Seeking advice for junior ISA.

adam_l

Hello

I've been saving for my son since he was born originally in a child trust fund but then convert it into a junior ISA.
It's invested in a stocks and shares ISA with the Vanguard 60% fund.

I know very little about stocks and shares but that seemed to be a recommended fund at the time.

He's now 16 and I want to move the money into a safer investment that is not subject to stock market fluctuations.


A financial advisor recommended that I leave it where it was, but I'm not sure that's a good idea in case there's a calamity if and when we brexit.


Does anyone here have any recommendations?


Thanks!

xylophone

Do you now wish to transfer to cash?

You could sell the fund within the JISA and then ask Coventry BS to arrange a transfer of the cash to their cash JISA.

https://www.coventrybuildingsociety.co.uk/consumer/product/savings/children/junior-cash-isa.html

SmashedAvacado

within your S&S isa you coudl choose a fund that specialises in buying government bonds or guilts - that would probably yield 1 - 2% but would for all intents and purposes be as safe as putting the money in the bank.

bowlhead99

SmashedAvacado wrote: »

within your S&S isa you coudl choose a fund that specialises in buying government bonds or guilts - that would probably yield 1 - 2% but would for all intents and purposes be as safe as putting the money in the bank.

Safe in the sense that, nobody is going to steal your assets and if they do there is a compensation scheme.

But unsafe in the sense that the value of the government bonds or gilts held by the fund will go up and down with market forces; if for example the fund in which you are invested buys a government bond for £150, and then the market interest rates increase so that the bond paying a specific amount of interest per year becomes relatively unattractive compared to other new bonds, the bond may fall in value to £120. Then the investors in the fund have lost 20% of their invested capital.

Which does not sound as 'safe' as putting the money in the bank. If the son wants to spend the money in two years time, and avoid potential market losses leading up to that time, there is no direct substitute for moving to a cash JISA product.

If instead the son only wants to spend a portion of it in a couple of years time and will leave some of it invested for several more years beyond that (five to ten years or more), there is a case for splitting the money and putting part in a cash JISA while leaving the rest invested in some low to medium risk product.

Malthusian

What does he want to do? Is he planning to spend all the money when he turns 18?

As he's 16 he is after all in control of the investments.

xylophone

As he's 16 he is after all in control of the investments.

https://www.gov.uk/junior-individual-savings-accounts

The child can take control of the account when they’re 16, but cannot withdraw the money until they turn 18.

Albermarle

but I'm not sure that's a good idea in case there's a calamity if and when we brexit.

Most of the larger companies in the FTSE100 are effectively global multinationals , so the effect of some localised Brexit problem will be minimal. Also the Vanguard 60 fund is invested in different financial amrkets , not just UK .
Brexit could bring a lot of issues but most investors are largely relaxed about it .

adam_l

Malthusian wrote: »

What does he want to do? Is he planning to spend all the money when he turns 18?

As he's 16 he is after all in control of the investments.

Well, I don't know :-)

I'm hoping (!) that he'll use it as a deposit to buy a small house with a ghost the university but who knows. He may choose to spend it on fast cars and girls.

Fingers crossed.

AnotherJoe

If there's a "calamity when we Brexit " the shares will rise in value, not fall !
So on that account, leave well alone.
How would he buy a house when he went to university !?are student loans that generous these days?,
Assuming he won't buy until until he been and gone, got a job and decided where to live, which is perhaps ten years off, on that account, leave well alone.