How much board would you charge a 17 year old?

Poppy9

Pennysmakepounds wrote: »

Being a parent myself now, I do find it sad that it’s come down to this for most families.

Charging your OWN offspring to live under your roof.

It’s a cycle, you ask your children – They will in turn expect the same from theirs….and so on and so on…..

Come down to this??

Generally this generation of children is supported more financially by their parents than previous generations. This is in part due to them being in full time education longer - usually 18 plus rules on minors working and all the traditional weekends jobs are now staffed by older, permanent part time workers who work weekends.

i.e. when I was 13 I was working every Sunday. Pocket money stopped and I had to buy my "wants". At 17 I was a YTS on £23 a week. £5 keep to my mother, £4 for my bus pass. I bought my own clothes, paid for my own driving lessons etc. I was financially independent.

When 6 months later I had a permanent job earning £40 a week keep rose to £10 a week plus I was responsible for one household bill My parents also could no longer have a reduction on council tax bill when I turned 18 so I paid the extra.

My DD didn't manage to get a job till she was 16 and then it was only temp. for a few weeks. Hundreds of job applications later she secured a 4 hour a week job with a major retailer. She earns just over £27 a week if she only works 4 hours. I paid for all her driving lessons (her birthday present), though she paid for her test. I pay the additional £600 on my insurance for her to drive my car but if she uses excessively she will get charged for petrol!

I allow her to keep all her wages plus I give her an allowance of £50 a month. Over Xmas and after her A level exams were over she's picked up extra shifts some as many as full time hours. She pays no keep. She saved enough to pay for her own holiday abroad. Clothes, make up etc. is now down to her as I'm prepping her for Uni life.

Some of her friends who are 18 like her are now waking upto the fact they need a job! They like to go out clubbing etc. but have no income and the bank of Mum and Dad has been closed to them as they have left school and awaiting starting Uni. Parents are a bit peeved they haven't secured a job, sometimes through serious lack of effort.

nickj_2

j.e.j. wrote: »

I must admit I don't like the idea of 'charging' your offspring (or in this case a 17 year old you've decided to support) to live at home. But I realise I'm in the minority here, and a lot of people on this board think it's good to see an older teenager as an extra source of (needed?) income.

Income Support is the lowest amount the government says a person needs to live on. I am surprised he can get it if he's living with a family, rather than independently?

What does his £71 a week have to cover? If he's expected to have to buy his own clothes, etc, then you need to take that into account. If you really must charge him, make it a nominal amount, or suggest to him that he puts some into savings.

i would have thought that most parents think nothing of the sort , even if you're rolling in it you should still charge something , it's probably the most important lesson that your child will have to learn, ie that living costs, those clothes that need washing and ironing the water , gas , eleccy , food etc all has a cost, taking 40 or 50 £s a week will not cover the actual costs for their share but it will make them appreciate that life ain't free.

of course , if you are a lovely parent and don't actually need their cash , you can always save it up and give it back to them when they move out , however if they are still under your roof by the time they are 40 you will have a nice little nest egg, so the temptation to treat yourself to a month in the bahamas will help ease the pain of still looking afet them

Savvy_Sue

Pennysmakepounds wrote: »

Being a parent myself now, I do find it sad that it’s come down to this for most families.

Charging your OWN offspring to live under your roof.

It’s a cycle, you ask your children – They will in turn expect the same from theirs….and so on and so on…..

I don't think it has come down to this for most families. If you read the thread, you'd find that the lad jellyhead is talking about charging for board has come out of an abusive family situation where his father WAS extricating as much as possible from this lad: keeping all his wages, AND charging for laundry. The father only turned up when he found that his son's wages hadn't gone into his (the father's) bank account - that's outrageous! Clear where HIS priorities lie.

And from other threads, there's clearly been emotional control / abuse issues as well. This young man is very fortunate to have such a good friend in j's son, and such lovely support from all of j's family.

BTW, there's a student board with a thread about student finance, it might be worth posting the situation there to check what others have said about estrangement. However now this lad has got the IS, you need to consider what the implications of claiming CB and via CSA might be: if it led (or might lead) to physical confrontation I'd be wary. Although by the sound of it the IS claim will trigger a cancellation of the CB, which won't please that excuse for a father.

jellyhead, I take my hat off to you, and agree that you should try to get as much support as possible from SS.

Are you going to get away on holiday this summer?

itch_for_a_glitch

Pennysmakepounds wrote: »

Being a parent myself now, I do find it sad that it’s come down to this for most families.

Charging your OWN offspring to live under your roof.

It’s a cycle, you ask your children – They will in turn expect the same from theirs….and so on and so on…..

Really ? You think kids should live for free ?
Not a hope in my gaff. They're going to grow up knowing the cost of everything and the value of everything too. Mind, they're both working, but they know if they're on bennies there wont be much in their pockets.
And I dont "need" a penny from them.
Sad ? Whats sad is kids growing up with no backbone.

TammBikky

Charge them just enough so that it's not free - teaching youngsters charity is not a great thing. Good on you for letting them into your home, what a wonderfuul thing you are doing!!