Do you have children or grandchildren born between 1st September 2002 and the 2nd January 2011. They may be entitled to a nest egg that has been forgotten over the years
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Back in 2003, the then Labour Chancellor of the Exchequer, Gordon Brown, introduced a scheme to encourage children to save for their long-term future. This was in the days when the government gave out money in the budget rather than just taking it from us!
This was called a Child Trust Fund (CTF) and was a tax free savings vehicle to encourage parents to save for their children’s future. The idea was that savings could not be touched until the child reached the age of 18. To encourage participation the Government contributed £250 to start the savings off when a child was born and contributed a further £250 when the child reached the age of seven. These amounts were doubled for low-income families.
The scheme was open to all children born after 1st September 2002 and it officially started in April 2005 following a distribution of vouchers to parents of all eligible children.
Parents could choose from two types of schemes; a traditional interest bearing savings account or an investment based account based on the stock market. They were encouraged to add to this initial investment either by lump sums of monthly contributions.
The scheme was closed in 2011 by the Conservative Cameron government but existing accounts continued to earn interest and are now maturing as children reach the age of 18.
But around 30% of parents did not respond to the government’s offer and did not set up CTF accounts. In such cases, when a parent did not use their voucher, after a year the government set up an account on the child’s behalf and that has been accruing interest ever since.
So in many cases a child may have savings they know nothing about particularly if addresses have changed over the years.
If you have a child or grandchild born between 1st September 2002 and 2nd January 2011 it’s worth checking to see if there is some money awaiting them from this scheme. It is estimated that as much as £400 million is currently sitting in matured CTFs that have not been claimed.
You can find out how to trace a child’s CTF by visiting this website:
https://www.gov.uk/child-trust-funds/find-a-trust-fund/
You will need your national insurance number and if the child is over 16, their national insurance number. It can be done on line but you will have to set up a Government Gateway account. If you don’t have one it can be set up when you apply but is quite a complicated process requiring various proofs of identification.
Alternatively you can write to:
Charities, Savings and International 1
HMRC
BX9 1AU
You should request details of your child’s CTF and provide the following information:
- your full name, address and date of birth
- the child’s full name, address and date of birth
- any previous names you or the child have used
- your National Insurance number
You should also send the child’s National Insurance number if they have one.