Pocket money (merged)

minimoneysaver

I think it is a lovely idea Claire. My dad used to do something very similar. The money went into my bank account on the first of the month and I had to think very carefully where it was going to be spent. I had outgoings that I couldn't avoid, like school lunch money, friends birthdays etc. I wasn't allowed to ask for extra money for the cinema etc and my contribution was expected in the home. It taught me how to budget... to this day I have still not got any debt, apart from a mortgage.

hermoine_2

I give my grandson £2 a week and he is 7 I give my daughter £3.50 a week and she is 11. She will get a raise to £3.75 on her next birthday and he will get £2.10 on his next birthday. The problem I have now is that I have 2 more grandkids on the way and a 2 year old - do I give them all pocket money? It started when we had more - now we have less and will need more!

I have grown children and when the got to 15 i gave them their share of the child benefit each month to spend on clothes and such like, I never got it right apparently. It was probably about £75 per month, they also got £5 a week pocket money - Claire3121 I do think that £150 a month is a lot but he will learn to manage if that is all he gets. We each have to do what we think is right.

In answer to the OP I think 6 is a good age to start and do not start too high as you will need to put it up incrementally for what ever reason, either coz you give them the ability to earn a bit more or just cost of living - 20p just would go no where these days!!! Do they even still sell penny sweets?

H

pipkin71

DDs get £30 a month, plus little bits here and there. They can also add to their pocket money by doing extra jobs around the house.

They're 10 and 12

kjmtidea

I have just recently started giving mine pocket money, £1 a week and they are 7,5,3 and 1. My eldest 3 tend to save for a few weeks and then buy a magazine or a book.

msb5262

My three children (nearly 11, 13 and 15) get half their pocket money in cash and half in their building society accounts. At present they're getting £4 (of which £2 is saved), £6 (£3 saved) and £8 (£4 saved) respectively per week.
I don't ever buy them sweets but will occasionally buy them ice-creams if we're out together. When they were small and wanted to go to the sweet shop every Saturday, I also used to limit the amount they were allowed to spend on chewy sweets (Har*bo etc) because those are much worse for their teeth than chocolate.
If the children want extra money, they do jobs eg. washing the car, extra help with housework etc. This seems to work pretty well and one way and another, they usually have money when they need to buy presents for people or want a new game or whatever.
When I chose a building society for the children, I deliberately chose one about 12 miles away. It's open until 4.30pm on a Saturday so quite handy, but the children need to plan ahead if they want to withdraw money...this means the money tends to build up a bit.

Krystaltips

DD1 is 5 and just after her birthday this year I set up a standing order of £2 a week into her bank account. She's not really expressed an interest in pocket money tbh, probably because she's a tiny bit spoilt by everyone so doesn't need her own money... DD2 will start getting the same when she is 5...

remembered_nights

Claire3121 wrote: »

I dont understand why people think thats alot,as its roughly what we spend on him if we were giving him money here and there anyway....also forgot to mention that most days he has £2 dinner money,which works out at around £25 per month. It just gives him a sense of responsibilty and makes him budget his money if he knew this money had to make it last for the month. i dont think children appreciate it if they're bunged a tenner here and there tbh.

I think your idea of learning to budget and most other posters' ideas are rather different :rotfl:I got £20 a month at that age so that's why I'm a bit gobsmacked

RootyTooty_2

Hello folks

Just wanted to gather opinions on how much pocket money other parents give their teenage kids?

And of that amount, what is expected to be paid from it?

e.g

own top ups?
trips out to cinema ?
holiday money?
presents?
toiletries?

Or should these be funded seperately?

Should pocket money be in return for chores/responsibilities? Or does this make kids mercenary?

Thanks for any views on this.

itzmee

My 13 year old son gets £3 a week pocket money. He thinks this is mean as his friends get £5 plus. But he also gets £10 every 6 weeks top up for his mobile, plus I pay £15 a month for his contact lenses (even though I claim 75% of it back on cash health plan!). He also gets money for clothes, school trips, cinema etc as he doesn't have to use his own money for this, so really he gets loads but doesn't realise or appreciate this!:rolleyes: If he wants any special toiletries (usually Lynx or aftershave) then he has to buy them himself and I also encourage him to save to buy presents, though I would give him money for holidays.

I do expect him to help around the house though, he has to empty the dishwasher each day, keep his room tidy and not annoy his little brother - though he doesn't really stick to the last one!! If he wants to earn extra money then he can do the yucky jobs I don't like, such as cleaning the bathroom. He is always asking for a raise but I point out that I only get a payrise once a year, so when I get one then he can have one as I work hard for my money, but he doesn't!:D

BitterAndTwisted

The way I see it, pocket money should be used to fund extras that the normal housekeeping budget doesn't cover like the things you listed above except the toiletries you have normally provided up to now. If they want £20 shower gel then out of pocket-money it comes.

I do think that the money should be conditional on good behaviour but not chores: families are a community so they take care of each other and chores are included in that. You really don't want to get yourself into a situation where your kid/s will only take out the rubbish if you cough up 50p every time they do it unless you give them a bill for every time you do it yourself.

Have you had a chat with any of your children's parents to see what they do? I'd say don't be too tempted to be too lavish and please, encourage them to save some of it. Spending and saving lessons run deep at that age