My Money Week: NBS staff share their favourite tips to teach children about cash

As a building society that actively encourages positive, healthy discussion and education about long-term savings habits, we’re delighted projects such as My Money Week (11 – 17 June) are highlighting the importance of financial education within the school curriculum.   

My Money Week is a national charity project launched by Young Money (and supported by money guru Martin Lewis) which aims to provide creative and engaging resources for schools to teach students how to become savvy with their money management.   

How can you encourage your children to save money?

To celebrate, we wanted to share with you a selection of great ideas from our staff who reveal their tried-and-tested ways to teach children the value of money. 

From using technology to help keep your kids motivated to treating pocket money as an earned monthly income, there’s something for everyone:

“I’ve got two boys aged 13 and 9. I want them to understand that they need to work for money so we’ve recently started using an app (OurHome) which enables me to set chores for them to complete, if they want to, in order to earn points which convert into money. The fact that it is an app has really helped to engage them, although I did have to pin down the settings because my 9 year old, who is very tech savvy, quickly worked out how to massively increase the points for each task!  It is working well so far –they’ve  cleaned my kitchen cupboard doors, hoovered, washed the floors, weeded the patio, cleaned the radiators, dusted, kept their bedrooms clean, polished their shoes… -  I’m loving it!” Erika Neves, Head of Risk and Company Secretary

“On our recent holiday, my boys had a set amount of money each to spend whilst they were away. It really made them think about what they were buying and also stopped them constantly asking for money whilst we were there.” – Emma Lavers, Marketing Support Manager

“Every birthday and Christmas, I always make a point to encourage my children to put their money into their savings passbooks and where possible, bring them into the branch to pay their money in. They enjoy the process of taking their passbooks down, sitting at the counter and getting their money out. In fact, when the girls get money now they always say that they want to save it because they’re excited to bring their money in.”Luke Pummell, Direct Sales Manager

“I opened an account for my son when he was a few months old and on his 1st birthday I asked everyone for money, rather than presents, so I could put it into his account. You normally have everything you need for your child, so loved ones spending money on more toys just seemed like a waste.” – Bronwyn Tucker, Graphic Designer

“My son has to earn this pocket money just like a regular income. He has a list of jobs he has to do by the end of each month with a price tag next to each one (jobs he hates earn more money than those he doesn’t mind). It’s a win-win situation as he gets the money he needs and I get help. Plus it makes him spend his money wisely.” – Debbie Springer, Senior Finance Assistant

“I gave each of my children a safe in their bedroom with a key and I would put their allowance/wage into it for the month. From that allowance they would choose to pay for any after school clubs, magazines, holiday money, etc. They each had a little expenses list and they would each write what money they chose to spend on the list each month until it had gone. They both quickly learned to be protective of their money!” – Sarah Rouault, PA to Executive Directors

“We have filled a toy cashier till with real money so my five and three year old can feel and play with it. We recreate playing shops and cafes a lot. Earlier this year my eldest started wanting to learn the names of the coins and is beginning to get an idea of the value. She still prefers coins to notes though!” Cara Holley, HR Adviser

“My grandmother always used to say to me “Look after the pennies and the pounds will look after themselves!” There are two ways of looking at this, firstly it’s an encouragement to save whatever and whenever you can and then one day you will find the pennies have grown into pounds. Secondly, you could look at it as a way to encourage being more careful with money: shop around for a bargain or don’t spend money unnecessarily and then you will find you have more to spend on something else or save some for a rainy day.” Andy Ransom, Compliance Manager

“When buying presents for a family member or friend, give your child a budget to work to. Guide them but let them do the shopping so they have to consider prices and what they can get for their money e.g. they have £10 and need to buy a card and a present. There are shops that sell cheaper cards which mean they can spend more on the present, so encourage them to look around. Often they have ideas that are going to be way above the budget so rather than say it’s too expensive, take them to a shop and ask them to check the tag. They are usually very surprised!” - Melanie Mildenhall, Head of Customer Service 

Visit ‘How to teach your kids about money at home’ for further savings tips and tricks.

If you would like to talk to one of our qualified savings advisers about which of our savings accounts would be right for you or your child, contact us or visit your local branch

For a full listing of our current savings accounts, click here.

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