Money Doctor is a column written by Unividual's Cherie-Anne Baxter in Bristol Life Magazine. This edition she focuses on teaching children about money. We now live in a very different world to when we were kids, rising house prices, student debt...it all adds up to a less favourable future for our kids. Read up on how you can prepare them for adult life.
Planning savings for childrenWe are not trying to doom and gloom you but with rising house prices and student debt, our children are going to find it increasingly difficult to get started in adult life. That is before we even take in to account the phasing out of final salary pensions or the increasing costs of long-term care. However, there is actually something you can do about this now. In this month’s edition of Money Doctor we are going to take a look at how you can give your children a savings leg-up whilst building their financial literacy. Children learn about money from as early as three years old…it really is never too early or late!
As we grow up, we collect life’s experiences and put together a checklist of ideals for our kids. A loving childhood is right up there, along with them becoming kind humans who make the world a better place. Then there is the finance side of things. Putting money aside early means they benefit from starting their adult lives with savings behind them.
There are many ways, aside from a savings account, where you can grow wealth for your children. Junior ISAs offer a tax-efficient way along with a child pension. This is just the tip of the iceberg though, before you get to things like inheritance planning. There are so many ways a business like ours can give your little people a head start in life. You might not realise how affordable financial advice is and we can make sure your money works harder than it being in the bank.
A survey carried out by Halifax found nine in 10 children between eight and 15 think their parents worry about money AND 58% worry about it themselves. As we become more anxious about money so do our children. Whilst this is a reason to take control of your finances it is also important to build open dialogue around money. We might shield kids from real life worries, but honesty prevents them from feeling something is their fault.
Money Helper say that you can start to teach your children about money from the age of three to four as they start building attitudes and habits around money from the age of five. Research shows, children who are given responsibility for money and talk about it regularly, manage their finances better when they grow up. Here’s a few ideas:
It doesn’t matter if you are six or 60, you are never too young or old to build on your financial literacy. Why not check out one of our free financial planning guides or keep up to date with money related news resources. If you are considering whether you even have enough time to manage your own financial affairs then don’t hesitate to get in touch with one of our friendly but highly qualified financial planners.
Author & Editor: Cherie-Anne Baxter
Date: 21/02/2022
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