Plans for easier access to Child Trust Funds praised by Doncaster MP

Plans for easier access to Child Trust Funds have been praised by a Doncaster MP.

Doncaster Central Labour MP, Sally Jameson, has praised the Government’s plans to make it easier for young people who lack the mental capacity to make financial decisions to access to their Child Trust Funds.

Last year, Ms Jameson encouraged people in her constituency born between 1 September 2002 and 2 January 2011 to check if they are entitled to as much as £2,200 in savings, lying dormant in a Child Trust Fund.

Following years of campaigning and legal difficulties faced by families, new legislation will be introduced by the Government to allow simpler access to Child Trust Funds, replacing the complex and often costly Court of Protection process.

The reforms are expected to allow parents and carers to go directly to Child Trust Fund providers to access savings, solving years of unnecessary anguish for an estimated 63,000 to 126,000 young adults.

Child Trust Funds were introduced in 2005 to provide children a financial boost as they start adulthood, but the scheme made no provision for 18-year-olds who lacked the mental capacity to manage their finances without a straightforward way to access their savings.

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Campaigners, disability charities, and the financial services sector will help shape the new process, protecting young people while pulling down barriers that have frustrated families for years.

Ms Jameson said: “Young people who lack the mental capacity to make financial decisions should be able to access their savings as easily as possible – especially when this money was put aside by loved ones to help them take their first steps into adulthood.

“The changes that the Government is introducing will help tens of thousands more young people to connect with their Child Trust Funds – worth on average £2,600 each.

“I’d encourage anyone born between 1 September 2002 and 2 January 2011 to check who their Child Trust Fund provider is and claim their entitlement”

To claim your Child Trust Fund, you will need to know which investment provider your Child Trust Fund is with. HMRC has an online tool where you can find out which provider your fund is with - https://www.gov.uk/child-trust-funds/find-a-child-trust-fund