It’s no secret that my husband and I aren’t the most organised people in the world. We’ve only just sorted out life cover, are in the throes of arranging a mortgage and have no official will to our name. We’re working on becoming responsible adults this year, but life does tend to have a habit of getting in the way.
However, there is one thing that I am VERY organised about: my daughter’s money. Or, rather, my daughter’s bank account.
My toddler’s riches
When my baby girl was but a week old, I started researching the best bank account for her. We plumped for a couple of savings accounts and that’s where birthday money and regular monthly payments go each month.
The thing is, she’s only two at the moment, so she’s not in a position to question what we’re doing with her money. But what happens when she gets a bit older and no longer wants to save every penny she gets? What happens when she wants to take cash out to buy herself a magazine or go to the cinema? When is the right time for a child to open a current account?
I can so clearly remember getting my first bank account. I think I was about 11 or thereabouts. I felt so grown-up with my bank card, name embossed on the front and all. I don’t think I actually used my bank account for anything much until I got to around 13, by which time Saturday shopping trips to Tammy Girl and outings to the cinema were the norm.
I want my own daughter to have this kind of independence when she’s older, because I think it’ll help her learn the value of money. She may be only two, but I’ve already decided that when she’s a teenager, I don’t want her to have to come to me every time she wants to buy something. She’ll need to learn that some things she’ll have to buy herself, out of her own pocket money, because (and I’m aware this makes me sound ancient) I’m not “made of money”.
Bank accounts are a fact of life for most of us. I like the idea of an older Frog having her own little bank card and queueing up with me to sign up to her first piece of independence. It’s an important lesson in life I want her to understand fairly early: keep your money safe and spend it wisely. (Again, I’m aware I sound ancient.)
So, what do you think? When do you think is a good age to open a bank account for your kids?
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My 10yo is nagging me about this at the moment and I have no idea of the answer. Currently she manages her money very competently from a piggy bank and knows she must budget and save for things she wants so you don’t need an account to teach you that. I reckon there’s no point having one until they’re old enough to visit the bank by themselves, given the urgency with which they sometimes need cash, so am reckoning on around 15/16.