Saving for Grandchildren

If you can commit to the money every month, then you can get an investment type account - better interrest but you have to save regularly and tie it up - I think
I would stronglu say, dont bother with post office children's bonds. My mum gets these for the kids each birthday, and whilst we appreciate it, the interest is terrible, and we have hundreds of individual certificates to keep...

This is a good a/c, currently paying 6% which is a pretty good rate

I tend to use ftyourmoney to locate the best investment accounts but the one BIWI has suggested is a good one.

Has the CTF completely gone for newborns now That's a shame. Even if they can't get the voucher it's a really good idea for them.

The National Savings Childrens Bonus Bonds are pretty good. Interest is 4% and you get that on the amount you pay in, immediately. So, if you are investing a larger amount, it is good.
The Halifax account is good for monthly savings but, as you will only be putting a smaller amount in as monthly payments, the 6% interest will probably be not so good over the long term as it will take a while for the amount in the account to build up. Unless, of course, you are going to put, say, a thousand in a month!

I'd like to start saving for my new grandson but may not be able to commit to a set amount (unless small) each month. Any ideas on the best ways to save if perhaps wanting to add a lump sum whenever I can afford it?

I believe special children's ISAs will be introduced around Sept/Oct. Unless the interest rates are particularly good, is there likely to be any benefit in waiting and investing in an ISA (as the amount saved by myself and the baby's parents will be well below the tax threshold anyway) rather than opening one of the accounts suggested (or paying into an account already opened by my son-in-law)?

If a child got a trust fund from the government you cannot use the new child Isa as well. Seems a bit unfair as it is possible that the trust fund money will not give a great return.

My grandson was born in March so missed out on the trust fund
but I will look into the account suggested + trust funds.

I read this in the paper today and checked it out with the web site- sounds like the children who got CTF's are going to be disadvantaged, is there anyone we might influence to try to change the policy? Lots of us try to save a little for our GC's, if we can only save for our GC's in their CTF because the accounts can't be transferred, we might be throwing our money away!

Quote from paper-
Kevin Mountford, head of banking at moneysupermarket.com said: "It's great to see the government incentivising people to save for their children's future, and anything that educates consumers at an early age can only be seen as a good thing. However, it is disappointing to see that any child who currently holds a CTF will not qualify for these new accounts.
"With the lack of focus on CTFs, the danger is children with these accounts will languish on poor deals, while those with Junior ISAs will benefit from competition in the market.
The ability to transfer funds from CTF accounts to a Junior ISA would have been welcomed, or at the least, the ability to open a Junior ISA in addition to a CTF, though it is encouraging to see that the government will consider this in the future."

I saw that article too, Cloudfree, and gave it to my daughter and son in law. I have a grandson with a CTF, and there's a new baby due at the end of the year, who will have a different and possibly more effective savings vehicle. That just doesn't feel right to me.

If there were to be something I could do to help influence government policy, I'd be very happy to throw my not inconsiderable weight behind a campaign.

I save with the Halifax like BecauseImWorthIt for our grandson. I set up a standing order every month when he was 6mths old and its slowly mounting up as hes 3 now -I cant afford much but I dont miss the few pounds a month. You can start with £10 a month and increase it if you find you can afford it and also lower it if your circumstances change.
They have another baby due next year though so will have to do the same for that one which will double the amount lol

I put £20 per month into my nephew and grandsons savings account via direct debit every month. the trouble is I started this when I was working and now retired seven years later I would like to stop but dont like to for fear of giving oofence - any thoughts plse?