[Solved] Pocket money or allowance

Hi Pablo,

I'm asuming my kids are too young to start pocket money (oldest is 4), when did you start with yours?

And what's the going rate? I was recently shocked to discover that the "tooth fairy" rate(*) is £1 😯 I dread to think what pocket money costs ...

(*) Actually we don't do the whole tooth fairy thing, but we do do the money.

Usual info available on www.moneystuff.co.uk We are currently paying less than the average for 2001 - maybe the kids are right - we are sooo mean 👿

So when did you start?

At 6 and a half (because it was right after Xmas and he asked) with the first one and then we were stuck with it for the others!

Let's get it staight, the rules are quite simple,

1) You can never give enough to satisfy
2) 10 pence per childs age (so they don'y spent to much on fizzy drink and chocolate)
3) Monthly ammount added to their own bank account ( so they can by BIG items and get used to having an account)
4) Every now and then chuck some money their way just to say you love them
5) Every now and then ask them for some money so they can understand giving and helping others

What do you think to the list?

But what age did the 10p start???!!!

If you give an allowance eg monthly into their bank account you need to define clearly who is responsible for what ie do they pay for their own clothes, trips out etc?

10p per year sounds decidely mean - at 16 they'd only get £1.60 per week 😮

Does 'throwing' money at someone really say 'I love you' It all depends on your primary love languages ref The Love Languages of Children by Gary Chapman

i wonder how many black fathers give pocket money

Might be showing my lack of cultural knowledge here, but doesn't that sound rather harsh?

I do Koka - what makes you say that? What you getting at?

i wonder how many black fathers give pocket money...... I must have missed out the question mark in front of my statement. i still wonder though.

Would it be worth starting a poll ?

If you start a "new topic" under the finance section, and scroll down you will see two tabs - one labelled 'options' and one labelled 'poll'.

Click on the poll tab and it should be self explainatory... send me a private message if you have any problems and i can help out.

Or see the help topic under the FAQ -
http://www.dadtalk.co.uk/forum/faq.php? ... 0c43d23b3f

Hope this helps.

Children feel a sense of independence and responsibility towards spending the money the right way... They learn & understand the value of money... They also learn to understand that amount of money is limited and they need to always choose between their various desires to ensure correct use of their pocket money.
thanks

Yes I agree - helping them understand the value of money and that choices have to be made because they have a finite amount, is a very good way for parents to train their children for independent adult life.

Hi - would be interested in hearing how much other guys give their kids? No one here seems keen on talking figures! How much do your kids get each week?

Mine:
Age 14 allowance to cover clothes, shoes, outtings, mobile etc £45 a month
Age 12 pocket money for sweets, saving up, junk mostly £3/ week but subject to room being tidy & general behaviour
Age 10 as for the 12 year old but £2.50 - both go up 50p each year until they hit 13 & have to negotiate an allowance with us!

How about your kids?

Nero, you're paying more than us (just don't tell my kids!!) :

16yr old - 40 allowance per month
12yr old - 2.50 / week
10yr old. - 2 / week
8 year old - 1 / week

But we give the younger 3, 70p per week sweets money - nothing like taking them for Friday sweet!!

We also give the middle two a top up on their mobi's every 2 months (think its £10 but I've lost track as they don't always 'claim it')

We also start putting it into their bank accounts at 11, cos we found they can get a cashcard and so they start to learn about managing a bank account too!!

What about others? Are we under paying - or are our kids 'loaded"?

Ron

Give my 12 yo £3 per week in cash, plus I put £10 per month into an account for her (which I can access, she can't) so she can go clothes shopping couple of times a year (not essentials/school uniform - those I pay for). Mobile phone is paid for by my ex.

My 18 year old had a £30 allowance per month from about age 15 (stopped now as she earns enough in her own right doing part time job), plus I pay for her mobile phone contract, as long as she doesn't bust her call/text allowance.

I give my daughter £50 per month straight into her bank account and top up her phone, only around £10 per month pay as you go. She tends to use Facebook to keep in touch with her friends more. I buy her shoes, winter coat, and a few other clothes etc throughout the year. She's a student but doesn't have a part time job so if she runs out of money middle of the month then she is the one who suffers.

We give our kids (13 and 10 years old) £15 per month for which they have to do a few jobs around the house. This makes them realise that they are earning this money. They now do these jobs without objection but it was a struggle at first. They also tried to negotiate for anything I asked them to do!!!

I also pay for a contract phone for them (although I get a discount for the line rental) and then I pay pay for several clubs etc.

I think they both get a good deal!

As well as any allowance I pay, my youngest daughter also gets a small amount for some occasional jobs. The basic allowance is set without conditions - when they lived with their mother, she used to find any excuse not to pay them, so when they came to live with me, I told them that I would never do that.