Pocket money/ allowances

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Kit
Posts: 132
Joined: Tue Oct 02, 2007 11:58 am

Pocket money/ allowances

Post by Kit »

I would like to start more of a definite routine of giving our children regular pocket money/ an allowance as a weekly or monthly standing order into a cashcard type account. The problem is that I have no idea how much to give and to what extent to link it to jobs, schoolwork, behaviour, charity etc. , if at all.


Any suggestions anyone? What has worked for your family at what ages? How can I make it fair?
scary mum
Posts: 8841
Joined: Mon Mar 15, 2010 3:45 pm

Re: Pocket money/ allowances

Post by scary mum »

Ours get £1 for every year of their life per month. This means there is some difference between the different siblings based on age and also they get a "pay rise" every year. This is not linked to chores etc, they are expected to help out around the house as part of the family (note I say expected :lol: ). We do pay for them to go to the cinema, buy their clothes etc and I suppose they would need more of an allowance if they had to fund these things themselves. We give them extra if they do big jobs like washing the car etc. They get a treat of some kind if they have worked hard towards something, but we would never ever reward them for exam results (just for the effort put into them). A few years ago DD wanted to give some of hers to a charity (only 50p a week) so we agreed to match that so that she could give £1 a week. I would probably withold it if there was particularly bad behaviour, although I'm not sure how much of a punishment this would be as there are very fortunate compared to when I was a child and really want for nothing (please don't flame me, I'm just being honest here, we do try not to spoil them).
scary mum
aliportico
Posts: 888
Joined: Wed Aug 01, 2007 12:19 pm

Re: Pocket money/ allowances

Post by aliportico »

My kids have had pocket money from a young age - at first a few pounds a month, mainly to stop the (what sometimes felt like!) constant requests for stuff, lol! Much nicer to go out somewhere and know I wasn't going to end up in the gift shop being badgered for tat :) I have never linked it to jobs or anything else - they are just expected to help out.

At 7 they could open an account in their own name at my building society, so then we did that. From that age I would give them £20/month - £4 in fact they never see as it goes to sponsor an animal (dogs, dolphins, tigers, polar bears :) ), £10 would be transferred straight into their account so they would have to think and plan to take it out, and I'd give them £6 in cash.

As they got a bit older and started actually spending a bit more money on themselves, I upped it to £25 at 11, and then £60 at 13, and just transfer it all (minus £4 animal sponsorship DD that goes from my account) to their bank accounts. The teenagers buy nearly all their non-school clothes, their own toiletries, their own phone credit, pay for their own entertainment, etc. I pay for school stuff, drama group and other weekly things, and anything I feel like buying them :) I pay for one's school bus pass, and so she has free bus transport at weekends, so I'll give the other one bus fare if she wants it! But she usually cycles everywhere (including to school), so I pay for her bike upkeep, helmet, lock, etc. They also use their own money for birthday and Christmas presents.

It seems to work for us - they don't complain of not having enough money, although I sometimes complain that dd1 has spent too much money on books and could do with some new jeans, lol.
Kesteven
Posts: 68
Joined: Wed Jan 26, 2011 2:02 pm

Re: Pocket money/ allowances

Post by Kesteven »

Our DS Yr 7 gets £2.00 per week, plus his phone calls/texts. Our DD Yr 4 gets £1.20 p.w. Each has the opportunity to earn further amounts by helping with household chores. There's a sliding scale of about ten jobs which pay from 20p (loading dishwasher; making bed) to £5.00 (washing car). On top of that each gets clothes, trips and special occasion money. Again, it works for us.
ourmaminhavana
Posts: 966
Joined: Mon Sep 07, 2009 11:14 am

Re: Pocket money/ allowances

Post by ourmaminhavana »

:oops: Maybe it's time for a raise? We started giving DS £2.50 a week when he was probably around 8/9 and went mad and increased it to £3 a week at some stage. He's now almost 13! :oops:
(Having said that this goes straight into his bank account where he hoards it away whilst we pay for everything!)
He, and DD, 6, who doesn't get pocket money at all, just 'cash in handbag' when needed, are both expected :lol: to help with very low level housework. They do not get 'paid' for their exam achievements, the success being its own reward. :D
Reading Mum
Posts: 1841
Joined: Tue Oct 04, 2011 9:44 am
Location: Reading

Re: Pocket money/ allowances

Post by Reading Mum »

DD aged 10 gets £2.50 a week but we are really bad about giving it to her and she never remembers either so it usually gets given in catchup mode. At xmas my mum couldn't think what to buy and gave her the money instead so we opened an account for her. She doesn't really buy anything but it has stopped the 'I wants' - when its her menoy she doesn't want it quite so much after all. She knows she wouldn't be allowed to buy sweets and doesn't really want/need much else - an occasional magazine maybe. Once she is going to school on her own she will get a phone and then I can see it being more relevant.
Pushy Dad
Posts: 302
Joined: Wed Jan 19, 2011 5:12 pm

Re: Pocket money/ allowances

Post by Pushy Dad »

My DCs get money from relatives for Christmas and their birthdays. It all adds up to about £200 pa each.
We deposit some of that into their savings account and the rest is theirs to spend as they see fit (within reason of course). So they don't get pocket money off us as such.

DCs have a piggy bank cash float of about £100 each and they use it to buy games and songs for their gadgets, and souvenir tat when we/school take them places. When they go out with mates we give them enough for bus fare, cinema tickets and snacks for example. Apart from the above, they don't really spend money since we fund their cellphones, clothes and 'expenses' when they are out with us.

The above works quite well for us at the moment but it will no doubt change when they become teenagers.
scarlett
Posts: 3664
Joined: Fri Jul 16, 2010 10:22 am

Re: Pocket money/ allowances

Post by scarlett »

I hate giving pocket money...I'm not really in a routine of giving it either as we still buy things for them and they usually get money for their birthday or from Grandparents. Mine always remind me that they haven't had it for a while so I just churn out my purse and tell them to divide it up whilst I make a quick run for it. Very organised I know.

A few years ago I used to give them about 20p :shock: :shock: That was great , mainly because they were chuffed to bits with it and it did encourage saving, you know ! :lol:
Rob Clark
Posts: 1298
Joined: Tue Nov 25, 2008 1:59 pm

Re: Pocket money/ allowances

Post by Rob Clark »

We’re pretty much the same as scary in terms of amounts and what it’s for. We would pay for essential clothing, but designer or partywear they have to pay for themselves. If they go to the cinema with a parent it would be paid for; if they go with friends they have to pay for it themselves. They get extra for things like washing cars or gardening but not for cooking, laying table or clearing up after meals etc. They don’t get paid directly for exam results, but might get treated in some way, eg we have bought a ticket to the Wireless Festival for DS post-GCSEs.

The one exception is that we pay for their phone contracts in full, because it’s essential they have these for medical reasons. The quid pro quo is that they have to be charged, turned on and with them at all times, with severe penalties if we can’t get hold of them – though this wouldn’t include confiscating their phones… :lol:
Jules7
Posts: 248
Joined: Mon Oct 18, 2010 7:55 pm

Re: Pocket money/ allowances

Post by Jules7 »

Neither of mine get any regular pocket money so far from us but I do pay for DD1s phone contract (£10/month) and dole out money for specific reasons (DD1 can think of many reasons...) and buy books etc. My parents give them £10 each when they see them (roughly once a month) and it seems plenty to keep them going. Have noticed that they are more prudent spending money when it's their own.

I also pay a fixed amount into a savings account for them every month but they are not allowed to touch that! :lol:
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