Claiming Child Trust Fund cash

If you turned 18 on or after 1 September 2020, there may be cash waiting for you in a dormant Child Trust Fund (CTF).

If your children recently turned 18 you should check to see if they have claimed the money, to which they are entitled.

Children born after 31 August 2002 and before 3 January 2011 were entitled to a CTF account with the government contributing an initial deposit, usually of at least £250. These funds were invested in long-term saving accounts for newly born children. HMRC has confirmed that there are many thousands of teenagers that have turned 18 and not yet claimed the cash to which they are entitled.

An estimated 6.3 million CTF accounts were set up throughout the duration of the scheme. If a parent or guardian was unable to set up an account for their child, HMRC opened a savings account on the child’s behalf.

If you are over 18 and already know who your CTF provider is you can contact them directly to access your cash. This might be a bank, building society or other savings provider. If this information has been lost or is unavailable, then you can check and track down your provider online using a simple online tool created by HMRC.

If you turned 18 on or after 1 September 2020 there may be cash waiting for you in a dormant Child Trust Fund (CTF). If your children recently turned 18 you should also check if they have claimed the money to which they are entitled. The actual amount of money depends on many factors but averages some £2,100.

Children born after 31 August 2002 and before 3 January 2011 were entitled to a CTF account provided they met the necessary conditions. These funds were invested in long-term saving accounts for newly born children. HMRC has confirmed that there are many thousands of teenagers that have turned 18 and not yet claimed the cash to which they are entitled.

HMRC’s Second Permanent Secretary and Deputy Chief Executive, said:

'Teenagers could have a pot of money waiting for them worth thousands of pounds and not even realise it. We want to help you access your savings and the money you’re entitled to. To find out more search ‘Child Trust Fund’ on GOV.UK.'

An estimated 6.3 million CTF accounts were set up throughout the duration of the scheme, containing about £9 billion. If a parent or guardian was not able to set up an account for their child, HMRC opened a savings account on the child’s behalf.

If you are over 18 and already know who your CTF provider is, you can contact them directly to access your cash. This might be a bank, building society or other savings provider. If this information has been lost or is unavailable you can check and track down your provider online using a simple online tool created by HMRC.

HMRC has published their latest statistics on Child Trust Funds which reveal that whilst 320,000 accounts have now matured, 175,000 funds that have matured remain unclaimed.

If you turned 18 on or after 1 September 2020 there may be cash waiting for you in a dormant Child Trust Fund (CTF). If your children recently turned 18 you should also check if they have claimed the money to which they are entitled. The average market value of a matured but not withdrawn account was £2,142 and for a withdrawn account, was £2,721. The actual amount of money depends on a number of factors.

Children born after 31 August 2002 and before 3 January 2011 were entitled to a CTF account provided they met the necessary conditions. These funds were invested in long-term saving accounts for newly born children. 

Seven million CTF accounts were set up since the scheme was launched in 2002, roughly 6 million by parents or guardians and a further 1 million by HMRC where parents or guardians did not open an account.

Around 55,000 accounts mature each month and HMRC has created a simple online tool to help young people find out where their account is held. If you are unsure if you have an account or where it may be, it is easy to track down your provider online.

The actual CTF accounts are not held by HMRC, but by a number of CTF providers who are financial services firms. Anyone can pay into the account, with an annual limit of £9,000, and there is no tax to pay on the CTF savings interest or profit.

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Case Studies

The Tax Man

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Business Valuation in Distress

Take advantage of our impartial and rigorous due diligence procedures

FD in The Cupboard

Our innovative ideas are here to improve your business performance and secure appropriate and cost effective funding

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The Tax Man

The Tax Man

A new client was introduced to us via a recommendation with whom we arranged to meet on a regular basis in order to determine a number of changes that we felt were needed to their business structure. The client was at the time operating as a husband and wife partnership. The business was flourishing and had a number of large contracts with big organisations.

At the start of the process they were still heavily immersed in their day to day operations so we can get a full flavour for their ambitions, aspirations and growth plans. We quickly recognised there were sufficient tax savings which can be achieved by changing the structure from a partnership to a corporate entity. We carried out a business valuation and disposed of the goodwill from the old to the new business. Unfortunately, as often is the case with efficient tax planning, HMRC got involved and disputed our valuation.

An HMRC investigation can be a very stressful time for any client, even for those best prepared. However, our client had minimal input in the HMRC communication as we dealt with this professionally behind the scene. As an added benefit, our client could rest on the security that all work was covered by insurance and therefore all costs and time in dealing with this enquiry were covered by the fee protection policy we had put in place.

The initial approach taken by HMRC was very aggressive and they tried to present an argument that there was no goodwill in the business. We challenged HMRC’s view that the goodwill was worthless. After lengthy correspondence and numerous telephone calls, HMRC agreed 100% with our original valuation, which preserved our original tax saving plan for the client. Tax savings on this case where in the region of £75K at the outset, with ongoing savings of £6,000 per annum. We are pleased to add another happy client to our portfolio.

Business Valuation in Distress

Business Valuation in Distress

Selling a business is never an easy process, but when disputes arise, the need for a reliable third party due diligence process is even greater.

Tearle & Carver have extensive understanding of the requirements for remaining objective when managing a potentially difficult company buyout. In one such case, we were approached by the courts to act as independent accountant for an acrimonious business sale in which one partner was exiting the business and selling shares to the other. Given the circumstances, both sides had totally polar views of what their business was worth.

After arranging an initial meeting with the company, we were thorough in ensuring we completed due diligence, validating the figures in the accounting records, carrying out adjustments where appropriate, and drafting a set of reliable management figures within the framework required by the court.

A draft version of the report detailing our findings and conclusions was submitted to both parties, giving them the opportunity to voice any queries or concerns and ensure all relevant factors had been taken into account.

Through this process, we were able to submit a final report to the courts that was both binding and acceptable to both parties, effectively resolving what could otherwise have been a time consuming and costly process for all sides.

FD in The Cupboard

FD in The Cupboard

For smaller companies, it is often not possible or cost effective to pay for a full-time Financial Director.
Many of our clients therefore make use of Tearle & Carver’s extensive expertise to provide the services of an FD as and when required.

In this case, we were approached by the management team of an organisation looking to acquire the existing business via an MBO (Management buy out). Their business plan had proved ineffective for securing funding, and what they needed was financial expertise from someone with a developed understanding of the company’s internal workings.

Tearle & Carver helped deliver the solution our clients were looking through utilising our bank contacts in order to make the MBO viable, while also building a robust business plan and preparing our client for the rigorous vetting process. To help with cash flow issues, we introduced factoring which led to improved cash flow management.

We advised on the appropriate business valuation and structure, and continued to prepare monthly accounts to track profgress once the management were fully in command of all the information they needed to move their business forward.

In order to best assist these clients through the crucial first year of ownership, we attended board meetings on a regular basis, a service that we continue to provide to date.

With our continually developing understanding of their business, this client is able to remain confident that Tearle & Carver can provide any financial support they may need, now and in the future.