Guides for parents

How much pocket money do UK children get at each age? The latest averages from the NatWest Rooster Money Pocket Money Index 2026, plus the main ways families give it (fixed, chores-linked, or split between saving and spending) and what each can teach.

You can pay up to £2,880 a year into a child's pension, and the government tops it up to £3,600. How the Junior SIPP allowance works, who can pay in, how it fits with the Junior ISA limit, and when the money can be used.

At 18, a Junior ISA becomes an adult ISA and the money is your child's to use. What changes at 16 and 18, the choices your child will have, and how to prepare them for the moment the money becomes theirs.

Fidelity charges no account fee on Junior ISAs; Vanguard charges 0.15% but keeps things simple with its own funds. A side-by-side look at fees, fund choice, minimums and transfers, plus how Hargreaves Lansdown compares.

Children born between September 2002 and January 2011 were given a Child Trust Fund, and hundreds of thousands have never been claimed. How to find one for free, what happens at 16 and 18, and moving one into a Junior ISA.

The Junior ISA limit is £9,000 for 2026/27. How the allowance works across two accounts and several family members, what happens if too much goes in, and simple ways to keep track.

When should you start talking to your children about money? And what should you say at each age? This practical guide gives you conversation starters and topics for every stage from 5 to 17.

Opening a Junior ISA usually takes under 30 minutes online. What you'll need, the choices to make, and what happens after you apply, step by step.

Cash Junior ISAs feel safe, and for short time frames they are. Over 18 years, though, the gap between cash and investing can grow large. Here's how the numbers work.

Opening a Junior ISA is simple, but a few easy slips can cost real money over 18 years. The most common ones, and how to avoid them.

Fidelity, Hargreaves Lansdown, Vanguard, interactive investor and AJ Bell compared on Junior ISA fees, fund choice, minimums and transfers. Several now charge no account fee at all. Charges checked September 2026.

Investment platforms, pocket-money apps and learning apps do different jobs. A plain guide to what each kind is for, what to look for, and where Squids-In fits.

Which index fund for your child's Junior ISA? What index funds are, why low costs matter, five well-known low-cost funds compared, and simple ways to put them together.

What should a 7-year-old know about investing? What about a 15-year-old? A stage-by-stage guide to what to teach, how to explain it, and activities that help it stick.

Cash or stocks and shares? How each type of Junior ISA works, what the difference could add up to over 18 years, and when cash still makes sense.

A Junior SIPP is a pension for a child, and the government adds 25% to every payment. How the top-up works, the £2,880 limit, how tax applies when the money comes out, and what it could grow to.

Age 18 or retirement: access is the real difference between a Junior ISA and a Junior SIPP. Compare the limits, the 25% top-up and who each account suits, with a worked example of using both.

How a Junior SIPP (a pension for a child) works: the 25% government top-up, the £2,880 yearly limit, when the money can be used, and who it suits.

How Junior ISAs work: the £9,000 yearly limit, tax-free growth, cash or stocks and shares, what happens at 16 and 18, and the mistakes worth avoiding.

Simple stories, worked examples and hands-on activities that help children understand how money grows, from snowballs for younger children to the formula for teenagers.