£50 a month!

That is 12.5 a week.

It is not that much at all nowadays

I'm completely out of touch with this. Must ask the family when they visit this half term. Maybe have to up my game!

My older children have their family allowance monthly. From this has to come all clothes (excluding school uniform) trips out and any other items. No further money is forthcoming until next pay day. Result - both older grandchildren have looked for part time work. The 15 year old girl has found herself a job whilst 17 year old grandson is still looking. They both have CVs and are building skills and experience that will add the their CVs.

Years ago my own children had the same arrangement. This was to help them learn the value of money and budgeting.

If it can be afforded by the family and has purpose then I’m in favour of giving young people real life experience before they have to face the world on their own.

OP, it all depends what the GCs pocket money is for.

My children and grandchildren are lucky that we could afford to give them this life lesson. For many they learn it everyday in poverty.

Oh dear, first para beginning should read “My older GCs …

Note to self check before posting ?

I've just remembered my first proper job, in 1978.

My take home pay was £30.

I had to give my mum £10 for housekeeping
I put £10 a week into a TSB savings account.
The remaining £10 was mine to spend as I wished, but also had to cover things like sanitary towels/tampons, my bus fares to work and my lunch.

Even then, it didn't feel like a huge amount, even though I had very little social life.

Thinking even further back, to when I was probably thirteen (and my periods had started), my mum suddenly started giving me £5 a week pocket money. The only stipulation was that I had to buy my own sanitary products out of it, though I'm pretty sure that I also bought 'disposible' clothing such as tights out of it too
It sounded such a lot to me at the time, but actually, it was not an amount that allowed me to be very frivolous.

So, based on that, £50 a month today for a teenager actually sounds very reasonable to me now

I think I got about 50p a week back in the 70s. However I also did a lot of babysitting jobs which paid for clothes. My parents were usually happy to give me money for going out with friends so the 50p covered the cost of a magazine and some sweets.

£50 per month just for luxuries is a lot.
£50 per month to cover clothes (other than school uniform), travel (except to and from school), outings- cinema, etc. and own cosmetics, toiletries, AND also to be used to purchase such things as birthday and Christmas pressies for family and friends, , is about right. Will also help these youngsters learn how to budget. Spend too much on an outing, or friviolous item will leave them short for essentials. Also to encourage them to even save some at the monthly allowance.

I became a mature student at 30, with children aged 5 and 7. I was horrified at the financial incompetence of some of the 18 year olds who had spent a term’s grant (remember them?) in the first three weeks, and put the children on monthly pocket money. DD was frugal and careful, DS was not and learned the hard way. DD had a clothing allowance from 14 which was for out of school wear and soon realised that very cheap clothes didn’t wash well and had to be ironed (and not by me). Like Franbern, I think children need to learn that what you spend is often a matter of choice and if you do one thing you may not be able to afford another. I also opened building society accounts into which I put £5 a month for s school trips so that they could decide what they really wanted to do. All good learning which has stood them in good stead in adult life.

I agree that it’s very important to learn how to budget early in life. We gave our lot an allowance from age 14, and they bought their own clothes etc from then on in (apart from essentials like school stuff, of course). They all soon realised they’d need part-time jobs if they were to afford everything they wanted! And we were actually better off when we started doing that.

As MamaCaz said though, part-time jobs are probably harder to come by now for 14 year olds so yes, I’d top it up if they agreed to do jobs round the house.

I’d top it up if they agreed to do jobs round the house.

To clarify, I meant extra jobs. They were always expected to tidy up after themselves, make their beds etc - no payment for that!

Lizzie72

My DD (single parent now, 2 children) is on Universal credit and has just lost £87 a month.

Lizzie72 Mine also and she works full time I worry how she will manage,her children do not receive pocket money as such just bus fares to school and change for a drink/snack at school.

The OP talks about a 14 year old. How easy is it for someone that age to have a Saturday job ?

£600 a year seems an awful lot to me. What if there is more than one child? That's besides the cost of actually keeping the child. I think it's too much and, at 14, they could surely find odd jobs to do somewhere. At that age a schoolfriend and I found a delicious toffee recipe so we made it and sold it in school. We were quite enterprising and used to bring it out before lunch when everyone was hungry. We made a bit of money though obviously not much. My son, age 12, used to walk a dog for an elderly lady. There's always a paper round. I never just gave my children money like that.

Times change. £50 seems a lot but probably isn't in today's culture.
I used to get one shilling a week, but that was in the 1940's.
Then I managed to get a Saturday morning job in a pet shop
where I earned ten shillings for 4 hours work. I felt so rich!
This was about 1950 when I was 13.

Lucca, as I said, up-thread, my teenage GC have had and still have jobs. How did they get jobs? I those well worn words, they 'got on their bikes' and asked. Oldest GD originally started, as many still do, with a paper round and eventually was promoted to behind the counter. Oddly enough, employers like youngsters with initiative.

annodomini

*Lucca*, as I said, up-thread, my teenage GC have had and still have jobs. How did they get jobs? I those well worn words, they 'got on their bikes' and asked. Oldest GD originally started, as many still do, with a paper round and eventually was promoted to behind the counter. Oddly enough, employers like youngsters with initiative.

Ok I was only asking ! I wondered about the legal age for employing teenagers, that’s all.

Granddaughter upthread is 15 and can only do daytime shifts currently. She works on a Sunday.

I had a paper round at 13 and later had a Saturday job in Boots. I realised quite quickly that I could only have what I could pay for. A huge life lesson but it’s stood me in good stead to make my money go as far as possible.

Lucca

annodomini

Lucca, as I said, up-thread, my teenage GC have had and still have jobs. How did they get jobs? I those well worn words, they 'got on their bikes' and asked. Oldest GD originally started, as many still do, with a paper round and eventually was promoted to behind the counter. Oddly enough, employers like youngsters with initiative.

Ok I was only asking ! I wondered about the legal age for employing teenagers, that’s all.

One of my DD got a Saturday job in a small supermarket at 15 and stayed there all the time she was at school.
She found out much later she shouldn't have been allowed near the bacon or cold meat slicers at that age, H&S rules. No-one ever said.

I worked at the co op throughout my a level year, I would have been much better focussing on my A levels

Times have really changed. There just aren't the paper rounds and Saturday jobs about any more. There are also so many things we didn't have to pay for - like mobile phone bills. I don't feel it's necessary for grandparents to make a contribution, though, unless the parents are really struggling.

Lucca

annodomini

Lucca, as I said, up-thread, my teenage GC have had and still have jobs. How did they get jobs? I those well worn words, they 'got on their bikes' and asked. Oldest GD originally started, as many still do, with a paper round and eventually was promoted to behind the counter. Oddly enough, employers like youngsters with initiative.

Ok I was only asking ! I wondered about the legal age for employing teenagers, that’s all.

It's 13, Lucca, for part-time work, though restrictions apply.

www.gov.uk/child-employment/restrictions-on-child-employment

One of our paperboys looks around that age. The other one is older than me.

When my sons were that age I gave them a monthly allowance which was to cover everything except clothing and shoes etc. We found it worked out really well, if they spent it all at the beginning of the month they knew there would be no more until pay day. It made them really responsible with money. I certainly don't think it's excessive, break it down, what does it have to cover?

We give both our DGDs £50 a month. This from when they started secondary school. Not only to spend but so they can learn to manage their money .

For posters who say it is too much money - how much do you think it is appropriate?