Pocket money falls by a quarter

25 August 2008 12:22am

The amount of pocket money children receive has fallen for the third year in a row, diving by nearly 25%, research showed.

The average child aged between eight and 15 currently gets £6.13 pocket money each week, down from £8.01 in 2007 and £8.37 in 2005, according to Halifax.

The group said if children's spending money had risen in line with inflation during the past three years, it would currently stand at £9.43 - £3.30 a week more than the current level.

But it added that it was not unusual to see annual falls in pocket money, with decreases also recorded in 1994, 1996, 1997, 2006 and 2007.

Around 23% of children receive a pocket money increase once a year, but 17% said they had not been given a rise during the past 12 months.

Among those who had received an increase, 41% saw their money rise on their birthday, while one in 10 said it went up during the summer holidays.

Halifax said pocket money was reverting to its original role of money for minor expenses, with parents buying more expensive items for their children, such as mobile phones and iPods.

Three-quarters of children now own a mobile phone, running up an average bill of £8.38 a month, which is paid by their parents in 70% of cases. Just over two-thirds of children also have an iPod or MP3 player.

Three out of 10 children save between £1 and £5 a week of their pocket money, but 28% admitted that they never set aside any of their cash.

Around 29% of children said they would save if they wanted something expensive, while 43% said they would ask for it for a Christmas or birthday present and 17% admitted they would pester their parents until they bought it for them.

© The Press Association