Pocket Money

[Waz1892]

Today's society, kids seemingly more demanding, what are peoples thoughts on pocket money and what is the "norm" these days

My son has just asked if he can start getting some.

I was 14 when i started getting Pocket money and i got the as was then Family Allowance for me which was £28 per month.  this would have been 1988ish

My son is 11, 12 in July and at present him and his sister (7) kinda of get what this wish without being spoilt of course.  If they want a comic or a Xbox or Wii game, then behaving is Ok they'll get it.

I think it is a good idea giving them the start of learning the value of money and learning that saving is a good practice to get into.

but what is a sensible amount do we think?  The average seems to differ when researching this

£10.00 per week is my initial thought...with jobs thrown in to help "earn it"

Maybe £5.00 for my daughter?

[millidonk]

At 14 I had already been a paperboy for 2 yrs.

Money off parents was pretty much just slave labour costs.

Fiver seems fair to me.

[EvilPie]

Have they got any Wii or xbox games or other stuff which they don't use any more?

Why not get them to sell those on ebay to finance anything new they want?

I don't have kids so I'm no expert but my ex's cousin used to make her son sell something before he could have something new.

It taught him a bit about 'you can't have everything' and also saved cluttering up her house with toys and games that didn't get used.

[DMorgan]

£28/month pocket money in 1988, wal!

I got £10/month starting out as far as I can remember, upped to £20 when I was about 15. I was a bit of a bean counter as a kid though, always wanted to do stuff for money. Funny how that never really translated into an actual carreer.

[Jon MW]

My sister's method is that if my niece's want something then they can ask for it - and if it's reasonable then they can either have the money or have it bought for them.

I like this system but obviously different people's interpretation of 'reasonable' would make the amount paid out this way vary pretty drastically.

[david3103]

£28 pm in 1988 = £61.88 today...

http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/bills/article-1633409/Historic-inflation-calculator-value-money-changed-1900.html

Seems a chunk for a 12 yr old, unless he's expected to save some for special purchases

[bobAlike]

I give my 12 year old lad £5/week, which he basically saves until he wants something.
I gave the same to the daughter until she was 15 and then I just worked out what we were spending on things like dance classes dinner money etc on a monthly basis and deposited that into a students account for her with her own debit card. She now budgets for what she wants and hopefully teaches her the value of money.

Word of warning though, you may get a shock when totalling up what you already spend. It came to £120/month for me   but at least now she uses all her own money for clothes and going out with friends.

[the sicilian]

I believe kids should be made to earn pocket money..few house hold chores etc.. teaches some decent life lessons for the slog to come and that mum & dads not always gonna be there with open wallet..

at 12 i had a friday evening and saturday job in a supermarket.. in school holidays my step dad had me labouring on building sites. One xmas i wanted a new stereo.. i had to earn towards it cos it was so expensive....

[Claw75]

I started getting pocket money at about 12/13 I think.  My brother and I got a fiver a week for whiich I had to do the dishes/wipe down the kitchen every night, and my brother had to keep the living room tidy.  If I wanted extra I could earn an additional fiver by doing the ironing at the weekend, and my brother had the option of cleaning the car.  I think I got the bum deal

Hannah doesn't get pocket money yet - I just treat her to magazines/sweets etc as and when, but when she's a bit older I intend to put a similar process in place where she has chores to do to earn her spends.

[Graham C]

We've just started giving our 7 yr old daughter a couple of quid pocket money for tidying her room each week. It's more about getting her to appreciate the value of things and we still buy her treats as and when, but she's learning that things do cost money.  She also enjoys saving up and having spending sprees at Claire's Accessories from time to time.  It seems about the right amount at the moment based on conversations with other parents of kids in the same year.

I can't remember how old I was when I started getting pocket money, probably similar to everyone else, 10-12 and a fiver a week seems to sound familiar.  I got a paper round at 13 and a job at the market at 14, then the good times rolled

[tikay]

We GIVE children pocket money?

The world has gone mad.

Back in my day........

[Claw75]

We GIVE children pocket money?

The world has gone mad.

Back in my day........

lol -  have you actually read the thread?!

Most people don't need chimneys sweeping nowadays

[George2Loose]

We don't give them a set allowance. They pretty much get what they need/want.

as for extras I'll sometimes pay Kieran and Esme to do certain chores. Quite often they ask cos they want the money

[tikay]

More seriously.

We never had pocket money, but it was not the done thing then, so it never bothered us.

But once I got to 9 or 10 years old, I was encouraged to get little jobs, & I got a paper-round, 5 shillings (25p) per week. Half of it had to be paid to my parents for "board & lodge". 

Soon, I had 2 paper-rounds (one morning, one night), & I also had a grocery delivery job for F Hawkins & Co, delivering grocery shopping on a "Trade Bike" each evening for 2 hours, which I did after school, but before the paper-round. I got tips on that job (being polite, & cooey-wooey to customers), & I kept all of those for myself, but 50% of my income from the 3 jobs went for "board & lodge". Later, I got a Sunday job, too, same deal.

In all, I was earning nearly a quid a week. Half of that went to "pay for my keep", & of the balance, I HAD to save half, via a National Savings Account (we purchased 6d stamps) , to put money away for buying Xmas pressies, & our annual holiday at the seaside.

I hated the idea at the time, but in later life, I think it served me well, teaching me, albeit not in an ideal way, the value of money, & why we work, & why we need to try & put a little money aside as we go through life. You cannot put a price on that, so it was worthwhile really.

Guess that would not go down very well in these enlightened times......it worked for me, though.

[The Camel]

More seriously.

We never had pocket money, but it was not the done thing then, so it never bothered us.

But once I got to 9 or 10 years old, I was encouraged to get little jobs, & I got a paper-round, 5 shillings (25p) per week. Half of it had to be paid to my parents for "board & lodge". 

Soon, I had 2 paper-rounds (one morning, one night), & I also had a grocery delivery job for F Hawkins & Co, delivering grocery shopping on a "Trade Bike" each evening for 2 hours, which I did after school, but before the paper-round. I got tips on that job (being polite, & cooey-wooey to customers), & I kept all of those for myself, but 50% of my income from the 3 jobs went for "board & lodge". Later, I got a Sunday job, too, same deal.

In all, I was earning nearly a quid a week. Half of that went to "pay for my keep", & of the balance, I HAD to save half, via a National Savings Account (we purchased stamps) , to put money away for buying Xmas pressies, & our annual holiday at the seaside.

I hated the idea at the time, but in later life, I think it served me well, teaching me, albeit not in an ideal way, the value of money, & why we work, & why we need to try & put a little money aside as we go through life. You cannot put a price on that, so it was worthwhile really.

Guess that would not go down very well in these enlightened times......it worked for me, though.

Half of your paper round money when you are ten for "board and lodging" seems a bit harsh!