How to open a Child Trust Fund
* For important information regarding the Child Trust Fund, Click here *
Once you have chosen your CTF provider, you will need to get in touch with them to open your account. CTFs are available from banks, supermarkets and shops like Mothercare as well as from financial services companies, and it may be a case of filling in a form on the back of a leaflet or downloading one from your chosen provider’s website.
The form must be completed by someone aged 16 or over who has parental responsibility for the child, and that person then becomes the ‘registered contact’.
The registered contact is the only person who can change the investments in the account, or move it to another provider, until the child reaches 16 and becomes responsible for his or her own account.
You will need to send off your voucher with the application form. If you lose your voucher you can get a replacement by calling 0845 302 1470.
Beware of the political minefield...
Child Trust Funds are currently at the centre of a political battle, the outcome of which will not be known until after the General Election in 2010. The Liberal Democrats have said they would scrap CTFs entirely; the Conservative Party have suggested they would limit CTF vouchers to the lowest-income third of the population. If you have just had a child it is probably worth getting the voucher invested as soon as possible, as it may not be an option available to you in future.
View other relevant articles here, giving more information on The Child Trust Fund and Budgeting.
