How much allowance for teenagers?

Spendless

I do very similar to Lunar Eclipse with my 12yo only he is at the school 1.5 miles away and I pay bus-fares of £1.20 a day. It is within walking distance, though not a particularly nice route in winter for the younger ages. Mine is not in the slightest bit interested in clothes. I usually have to google brands that get mentioned on here as mine would rather be in a plain t-shirt. He reminds me of that character from Little Britain when it comes to shopping, the one in the wheelchair with 'I want that one' points and out of the shop. I can't see me ever handing over school uniform buying to him, as he doesn't think about it in the way I do, with an eye to what needs to be bought early (his trousers due to his 'rugby players' thighs) and what can be bought to last a 2nd year (eg school jumpers) and what can be saved till they are selling stuff off 1/2 price.

He currently doesn't do any activities since packing in Scouts earlier this year. I wanted to ask Lunar Eclipse though, what sort of social activities her daughter is funding? As that is the same amount my son gets per month, but ice-skating here can cost over £5 (if you go on a friday night) that's before a drink is bought and I know from prev posts I live in a cheaper part of the country.

bhatti3000

Best to put some money into a saving account for the kids - to help them buy a house when they are older.
20pounds a week is the max, as pocket money. However, im more likely to give 5pounds a week to my kids when they are teens and they would earn that too.

pink68

£140 a month sounds like a HUGE amount to me!

I give my daughter £50 a month and pay her mobile phone bill of £20 a month. This covers school meals if she chooses to have them, clothes toiletries clothes and entertainment. I buy her school stuff.

i do treat her to the odd thing but no more than 10 a month or so.

I wish i had £140 a month to spend on myself....

loracan1

But I get the impression that £140 is covering a lot of expenses.

I've found this thread quite interesting. My son's never really had a steady allowance, when asked he'll do chores without complaint but doesn't have the intiative to do it off his own back. (I'm considering implementing an allowance that will be lowered accordingly if things aren't done) His dad pays his phone and xbox subscription.

I've suggested we start at £100/month to cover spends/bus fares/clothes/lunches at college. He thinks he'll need £5/day for lunch, after discussion about expenses during which I pointed out I'd never dream of spending £25 a week on work meals, he asked if he could take his own. That's one lesson learnt already! There is a free bus service running to college - but he often walks into town anyway to save the cash. He'll be getting his first payment on 1st July.

thatlemming

Can't see why so many people in this thread are against their children having a part time job!

I worked from 15-18 part time, 8-6 on a saturday. I still got 7A*s at GCSE and 4As at A Level, and had a really busy social life. I also learnt the value of money a lot more than the majority of my friends who relied on mummy and EMA.

And when it came to getting a gap year job, I already had 3 years work ex, and a really good reference. What did they have? nothing.

daisiegg

property.advert wrote: »

I certainly won't be sending mine "down the pit" to earn a few quid when they should be studying.

Doing a few odd jobs around the house is fine but going out to work instead of studying for GCSEs and A levels is ludicrous if you want them to succeed.

Crazy comment....going out to work whilst studying is an extremely important lesson in responsibility, time management and independence. I worked whilst in sixth form and went on to get a First from one of the top universities in the country, and now have a good job. My sister worked from 15 all through GCSEs and A Levels and is in her final year of doing medicine at Cambridge. I can't think of any of my friends who had a job while we were in sixth form who didn't go on to succeed hugely in exams, university and career.

On the other hand.......I had a boyfriend when I was in sixth form whose dad didn't let him have a job because he needed to focus on his studies....he still got two Ds and an E at A Level, managed to scrape into uni through clearing, had to repeat a year, never managed to get a summer job during uni due to lack of work experience and so was a huge financial burden on his parents, and from what I hear now, graduated with a third and has not been able to find any job beyond working part time in a shop.....not saying it's because he didn't work whilst studying, of course not! But it can't be a coincidence that he's the only person I know who really flunked quite badly, and is also the only person I know who didn't work...

peaceandfreedom

daisiegg wrote: »

Crazy comment....going out to work whilst studying is an extremely important lesson in responsibility, time management and independence. I worked whilst in sixth form and went on to get a First from one of the top universities in the country, and now have a good job. My sister worked from 15 all through GCSEs and A Levels and is in her final year of doing medicine at Cambridge. I can't think of any of my friends who had a job while we were in sixth form who didn't go on to succeed hugely in exams, university and career.

Indeed, you are right. My daughter got nearly all As at GCSE and all As at A-level and she worked from when she was 13. This included 8 hours per week at A-level. Believe me, your average teenager spends a great deal of time doing absolutely nothing constructive, so it's easy to divert a few hours to doing some paid work. All her friends who achieved excellent results also all worked, regardless of family income - they all wanted to earn their own money. In fact, I think there is a link between being prepared to go out and work, and being prepared to work hard at your studies. One friend whose family paid for everything and who never worked, also couldn't be bothered to revise and got poor results.

As for the monthly allowance, while £140 does sound high, it is covering a lot of things that most of us probably pay without really adding it up.

My teenagers always got a very modest sum each month but that money was purely spending money. DD1 no longer gets anything when at home but I am helping to support her through uni and I pay her mobile phone contract. (I give her FAR less than £800 per month though! :eek:).

DS now has a well-paid part-time job and pays for absolutely everything himself, including all school lunches, mobile phone, clothes and anything else he needs. I actually get gifts from him that haven't been paid for with my own money . Before he got the job he rarely used his monthly allowance, he just didn't seem to need it.

DD2 still gets her modest stipend but I must sheepishly admit that she wangles quite a lot extra out of us in her own little way. I should be stronger on this.

I've always been rather rubbish with money and I am trying to ensure my kids are better informed. It's good for them to go out and earn their own - it completely changes their attitude to spending money when they have had to work hard to earn it.

balletshoes

thatlemming wrote: »

Can't see why so many people in this thread are against their children having a part time job!

I worked from 15-18 part time, 8-6 on a saturday. I still got 7A*s at GCSE and 4As at A Level, and had a really busy social life. I also learnt the value of money a lot more than the majority of my friends who relied on mummy and EMA.

And when it came to getting a gap year job, I already had 3 years work ex, and a really good reference. What did they have? nothing.

I agree, I worked from 14 until I left school at 17, on Saturdays, sometimes on Sundays, and days after school. I worked hard at school and got good grades. If there are suitable after-school jobs around, I think its a great start to eventual working life to begin with a part-time afterschool job. It needn't interfere with study time at all.