Caitríona Redmond: Teaching kids to put money into savings after a season of holy sacraments

Life skills may not be your first choice but could set your kids up for future success.
For children, receiving money as a gift is a fantastic way to learn to manage their finances and yes, even make mistakes. There’s learning to be gained from how they spend their money and whether they save what they’ve received.
The season of holy sacraments is nearly over, and many kids may be sitting on a nice nest egg as friends and family have gifted them money in celebration. Putting the money to good use is another question though, as your kids may need a little encouragement to look beyond spending it all at once.
It’s good advice to suggest that some of the cash can be spent immediately and the balance saved for a rainy day. There’s plenty of financial advisors who talk about which account to put it in, and which earns the most interest, but I’d encourage you to look beyond simple and compound savings accounts.
Take gold for example, in 2005 the average cost per oz of gold worked out at approximately €365. Today, that same amount of gold would cost just under €3,000. Putting the same amount of money into a long-term savings account with a compound interest rate of 3% it would be worth under €900 after 20 years, after tax and account charges.
Gold is a commodity that can rise and fall in value however, meaning there is risk involved in choosing to invest. If you’re considering this option, I recommend you talk to a Financial Advisor first.
If you look beyond investing money to get a monetary return, there are other options for the small fund that your child may be sitting on, that they would receive immediate benefit from.
Life skills may not be your first choice but could set your kids up for future success.
While swimming is an option on the primary school curriculum, many schools opt not to offer this and choose another sporting/fitness class instead. This is a valid choice that schools make but some young people head to secondary school and beyond without ever learning to swim.
Paying for swimming lessons for a year would give your child a vital skill that they will benefit from for the rest of their life. Bear in mind, it also requires a time investment on your part to bring them to and fro from the pool or beach.
Learning to code, build, and use computers is another option too. Raspberry Pi is a delectable sounding buildable minicomputer that comes as a starter kit costing just under €175 before delivery. Users learn how to build a basic computer, that plugs into a tv or monitor, from scratch and even play games. All of this requires basic coding skills that can be learnt as you go.
You may have noticed I don’t recommend buying a mobile phone! That’s because children have plenty of time to become connected as they age. There’s growing concern that early adoption of a mobile phone, connection to the internet, and social media accounts can endanger mental health.
Giving to others an excellent way for a young person to discover their potential impact on the world. It doesn’t have to be a large donation that makes a difference either. Just €5 donated on the Trocaire website, for example, is the value of a gift of soap to a family for six months as well as education in hygiene and washing.
Maybe a small amount of money could be set to one side to pay for gardening tools and seeds to grow their own flowers and food. This reminds me of that old saying: “Teach a man to fish…” We never know what the future holds, this small investment of time more than money, may enable your child to feed themselves (or others) in the future, but also have a very enjoyable past time as they age.
While it may sound frivolous, a trip to somewhere like Fota Wildlife Park may encourage an interest in animals and learning about the world around them. Belfast is home to both W5 and the Titanic Experience, giving you a chance to combine history and STEM in the one visit.
Heading to the Aran islands is an opportunity to learn about culture, history, and island life in modern Ireland.
As another example, I recently travelled to the Eden Project in Cornwall with my family and they have all benefited significantly from the visit.
It was an inexpensive weekend trip that they will never forget. Long term, all tickets double as an annual ticket so guests can visit as often as they like for 365 days. The list goes on.
Finally, if you do decide to invest some of the money into a savings account, consider adding to the fund yourself if you can on a regular basis. Even if it’s a few Euro here or there when you have it, in ten years’ time that should be enough to cover a full set of driving lessons.
The monetary value of the money your child has received isn’t the be-all and end-all, think beyond investing the cash and your child will reap the benefits in the future.
As the weather gets warmer, now is the time to turn off the radiators in your house and book a boiler service. You won’t be depending on the boiler to warm your home and if some necessary repairs do arise, you won’t be shivering under a blanket for a few days.
Boilers should be serviced annually to keep them energy efficient and check for any issues.
Just because “no mow May” has come to an end, you may not need to mow your lawn or green area immediately.
Check for nesting birds and budding wildflowers. Consider giving over part of your garden to wildlife permanently and save on time and energy instead.