: 9 Forumite
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    As I understand it, the CTF top up for seven year olds that qualify will no longer be available from 1st Aug 2010 and that CTF's will be withdrawn completely by January 2011. I hope this is the case as my wife is due at the end of November.

    Saying that the £250 CTF my 3 year old got is now worth around £200, some investment hey!
  • needuradvice
    needuradvice Posts: 217 Forumite
    edited 25 May 2010 at 10:55AM
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    hi guys, i'm hoping someone could help me.

    I already have a stakeholder CTF for my elder child with halifax too. But i joined them without looking into it at all and now I have recently received my new baby's CTF. I'm not too sure which company/banks to go with.

    FYI, I want to invest in either shares or stakeholder in the hope that we'll make some returns when she's older.

    I would also like to add that FandC seem to be very popular, but their website+application form seem very difficult and also I don't have a clue which trust to invest the voucher in.

    Can someone recommend a good/popular CTF company? Maybe a company which:-

    1. allows me to buy my choice of shares
    2. has online access to the shares, just like brokers (tdwaterhouse etc..), so that i can watch them without having to phone the company each time.


    Thanks very much
  • Markie11
    Markie11 Posts: 128 Forumite
    First Anniversary Combo Breaker
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    gttltzy wrote: »
    It seems that the Hanley Building society are currently offering a cash CTF at 5%.

    I seen this but I also think you can only apply at one of their branches. One of a few in the staffordshire area.
  • needuradvice
    needuradvice Posts: 217 Forumite
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    guys i'm gonna go for selftrade as this allows me almost full online control over the share dealing as well as my choice of shares. FYI my previous kid's CTF was with halifax stakeholder and we only managed to gain an additional £50 over five years!!! thats rubbish in my opinion and i'd rather take a bigger risk.
  • ultrawomble
    ultrawomble Posts: 492 Forumite
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    Tammer wrote: »
    Hi,

    I'm concerned that I could put a decent amount of money into a CTF and then the child could turn out to be a lunatic who blows it all on a car or something else frivolous.

    Is it possible to set up the CTF so that a parent is has to sign something when a withdrawal is made?

    Surely that would be a simple way of helping ensure the money goes towards something that both parent and child are agreed upon?

    As I understand it, no. The child has total control of the money at 18 years of age, and can blow it on whatever they want to. Therefore, my 2 month old will get the £250 voucher and whatever relatives might want to give her directly into the CTF (if they so wish). Any other monies that I wish to accrue for her will be under our (her parents) control so that we can decide on the timing of access and the nature of expenditure.
  • nennyrainbow
    nennyrainbow Posts: 15 Forumite
    First Anniversary Combo Breaker
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    Madtyke, your baby will receive the reduced child trust fund voucher (£50 instead of £250 for most people, or £100 instead of £500 if your household income is below about 16k) as the voucher amount for newborn babies is being cut by 80% on the 1st August. This is of course if the government legislation is passed: at present it's just a proposal. I am assuming it goes by the child's date of birth, not by when you apply, so only babies born up until the 31st July qualify for the full payment.
  • RDB
    RDB Posts: 872 Forumite
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    What about a baby who got the 250 and would have qualified for the other 250 next year. Will they just get 50 as the 2nd payment?

    Nothing at all when they get to 7 then?

    But who knows where we will be in 7 years, will the pound sterling survive until then? If it does 500 quid may only buy a slice of bread :(
  • moonec
    moonec Posts: 3 Newbie
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    As these rates aRE LIKELY TO PLUMMET, AS A PARENT, AM i ALLOWED TO TRANSFER THIS FUND TO A REGULAR CHILD SAVER?
  • alatham
    alatham Posts: 1 Newbie
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    Hi...

    As our new government have scrapped the Child Trust Fund from next year I was wondering what the best options would be now? We are expecting our first baby in late January 2011 which means we won't get a CTF voucher from the government, however I would still like to start a fund for my child's future that I will finance personally.

    Lots of the bank's web sites are currently not updated following the new government plans and I can't seem to find any details which don't end up linking to a CTF account...

    I'd like to start a fund when the are born with an initial lump sum and then put a small about £30 or so, per month, into it so that when they are 21 it will mature for them (I think 18 is still a bit too young).

    Any advice will be most appreciated..

    -Andy
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