A simple and affordable way to save for a child you care about
If you surrender the plan before maturity (which is the term you select when first starting the plan), you may get back less than you have paid in. Tax treatment depends on individual circumstances and may be subject to change in the future.
Our Children's Regular Savings Plan is a great way to save in addition to a child's Tax Exempt Savings Plan allowance. Plans start from £5 a month or £50 annually.
Want to find out more about our Children's Tax Exempt Savings Plan? You can do so here.
This plan is designed for you to save monthly or annual amounts over the longer term. Choose how long you want to save (between 10 and 25 years) and once the child's plan hits maturity, we'll provide a guaranteed final amount, plus the addition of any possible annual and final bonuses.
Please be aware that a surrender penalty will apply if cashed in before maturity.
Anyone can have a plan or have several plans, a great option for you to save for a child, as well as yourself.
Our Children's Regular Savings Plan gives you the ability to save over and above the £25 per month tax exempt allowance.
This plan provides a guarantee on maturity and the potential to earn annual and final bonuses and to receive a better return than a cash savings account in the longer term - win-win!
Start saving now for a child's financial future.
Use our calculator to get an instant quote about your potential savings.
Confirm you have read and understood our Product and Key Information
Decide how much you want to save and for how long
Complete our straightforward online application
Confirm your details are correct and submit your application
Have a question or want to apply by phone? No problem, just give us a call and one of our friendly team will take you through the process. Either call us on 01226 741000, or click the link below and we can call you back at a time to suit you.
Want a bit more time to complete your application? Download an application pack and send it back to us when you're ready. If you don't have access to a printer, we can send you an application pack in the post.
Opening a plan is quick and easy and should take no longer than ten minutes to complete online. You can also apply over the phone or by post.
Unlike banks who add interest to their accounts, we add bonuses to our members' policies. Bonuses are calculated at the appropriate rate based on the guaranteed final amount, not the amount of premiums you pay. On maturity the child will receive the guaranteed final amount plus bonuses added during the life of the policy. Find out more in our FAQ section below.
Providing the plan runs to its planned maturity date with all premiums paid, we will guarantee a minimum final amount for more than you have paid in (based on the amount you want to save and for how long). The final value of your plan will depend upon investment performance, but bonuses are declared each year, and these are added to your guaranteed final amount. Once added, these bonuses cannot be taken away.
You cannot make any withdrawals, but if your circumstances change, you can surrender the child's policy. However, this plan is designed for medium to long-term investment and the surrender value may be less than the amount you have paid in. The payment will be made to the child on surrender or maturity.
To cover the cost of expenses incurred in setting up the policy and maintaining it, we take a management contribution of 50% of premiums paid in the first year and in the second and subsequent years 7.5% of the annual premium amount. The charges are deducted from the overall fund and taken into account when we calculate the level of bonuses we are able to pay.
Our most commonly asked questions regarding the Children's Regular Savings Plan can be found below.
Absolutely, choose a term between 10 and 25 years and watch your savings grow.
Yes, anyone can hold one of these plans, please see Regular Savings Plan.
We invest in a range of different assets with the aim of providing a higher return in the medium to long-term than is achievable with a bank or building society account. Sheffield Mutual's with-profits fund is managed to provide a low to medium risk investment, appealing to anyone with a more cautious approach to investment. Our investments include property, shares of UK companies, government gilts, corporate bonds, commercial mortgages and cash.
The proportion held in each of these will vary depending on market conditions. You'll be pleased to know that we seek to adopt an ethical approach to investing and it is our policy not to invest knowingly or directly in industries relating to armaments, tobacco, gambling or pornography.
Instead of interest, we pay bonuses on all of our with-profits products.
We invest our funds as described above and receive a return on those investments, which can vary from year to year. In March/April we review the returns achieved during the previous calendar year and then declare a bonus rate for each product type. The rate varies depending upon overall investment returns and is not therefore guaranteed to be paid at the same rate, or at all, in future years. However, once bonuses have been added they will not be taken away, providing the policy runs to maturity, or if the policyholder dies before the end of the term.
We also try to ‘smooth’ returns over the life of the policy by retaining some of the investment return in good years to maintain bonus rates in less positive years. However, to ensure the child receives their fair share of returns on the policy over its lifetime, an additional final bonus may be paid on maturity. Payment of this type of bonus depends entirely on investment performance and the rate at which annual bonuses have been added. It is not guaranteed and, if paid, the rate may vary from year to year.
The money you save is invested in a fund on which the Society pays tax and tax at the basic rate may be treated as paid on any taxable gain, which means there is likely to be no further tax to pay unless the child is a higher rate tax payer on maturity or surrender. However, a gain on which tax is treated as paid may have an effect on the child's tax liability if you qualify for age-related allowances or reliefs, or you are receiving tax credits.
In the event of death of the policyholder (child) before the end of the term, the Society will refund all premiums paid plus interest up to the date of death. Interest is calculated using the Bank of England base rate(s) that have applied during the term of the policy + 1%, though this could be changed in the future by the Society. Notice of any change will be given. If the person proposing the plan were to die, someone else could take over the payments, if there is nobody suitable, the plan could be closed and the payment would be made to the child.
If saving for a child, on maturity or surrender the payment is made to the child as the
beneficiary of the policy.
No, this plan does not include any life cover. For more information on our life insurance products, please visit the life insurance section on the website.
Our team would be more than happy to provide you with factual information about our products and services, so you can make your own decision about how to proceed. However, we are unable to give any financial advice or recommendations on the suitability of our products. If you are unsure, you should seek advice from a qualified financial adviser, which may incur a fee.
To comply with regulations, the Society will require a copy of the child's birth certificate, passport or a child benefit letter. This must be independently certified if saving more than £50 per month (£600 per annum). We will also require confirmation of your identification and address. We’ll aim to do this using an electronic verification system, but reserve the right to ask for appropriate documentation from you, if this is not possible.
We are here for you at all stages of your journey; our support articles cover a wide variety of topics and are designed to put you in control of your money.
We're a mutual friendly society, which means we are owned by our members (customers), with no shareholders to satisfy.
Our members are the people we care about the most. Any surplus profit is distributed to provide you with the best possible returns combined with the highest standards of personal service and ethical business practices.