What would you make your 17 year old pay for?

nattyt

My 17 year old has just got a part time job. She is still at school doing a levels but will be earning approximately £120 per month. I also give her £10 per week and pay her phone bill- £45.
So what do you people out there think she should pay for herself? For example things like hairspray make up wipes bus fares etc I have told her she has to pay for. You might have heard her protests from where you are!!!

Gillyx

£45 is a lot for a phone bill :eek: most places do unlimited for £33 a month and that's with a good phone!

I'd stop giving her the £10 a week, continue with the phone bill if you feel you want to, I'd pay for any bus fares she needs for school but expect any bus fares for socialising be paid by her.

Edit: maybe look for a small contribution towards her phone or look at downgrading to a cheaper deal.

balletshoes

mine isn't 17 yet, but when she starts getting a weekly/monthly allowance from me, I will expect her to pay for -

any clothes/make-up/toiletries over and above her school uniform/basics she outgrows.

all birthday etc gifts she wants to give her friends

all outings she wants to go on with her friends

and all phone top-ups over a set limit I will pay for (based on her usage at the moment that limit is around £5 per month).

if she wants anything specific that her allowance doesn't cover, I'll expect her to save up her allowance for it.

I'd expect her to do all this from wages if she started working.

nattyt

Yeh it is a lot I agree. I'm not actually that sure how's it ended up that much so I must look into it. It's an iPhone 5 on Vodafone and all unlimited but sure it was less than that before. My dad pays her bus fare as he pays for her schooling too. But I said I wasn't paying for her to get buses for work or socially - that's fair right? My friend said I should stop the £10 but save it for her ready for when she really needs it. Might do that.

jenhug

if she is earning £120 a month, gets her phone and travel paid, why are you giving her £10 a week too?

balletshoes

I think thats a good idea natty - and yes, look into that phone tariff!

Mrs_Metalhead

That sounds reasonable to me. When I was 17 and got my first job that's about the same wage I received, I paid for my own bus/train fares to the job and to get to college, as well as paying for cosmetics etc myself. My mum did buy personal hygiene stuff for me, such as deodorant, shower gel, toothpaste etc. I didn't receive an allowance and I had to pay £10 a week rent too - which I complained about! Got my first mobile too at that age and had to top it up myself, but as mobiles were a new thing I hardly used it.
I think it is fair to expect her to pay for those things herself as I do think it starts to teach you budgeting etc for when you are in your own place. At the time I thought it unfair but when I look back it did teach me the value of money and how you have to spend most of your wage on things you'd rather not buy but have to!

jungle_jane

Depends on what she does in return - I don't think that you should give young people 'free' money. So I would expect 2 hours work a week for the £10. In my case, DSD works as my cleaner and she earns £10 for 2 hours work. She can increase that to 3 hours and get £15 if she wants to do additional irregular cleaning chores like cleaning windows...or cleaning the car...or the oven.

That has an added benefit of her learning how to keep a house properly and also learning that if she works hard she can earn a fortune (£15 a week is a lot for a 13 year old). I benefit because i get my housekeeping done once a week.

In addition to this we pay for her bus pass and she has to share our toiletries. We don't have fancy stuff like face wipes (soap and water is fine for us) or spot cream - if she wants this she buys herself. We give her a couple of hundred quid a year for clothes and we pay for a lot of entertainment like gigs or days out.

We also ask her to save 25% of her wages into her fund that she can't touch until she is 18. So one week in 4 goes into her savings.

We applied the same rules to her sisters and these rules lasted til both of them were 16 and older. Both of them have subsequently said how much they appreciated not only our generosity but also what they learned about earning money (not relying on handouts), saving and most importantly about what it takes to keep a clean house!

nattyt

Ballet shoes- I agree about the clothes. While she doesn't have an actual uniform as she's in 6th form I said I'd still buy clothes for school and work plus underwear as its essential but anything else its up to her. Everything else you have said is what I have said too. Ok not feeling so bad now! Kids have such a way of making you feel guilty don't they!?

nattyt

Jenhug she has only just got the job starts Saturday hence £10 a week. She does pick her younger siblings up one day a week and does do jobs (after lots of nagging!) I have said I'd still pay for basic stuff eh shampoo shower gel deodorant but that face wipes are a luxury so she'd have to find that herself. Days/nights out she has to pay for. My ex also gives her money whenever she wants it which drives me mad as not teaching her any lessons!

Savvy_Sue

Once in the 6th form, mine got an allowance to cover bus fares and a basic lunch, I paid for shoes and any 'basic' clothing they needed, but anything else was up to them.

This was OK with the older two who'd done paper rounds and saved up, worked less well with the youngest who hadn't (too much like hard work!) so he was always on the scrounge until he followed them into working at the local cinema. However we did pay him for cutting the grass, so it would sometimes be a case of judicious negotiation!